Tag: vegetable stock

Homemade Vegetable Stock

Published on by Shannon L. Buck16 Comments

By not having to purchase canned vegetable stocks, you’ll save money on your grocery bill.  Use the peels and ends of the vegetables from your cooking ventures, along with some pieces of whole vegetables, if necessary.  Herbs may also be used. Nothing has to go to waste completely.

The finished product may be frozen in ice cube trays, and then placed in freezer bag and put back into the freezer. Use ice cubes in place of some of the water when cooking rice and pasta, or even when making casseroles.

You might also choose to pour the liquid directly into the containers and freeze like that. This can later be used when cooking soups and stews.

The process is simple, but will take some time. This is perfect to make when you will be home for a number of hours.

  1. Place these odds and ends into a large pot.
  2. Add fresh herbs if you’d like.
  3. Fill the pot about 2/3 of the way with water.
  4. Cook down to about half the liquid.
  5. Strain the liquid.
  6. Discard the non liquid ingredients at this point. (I add these to the stews that I make for my cats so that nothing goes to waste. Or you could compost them.)
  7. Reconstitute the liquid by 2/3 to 1/2 and cool.

That’s it! A simple task that does not take much hands on time.

Shannon

Photograph by Shannon L. Buck, copyright March 5. 2015. http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/shannonbuck

Harvest Soup

Published on by Shannon L. Buck6 Comments

Autumn is my favorite season. I love watching the leaves change, photographing yards dressed up for the autumn months, and creating new recipes from the foods local farmers are harvesting.

While Farmer’s Markets may seem expensive, you really can find good deals when shopping them just before closing time. In-season produce is often on sale at the grocery store, and roadside stands sell produce pretty cheap this time of the year. My stepfather recently purchased a 50 pound bag of potatoes for $10.00. This was a good deal for fresh potatoes.

Soups are just one meal I enjoy experimenting with. This is a recipe I came up with for the slow cooker.

Ingredients:

10 baby red potatoes

1 sweet potato

1 small acorn squash

10 baby carrots

about 10 pumpkin chunks

1 small can diced tomato

1 small can vegetable stock

water

fresh parsley

fresh rosemary

crushed garlic grinder

sea salt grinder

black peppercorn grinder

  1. Wash the produce. Lay on a towel to dry slightly before beginning to fill your crock.
  2. Cut any bad parts off the red potatoes, cut into halves or thirds, depending on their size, and place these in the bottom of the crock.
  3. Add the carrots to the crock.
  4. Cut up the squash and the sweet potato, placing these over the carrots.
  5. Add the pumpkin chunks, the tomatoes with their liquid, and the can of vegetable stock.
  6. Fill the crock to the 2/3 point with water, then add the seasonings. (I do seasonings to taste, adding a little now and more toward the end of the cooking time.)
  7. Cover and cook: High – 2 to 3 hours, Low – 4 to 6 hours.

Tips

  • To save the most money, grow most of the produce. Look for deals everywhere else.
  • For added savings, make your own vegetable stock. Or, purchase store brand types at the grocery store.
  • Feel free to add some meat, if desired.

Serving Suggestion