QUINTESSENTIAL CULINARY ESSENCE

Every several months there comes a time when the door to our freezer starts getting a little difficult to close. No, we haven't over-shopped at Trader Joe's---our bone stash has just grown to critical mass. It's time to make stock!

            Recently, a friend was recovering from a debilitating surgery and in need of support. Several of her friends got together and took turns making food and dropping it by the house for her. Our contributions were all soups and stews because of their healthful, nurturing quality. The feedback from our friend was that she loved them, but also she wanted to know what was the quality or energy she was perceiving when she ate them that felt so healing and life-giving. "It's the homemade stock!".

            As far as I know, stock making is part of every professional chef's and serious cook's regimen but it's also an easy habit for anyone to cultivate. We've been routinely making stock in our household for such a long time that I'm surprised when people walk in and rave about the divine aroma, ask what we're making, and then look at us quizzically for a more thorough explanation.

            Stock making is a straight forward and simple endeavor but it does require a few days on the stove top to distill the final essence. We start with at least four large zip lock bags of frozen bones. The bones are mainly chicken with some beef, pork, or other poultry depending on what we've been eating. Wild game bones always add a nice quality too if you have them. And you can always round out your collection of bones from the meat department at the supermarket. Geoff feels that the char broiled leftovers from barbecuing tend to add a nice character to the stock too.

            Place all of the bones in an eight quart (or larger) pot with water. Add: 2-3 carrots, 2-3   celery stalks, and 2 medium onions (all coarsely chopped); 2 T salt, 2 bay leaves, 2 t thyme, 6-8 whole cloves, 1+ T parsley. You can use fresh herbs but dried work fine and are usually in the cupboard, ready and available. Now, Julia Child will tell you to place all of the herbs in a cheesecloth bag but I don't.

            Sometimes it takes a while to fit in all the bones, but once all the ingredients are in the pot, let it simmer all day (turn off at night) for about three days. This long cooking process is the real secret behind a truly great stock in which all the healthy benefits from the bones have been extracted. Periodically skim off the foam and fat that rise to the top   and add water as needed but otherwise, just let it do its thing. This will fill your house with a rich, warm, mouth-watering, healthy aroma.

At long last, when all of the beautifully nutritious flavor has been extracted, let the pot cool and pour into a large bowl through a colander. Discard the spent bones, etc. Rinse the pot or get out a smaller one and again pour the liquid into this pot through a fine strainer (this is how I forgo the cheesecloth). Heat again, skimming off any remaining fat or scum. You can now either boil it down further for a very concentrated stock, or after cooling, pour into containers for freezing. I use recycled (yogurt/salsa/etc.) 8 oz. to 32 oz. containers. The yield will be approximately two quarts.

After 20 years as a world-class athlete, Holly Beatie's personal healing journey has led her to discover her inner gifts of ancient knowledge of the plant realm. She develops Flower Essences in the High Sierra Mountains and makes Flower Essence Formulas and other botanical products that utilize this ancient knowledge for profound transformational and natural healing support. For more information about High Sierra Light Flower Essences and High Sierra Botanicals contact Holly Beatie, PO Box 4275, Truckee, CA 96160. 530-550-0885.

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