sheep lover from an early age!

sheep lover from an early age!
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Wednesday, August 18, 2010

A pot roast healing

I decided the other day to have it out with this pot roast thing. I still didn't get it. What the heck is a pot roast? Having not grown up with them, their mystique has eluded this little aussie through her many years of state-side-um. Well, I decided to just go for it! I was going to have a pot roast healing or ....well ....eat old leftovers!

I dusted off the slow cooker that lives on top of the fridge... and ...well just so you know, I'm not a reskipee person, which is why I call them reskipees... I skip around recipes. Basically, here's what I threw in the pot:

a 2lb grassfed chuck roast
2 big oak hill farms carrots
2 ribs of celery
1 whole star anise (just for fun)
1 lonely bay leaf
a hunk of organic ginger nob
sprigs of fresh parsley and flowering thyme from the garden
celtic sea salt & tons of black pepper
1 cup of cab sav (cheap stuff)
2 cups of my jaggy baby's chook broth (see my reskipee)

I cooked it on high for 3 hours, then low for several more. The first tasting was okay. The meat was very soft. Two and three days later, this dish became heaven in my mouth. Every bite felt like pure soul food and my body was calmly gloating as the meat melted in my mouth. The little hint of my naughtiness disguised as star anise was a bright surprise. Now I want you to have fun making your own version of a pot roast healing but, if you're not like me and want a real recipe, go to the nourishedkitchen.com or cheeseslave.com. Those nice sheilahs' will do you right, I'm sure. They have all kinds of proper reskipees. And please don't be mad, but I think I mighta added a tiny bit of tomato sauce as well... sorry, I just can't remember! Please use your best judgement, responsibly...

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

How Jaggy Baby makes her Chook Broth


So many people have asked me what is bone broth and how do you make it...
It's bloody good old fashioned stock, that's what it is!

I learned how to make it from someone who adapted it from the book "Nourishing Traditions" by Sally Fallon (see my recommended book list)

Using bone broth has made a huge difference in my health. I've being using it for a while, but got extra serious about it after being diagnosed with an autoimmune illness. My doctor recommends I have 2 to 3 cups a day. Now I make it every week and consume it on a regular basis.

I have left in the local supermarket references for those who live in Sonoma County.

Using chicken backs and necks + feet is the best and cheapest... Feet make your broth really healthy as they are full of collogen and other minerals. Of course if you have access to chooks who have been running around in a paddock, they are the best... go for it!

CHooK BRoTH

All ingredients available at Sonoma Market ... however I would buy the carrots, parsley and onions from Paul's Produce at the farmers market....

In freezer section (ask Meat counter blokes or the sheilah (all one of her) if you can't find them)
I smaller size package chicken necks and backs
I smaller size package chicken feet
or
one whole organic chicken (take offal out of chicken, rinse and use)
Whole Foods often sell backs and necks, but not feet unfortunately.

Put these in a LARGE soup kettle with thick bottom, stainless steel, or enamalled cast iron, preferably. Gently bring to a simmer and scrap off scum that rises to the top.

Now add:
a good splash of raw organic Apple Cider Vinegar with the mother
(this helps leach the minerals out of the bones)
2 good pinches of Celtic sea salt (I buy fine ground from bulk section)
2 good sized carrots chopped in large pieces
2 stalks celery chopped in large pieces
3 shitake mushrooms
2 pieces of Kombu or some nettle (both add more minerals to broth)
1 onion cut in half (leave skin on if organic)
3 garlic cloves
a 2 inch chunk of fresh ginger

cook on low simmer for 8 to 24 hours. (I usually cook mine for about 20 hrs)

Add some organic italian parsley 30 minutes before turning broth off heat if you want to add exta minerals. Sticks of astragulus in broth from the beginning will also enhance the inmunity properties of the broth. They are available from SM bulk herbs and spices counter.

I usually top off the pot with additional water after a few hours of simmering when the water level has dropped. Once cooking is done, let it cool off a little, so it's easier to handle, but when still warm, strain thru a fine strainer. Put in containers (preferably glass) and pop in fridge.

Leave overnight. Skim congealed fat off top of broth next morning or leave it in the broth, which is what I often do. This fat is healthy if chickens are, so use it for frying or sauteeing. Animals love it if you don't want to use it. Broth can now be frozen for later use.

Broth will be gelantinous, especially if you use the feet! Heat and enjoy with a teaspoon of extra virgin coconut oil in each serving, use the broth in your daily cooking, or like I often do, season it with gluten free tamari, hot pepper sauce, a little fish sauce & a dash of coconut milk. Extreme yummy factor, here I come!

Never microwave to heat up... why destroy something you just put your soul into? Sip and feel the nourishment...

This broth heals your gut, makes your skin look lovely and my nails have never been so strong. This obviously means it's helping my bones too. Let's knock mugs... Cheers mate!

Getting at the crusty bits



I was enjoying a lovely massage one morning, when my massage therapist Colleen and I discussed the possibility of me blogging about my journey back to health. Since I got sober nearly 7 years ago, an addiction to sugar has surfaced with a vengeance. I say surfaced because it was always there... I was just drinking the sugar rather than laying my face into a 1.5 quart of Breyers.

One step on this healing journey is going to be about getting at the crusty bits. "Pardon?" you say... well you might if you were an Aussie like me, but you said excuse me? ... Hey, I can work with that...

Some of us might have crusty bits that we need to deal with in order to get well. One of the ways I am using to support my ol' crusty self right now is to eat really delish-kiss nourishing food. Now, everyone knows that food tastes extra good when you deglaze the pan of all the crusty bits, so my life might just get even more tasty, if I get all the crusty bits adhered in me, offa me!

Side note here: Seeing that I don't always have booze in my home, I often use Kombucha to deglaze my pans if I want a sweeter tasting jus or I'll use Apple Cider Vinegar for a sourer sauce. Ooooh, makes you wanna smack your lips! More on sober sauces later...

So in addition to making yourself (and your family) happy with fabulous tasting tucker (oz speak for food), you might also look into making everyone (including yourself) happier by deglazing any "crusts" that are hanging onto you.

But, be warned... getting at our emotional crusty bits requires extreme gentleness, so be sure to use the "loving self kindness" rather than the "harsh judging" method. By no means should you hack away at crusty bits with a chisel! Just let that old stuck-on rubbish come up to breathe for a few seconds at first, try to relax and let it soak, and before long, you'll see that it sometimes just peels off real easy.

At other times, it might take lots of self care, understanding, and loving forgiveness, which is something some of us might have to learn or re-learn. But, do not worry, we will all get there, one baby step at a time. Just keep practicing.

Lately, I have come to believe that I don't need to actually play with my crusts, I can just cut them off or give them away to a friend who loves them! In other words interrupt the negative or sad thoughts and give them over to my God bloke. He seems to know what to do with them when I just don't have a clue.

In looking at myself, I see that I do have a tough crust. However, I am also realizing that the thoughts I'm having about my crusty bits are just thoughts about the past or the future and that "old stale" crusts or future "imagined" crusty situations, really have nothing to do with the real me or who I am, today. You know, I think I am getting ready to shed my crust... Look! there's another crack! Until it's totally gone though, I might just pretend that I don't have a crust anymore. I am an open faced sandwich whose crusts have been trimmed.

Btw.. that's a piccy of my favorite "crust muncher" up there beside me. You can borrow Him if you like, until you get your own.