One way to make recipes vegetarian friendly is to use vegetable broth or boullion instead of meat alternatives. Since our friendly neighborhood markets don't carry veggie boullion, we buy the broth, and boy is it expensive! After our last overpriced purchase of fancy schmancy veggie broth, I decided to look into making our own. A bit of Internet perusing and I chose this
"recipe", which essentially includes the following steps...
Throw some veggies and/or veggie "parts" (no peeling or chopping necessary) in a pot. The recipe suggests always using a base of onion, carrots, celery, and mushrooms, but it all sounds pretty flexible and you can use whatever's available. We just had onion, carrots, broccoli, snap peas, and tomatoes, so I went with that. Also add garlic, salt, pepper, and other herbs/seasonings of your choice. Finish it off with a gallon of water.
Bring it all to a boil, then cover and simmer for an hour. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Finally, strain out all the veggies, seasonings, etc. I don't have a mesh strainer, so I just strained it several times and got most of the stuff out. At this point, your broth is ready to use for cooking, freezing, etc. My plan is to make a big batch like this to keep on hand in the freezer for whenever we need it.
For my first try, I'm pleased, although upon a second reading, I should've cut the big onion in half, and next time, I'll definitely use more veggies for a more robust flavor. All just part of the journey...
For my first try, I'm pleased, although upon a second reading, I should've cut the big onion in half, and next time, I'll definitely use more veggies for a more robust flavor. All just part of the journey...
2 comments:
Looks great! An easy way to store broth is in the gallon/quart bags, they freeze flat so you can stack them, and if you need a smaller amount you grab a quart bag, so you don't need to thaw a big container. I love having homemade broth around we use it in a lot. Its an easy way to get nutrition into a toddler. I love the smell when its simmering too!!
well, aren't you just something?
another thought: you might also try throwing some broth in an ice cube tray to freeze, then popping out when frozen, insert into a plastic baggy. that way when you need an extra punch of flavor, but just need a tad, you can reach in and grab one or two. YOU GO GIRL! Mama is proud!
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