Homemade Chicken Broth and Radish Sprouts!!

Proud of myself #1: The last sunny day we had was May 4th. Isn't that crazy??? Anyway, that was two days after my fall, and also the day I overdid it again in the garden. I planted carrot and radish seeds in big containers on April 29th, and look! Look!! :))  I have radish sprouts, despite the crazy cold weather and not having watered them more than once since I planted them. They actually have been covered 99% of the time with the lids of the containers. The only time I took the lids off were when we had tiny pockets of sun, so I'd say in the last 8 days, they got 1 hour of sunshine. The carrots haven't popped up yet. I'm so happy to see these little radish sprouts!!!

Proud of myself #2: I made 5 liters of chicken broth yesterday! Whole chickens were on sale the other day for $1.79 a pound so I bought 2 of them. 

Our combined digestive issues have Alex and I at the end of our ropes. We love to eat and there are things we won't give up...but we are striving to eat better food. After reading some labels, we decided it was time to try our own broths. This is the label of the Bovril chicken broth. I got some great advice many years ago "if you can't pronounce it or don't know what it is, DON'T eat it." with regards to label ingredients! Besides all the other crap in this bottle, there seems to be chicken used in making this lol...but that's not good enough for us. 

If anyone has recipes or tips on a really amazing broth (chicken or beef) please share btw. I'm always looking to improve!

So...I roasted the two chickens I bought, then de-boned them and kept the meat. You never saw bones so empty let me tell you, I got every piece of meat off those birds! Then I pulled out my only two big pots and in each I put one carcass, 4 carrots, 4 celery stalks, an onion and some garlic; then covered it up with water. I added a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, 2 bay leaves and a bunch of parsley - aah, I found a use for my parsley after all!

This stayed on the stove simmering for 5 hours while I baked my bread. Alex was starving at that point so we strained and jarred one of the pot's contents into 4 Mason jars and made a chicken rice soup with the leftovers. We had soup and fresh bread for dinner. By the way, we both have noticed that we digest bread and pizza dough much easier with unbleached flour vs. regular flour. I can't wait to see the difference when we buy organic. Though the bread isn't as fluffy...but I read that bleached flour makes baked goods fluffier, so I'm guessing it must be true since I used the same recipe I always use.

After tasting the broth, we both thought "chicken water"...the recipe I used said minimum 4 hours. At this point, this process had been going on all day and I was pooped. But while I slept, Alex decided to work on the second pot of broth and he strained half of it after 10 hours, and the rest after 14 hours.

Both the colour and flavour difference was amazing. The longer the better it seems! How long do you simmer your broth? We are having some broth each day and so are the pets. The dogs LOVE it and one of our cats does too, but the 2 other cats turn their noses! The health benefits are great - boosts immunity, helps with intestinal inflammation, heals the gut and provides lots of minerals. And MY label reads: "chicken bones, fresh vegetables, apple cider vinegar, water"...we can pronounce all of THOSE ingredients! It might take a while for our palates to get used to this real food. The broth we've been used to was so laden with salt and msg...no wonder we have poor digestion considering all that nasty stuff the companies add to the "food". (or as the makers of Cheez Whiz refer to it "processed food stuff", shudder!).

Today I'm working on beef broth. I got some soup bones at the butcher when I bought the chicken the other day. That will simmer all day and night! I'm really proud of us for taking these steps gradually. I think it would be an interesting exercise to see what kind of processed foods we still use vs. what we now make (and soon grow!) on our own.

I love being in the woods with the dogs. I discovered a new trail today which links to two of the others. I actually stopped to take a picture of that moss-covered rock, but the dogs ran ahead. They were watching a set of squirrels running up and down the trees.

I got my latest book in the mail today! :) I love real books, especially biographies! Alex and I have a used book budget every month, we love to read and sometimes E-books don't cut the mustard. It's unfortunate that we can't get English books around here, but the used books via Amazon are pretty reasonably priced.

The cereal box I read this morning wasn't much better than the chicken broth...so I'm making my own granola. Have you ever dehydrated frozen fruit? I mean, FROZEN...I was too impatient to actually thaw them lol...I had a few bags of frozen strawberries, so I decided to give it a try! I'll report the results tomorrow! I have to bake those pretzels today and also the dog cookies! Then I have to run outside and do some kind of sun dance...as the British comedies say..."I'm starting to get prison pallor!"...

Meat and Potatoes; A Wee Snowstorm

I made a "Hungry Man" meal for Alex last night, a big honkin' sirloin steak with potatoes and beans. I had Teriyaki Tilapia and my side salad is hidden from view, but Mama Pea, I assure you, I had my greens!!! :)

Alex and I both have lots of food sensitivities and allergies. We have very sensitive digestions and when we're under stress, we always feel it in our stomachs! So once a year or so, we go on a somewhat clean eating two-week detox. It started a few days ago. I have more liberties than he does because I did my 1-year elimination diet and found out the worst culprits. His vary unfortunately, so a yearly detox always helps. We are gradually transitioning our diets though. We've already eliminated most processed foods. Now we're going to tackle the baking ingredients. When my unbleached flour is used up, we'll go to organic...then I'll have to do some more research. It'll be the same with sugars, yeast and all other baking supplies. It's going to take a while because eating well isn't cheap unfortunately! So we're tackling one step at a time. Even the cheese at the grocery store is tasteless now...we may have to buy better quality and just eat less of it...oh the horror...less cheese, boo hoo hoo! :)

If it were December, I'd have been thrilled to see this yesterday morning!

It was pretty in the woods though!

I don't know if the Canada Geese were coming or going...

But by this morning it was all melted and I got a little tease of sun for just over half an hour. I'd say my seedlings really needed it, but they are all doing so well in my window! 

There is rain in the forecast again until next Tuesday, eegad. Really...it's not normal for this area of the Laurentians!! But we make do right? I'm spending the day in the kitchen, making bread and chicken broth. Since we got rid of all the high-sugar, high-salt snacks lately, I'll try my hand at hard pretzels for something to munch on! I do wish for sunshine because the outdoor "to do" list is getting very long now; but the overcast dull days just mean more cozy time in bed with Jack and the rest of the fur kids...oh and of course with Alex too! :)

Of Pizza and Pumpkins

We've been grazing the last few days because Alex has had insomnia again, so we're on completely different schedules. He can only seem to fall asleep when it gets light out and that's when I'm usually getting up! So we've been eating mostly from the freezer. But last night he got a second wind so we had dinner together, what better than comfort food? :) I made our version of a "Meat Lover's" pizza with ham and bacon; and that three-cheese pizza we loved so much from a few weeks ago (Feta, Mozz and Parm). We watched a few episodes of The Boonies. One of our Blogger friends commented about this show (sorry I can't remember who!) and I had to check it out. It's about people who live off the grid, in treehouses, nomadically off the land and even in a cave! It's quite interesting if you can find it. So far there are only 8 episodes in the one season, I hope they make more!

Check out my pumpkin seedlings! I have two pots like this...they will soon be too tall for the window...but this morning it actually snowed so it's nowhere near warm enough to try transplanting them...there is another 5 cm of snow in the forecast overnight, but it's "May snow" which means it'll all be gone the next sunny or rainy day, but still, I wish it would get slightly warmer. Growing my pumpkins reminded me of when I lived on Prince Edward Island. I went to a Giant Pumpkin Festival.

It was October of 2009. This was the first time I'd ever seen giant pumpkins and squash!

914 Pounds - Third Prize Winner

933 Pounds - Second Prize Winner

1036 Pounds - First Prize Winner

800 Pound Squash - First Prize of the Squash Contest

Weighing Station

What the pros referred to as the "Amateur Area" lol

I was so excited about pumpkins that when I got home that day, I knitted one lol...I remember being so proud of myself, finally figuring out what to do with that orange yarn! (sorry, I do not know where I found the pattern, it was 8 years ago and I don't have it bookmarked!) When I'm all settled into my property in a few years, I will have a nice big pumpkin patch. It's always been a dream of mine to grow giant pumpkins too. Just for the challenge! 

It's been a long stretch of overcast skies and I decided to use my time wisely! I'm a very big fan of self-improvement and self-healing. I did have a rough life, and for the most part, I went the traditional route of meds and therapy; but the most success I've had in turning things around has been to abandon traditional healing methods. I feel so much better when I do things on my own. I'm re-reading this book at the moment and it's so empowering. Does anyone else love these types of self-help books?

And in my quest to always help myself, I'm taking this workshop that I found online. Get Rid of Your Anxiety for Good! is a 4 lesson workshop from the website The Daily Om. I go to this website every morning for some motivation and inspiration and last summer I took a few of their workshops and they helped me tremendously. They're more on the New Age side, which is totally me, and I relate to them a lot. I did the first lesson this morning and I have to say I got some amazing insight. I have homework to do for the next week until Lesson 2 arrives in my inbox. It's a "pay what you want" type of cost, the minimum is $10 per workshop, so it's really affordable.

I also enrolled in their workshop Overcoming Self-Sabotage. This one is 14 lessons and I'm going to start lesson one today or tomorrow. I'm not above trying to see if I'm actually doing something without knowing it to sabotage my motivation or my goals! I could even be doing something subconsciously that is contributing to the anxiety. Who knows? I'd like to though! :)

Something can be learned from everything in life right? I'm not promoting these books or workshops, just sharing what I enjoy! And this is good food for thought during a very soggy and cold May while I wait for the warm weather!!

Hope everyone had a nice weekend! :) It's Monday right? ;)

Something In The Woods...

It's a very rainy Saturday today. You know what's funny? I thought yesterday was Wednesday...time just means very little to me these days! Anyway, I'm grateful for the rain because it keeps the loud weekender neighbours in the city! I was walking the dogs and wanted to stop to take a picture of them (as usual!) and they all suddenly stopped and looked in one direction. They heard something...

We were kind of at the end of the line for now because both trails turned into rivers overnight. I don't walk in this part of the woods too often because it gets kind of wild, though the snowmobile trails make nice walking trails in the summer. It was so quiet! I noticed even the birds stopped chirping...usually a sign of a predator near. The dogs kept staring and listening and I was staring and listening too! It was quite early, about 6:15am. I then heard some ruffling and what I thought was a growl. At that point all three started barking. That was my cue to take the reigns and hurry back to the road! I admit, I had that pit of fear in my stomach, and I don't get that often when I'm in the woods. I think that I'll stick to the trail that isn't so deep in the woods from now on!

Burger Night and All Seedlings Healthy!

Last night was Burger Night! :) I wanted to make Alex a special meal since he'd been taking such good care of me after my tumble. He loves burgers and I always try to outdo myself with the toppings. I made his with ground top sirloin and mine with a breaded chicken breast. On his was lettuce, tomato, bacon, Swiss, Cheddar and two onion rings!! Mine was much more "simple" ;), I had the breaded chicken breast that I'd pounded down thin, with ham, Swiss, lettuce and tomato. I made strawberry milkshakes, fries and onion rings too...whoa...BIG meal! I think I'm still digesting!

The raging river. I took this photo from the covered bridge this morning.

Poor Marlene...when I stopped to take the picture, a big truck drove by and scared her. She's so sensitive to loud noises. You know, we had an acquaintance who tried to convince us to NEVER get shelter dogs because you adopt "all of their problems" along with them. The heck with that! These three are the best dogs and they make a wonderful pack! They listen, they obey, just look at them sitting and waiting for me!! They're loving, sweet and fun. Of course, they each have their own quirks and issues, but we love them to bits and will always adopt from shelters from now on.

My obsession update: I stopped by the mail box this morning and got the next installment of my addiction! :) I have no more room in the window so these will have to wait to be planted at the end of May outside. The whole reason for this order was the mint because I want to make mint juleps lol...And I ordered more seeds the other day since I'm now doing potatoes in the tires. Speaking of that...

I set up my little root garden yesterday. Yes...I very likely overdid it. I probably should have been resting...but I'm so dang restless! Plus we had SUN yesterday, with 4 more days of rain in the forecast, so I felt the need to take advantage!! I dug up my pumpkin patch! It looks tiny in the photo, but it's about 3 feet wide by 5 feet long, give or take. That's just the first one. I'm planning another one to the right of the photo where you can't really see. We want to make an opening in the lattice fence, so when that's done, I can figure out the sizing of the second patch. I still have to make a raised bed around this and buy more earth from the garden center, but stage one is done. My carrots and radishes will stay there and I have my tires in place for the potatoes. I still have some work to do on the tires, like cutting out the inside rims (thanks Kymber and Ruth for the advice) and making them look pretty. :)

It's funny what you find in boxes...I found these three solar lights that you plunk into the ground. I guess I bought them last fall at the Dollar Store? I just can't remember. Anyway, what a nice find, I hope they work! :)

Ever feel like you're being watched? This little fella kept an eye on me for a while as I was digging.

I tried to very subtly walk closer to get a better photo, but he got wise to me and took off!

Now I feel complete! My spring onions have popped up! Every pot in my sunny (not so sunny today) window has plants growing - happy! Good thing I got rid of those peat pots! I feel accomplished that I succeeded in growing seedlings. Now the challenge will be to see if I can keep them healthy and growing until and after they are transplanted into bigger pots and raised beds at the end of May!

Greek Chicken and A Wee Bit of Sunshine!

I made a very easy dinner last night, Greek Chicken on Orzo. The preparation took longer than the actual cooking time! I was feeling really restless mentally...I hate being in bed all day, even if it's recovering from an injury! I get so bored...but I was good - I let Alex do most of everything for me, I napped, cuddled with the pets, relaxed and watched British comedies. But by 6 pm, I wanted to be in the kitchen! This dinner didn't take much energy thankfully and it was delicious!

I let the dogs out in the yard this morning, debating on whether I could manage a walk in the woods. Charlie gave me such a guilt trip that I had no choice!

So into the woods we went! :) Actually I am feeling a lot better. I'm taking much better care of myself lately. The Arnica gel is working wonders for pain and bruising. I've been treating my swollen digits and joints with ice and taking Tylenol for pain. Normally I'd just grin and bear it but I'm just way too restless and anxious busy for that! :) It's still very chilly out though, we had frost on the ground this morning and there are still pockets of snow in the woods. The dogs really enjoyed their walk, though we went a little slower today! They were on the scent of something...the woman who owns the gas station in town told me she saw a lynx cub in her backyard. As soon as her dogs spotted it, it ran away, but I'm still keeping an eye around and up in the trees to be safe.

When we got back from the walk, I felt it. I was and am quite sore. Despite the pain, my mood skyrocketed when the sun came out! :) It's been too long, sadly, it won't last though, there is rain in the forecast for another 5 days. I'm always hoping the forecast changes! My plants are loving this sunshine! Yesterday I reported that the only holdouts in my window garden were the spring onions and Roma tomatoes...well, the Romas are coming up! These are the seeds that I found in the basement, so clearly they are still good! The onions though, they are still playing hide and seek.

I hate to use clichés, but I really am like a kid in a candy shop when it comes to my plants! I've never planted pumpkins before, well, I've never planted many things! But the pumpkins are what fascinate me the most! Look at them growing! I've read mixed opinions about the transplanting process. Some people say that pumpkins HATE being transplanted and you must plant them directly into the ground; others say it's fine to start them indoors, to transplant the container contents, without separating the plants, into the ground once it gets above 20 C. So...I planted half the seeds indoors and I'll plant the rest right into the ground at the beginning of June. Hedging my bets!! :)