Soup Broth 103: Where's the Beef?

Here it is, friends, my first beef broth.  I've never made one before, but there's no time like the present! 


While I was wandering the grocery store the other day, trying to guess what might go into a beef broth, I bought some things for it.  Turns out I was "wrong" by everyone else's standards. However, that has never stopped me before.  I'm certainly not going to let it stop me today.  I've always marched to the beat of a slightly different drum.  No need to go all mainstream now!

I figured I needed a big hunk of beef with bone in it. I know that the bone has yumminess in the marrow that will break down and make a flavorful broth. But who knew I didn't actually need the meat?  Huh...that caught me a little off guard.  Who'da thunk it?  I mean, really?  Where's the beef?


If you've read anything of mine before, you'll know I'm entirely too thrifty to go throwing things out because I don't have an ingredient the rest of the world calls for.  I always do things my way.  "Heidicized", my husband calls it.  Today will be no exception to that rule.


Every time I've ever made a roast of any kind - chicken, pork, or beef - I always strain off the liquid and throw it into a freezer bag for later use.  It's always fabulous and always good to have on hand.  While this may not be a "traditional" beef broth, it will be tasty and useful.  So there!


I did cut out the bone & bake it like the other broth recipes suggest.  I preheated the oven to 450, put the bone in a small baking dish & baked it for about 20 minutes.  Holy aroma, Batman!  It smelled so good!  


While the bone was in the oven, I took my pile of veggies along with a cup & 1/2 of red wine and put 'em in my trusty stock pot.  I used 2 yellow onions, 2 bulbs garlic, handful of baby carrots, 4 stalks celery, 4 portabella mushrooms, 1 bunch parsley, 2 bay leaves & the rest of my roasted peppers from the other night (just shy of a cup).

Put them in the pot just the way you see them.  I quartered the onions, sliced the mushrooms & chopped the celery.  Other than that, it went in without any work.  Put the meat on top, plop the bone in there with the rest & fill it with water. Bring it to a boil before turning it down to a slow simmer and set the timer for 3 hours.  My goodness, does it smell  rich!

Get ready, because the soup ideas have been brewin' in my brain for 3 days.  Halloween is typically a chili night for me, so I may have a mutiny on my hands if I try anything else, but I've been dreaming of curries of all kinds though I may have to make a batch of chili just to keep the troops happy.  Breaking tradition is rarely without risk! 

Remember to cool your soup, bag it, label it & freeze it!  

Tell me your favorite soups!  I'd love to hear about them!

Love to you & the ones you feed!