It's Friday!

Well folks, it's that time again. We've laughed, we've cried, and we've showered at least a few times since last week... but, it's frugal Friday again! I was so excited to see everyone's responses to our first Facebook post last time, and I hope you will enjoy this one just as much!

So, I know you're wondering... how will we be frugal masterminds this week? You guys have the best questions! This week, our project is tasty as well as frugal: Bone Broth! Now, before you get all grossed out, bone broth is seriously an amazing food, and it's basically free when you make it this way. It uses food that would have otherwise been thrown out, which gives you a practically free ingredient to add nutrition and flavor to TONS of recipes.

So, how do you make it for free? Well, it's pretty simple:

• Save all of your bones (the better quality the bones, the more natural benefit you'll get from the broth; think grass fed, local, organic, etc)
• Save all your raw veggie scraps
• Toss them in a pot
• Add plenty of water (to cover, and then really as much as will fit in your pot without boiling over)
• Add 2 Tablespoons of vinegar
• Simmer for 24-48 hours in a covered pot on the stove, or in a crock pot set on low
• Check periodically that the liquid level is still good, and you aren't getting too dry or close to boiling over and adjust accordingly - safety is important in the kitchen!

When you are done, the bones in your pot should crumble if poked with a fork (small fish bones may have dissolved entirely). Once you've reached this point, you can strain all of the bones and veggie scraps out and store your broth in the fridge or freezer!

This broth is best when made with a combination of bones; big, small and in-between, as well as a variety of vegetables. You can add a whole head of garlic if you're so inclined, toss in a bay leaf for flavor, and season however you like. I would suggest NOT salting too heavily, so that you can salt to taste for each dish as needed.

Now, I know some of you have made broth before, and this probably sounds different. That's for a good reason - we are intentionally adding an acid (vinegar) and long, slow cooking the broth to get all of the good minerals and vitamins out of the veggies and bones. This allows you to pack all of that broth goodness into all sorts of dishes. What dishes? I'm so glad you asked. :) You can use broth to replace water 1:1 in almost any dish; but some specific ideas would be rice, homemade soups, and cooking veggies. One of my all time favorite ways to use it is in "Italian Wonderpot"... You'll have to wait for next week for that, though! ;)

Happy Soaping (and saving!),
Kristen

For even more "brothy" goodness, read on! http://www.westonaprice.org/food-features/broth-is-beautiful.