Works for Me Wednesday - Chicken Stock

Today for WFMW, I have decided to do a photo tour of my process of making and freezing chicken stock. Click HERE for my 24 Hour Chicken Stock recipe. :)


Step One - Simmer all ingredients for 24 hours in Crockpot or on stove top if you wish...




Step Two - Using a slotted spoon, remove all big pieces to strainer set over a large bowl...



Step Three - Using a potato masher, press juices out of the large chunks, including bones and veggies...



Step Four - Discard the solids. Pour all the broth back into your pot and begin straining it through a FINE Sieve, back into your large bowl (wipe out the bowl first to remove any bits and pieces. Now you have a nice Stock, ready to put into jars.




Step Five - Using a large mouth funnel, scoop Stock into FREEZABLE canning jars (make sure it says they are freezer safe). Only fill to the designated line that says "Fill to here for freezing"...
Notice, Stock has a deeper, richer color than broth (also I used Balsamic Vinegar and this darkened it some what)




Step Six - Place lids and rings on jars and tighten just to finger tight. Since we removed the skin from the carcass, there is no need to chill and skim fats. There will be a minimal amount of fat on the top of your cooled jars that will be easy to scoop off or just leave in.

Step Seven - Stack these bad boys in the freezer (keep a couple in the fridge for immediate use). This recipe made just over 11 pints.

Enjoy! For more WFMW posts, visit RocksInMyDryer.

Have a blessed day!

Works for Me Wednesday

Sometimes it's easy to get suckered into buying a lot of kitchen gadgets that we THINK we will use a lot, but then we never really do. They take up drawer, counter or cabinet space and get in the way - next thing you know, we are donating them to Goodwill or piling them in the garage for the next garage sale.

Well, here is a handy kitchen gadget that I absolutely love and I use it A LOT. I got this from the Pamered Chef, it's an olive and cherry pitter. I love Kalmata olives on my salads and for various other dishes. In addition, when cherries are in season, we love to eat them for snacks, or to make small portions of cherry jam or fresh cherry pie.

This little guy is super simple to use and was well worth whatever I paid for it (can't remember, I've had it for quite a few years).

Just set the olive in the pitter with the pointed end facing down...

Squeeze the pitter and the pit pops out the bottom end through the hole...

Same for cherries, set it in the "bowl", stem end facing up...

Press, and Voila! the pit pops out the bottom.

Warning: Notice where my index finger is in the above photo. Don't let your finger cover the hold under the olive, as the tips of the Kalmata Olive pits are very sharp. I have popped one right into my finger and it has splintered in there and left a pin size hole - OUCH! Cherry pits are nice and round. :)

I highly recommend this kitchen gadget. For more WFMW posts, visit...rocksinmydryer

Have a blessed day!

Works for me Wednesday - Tropical Storm Fay

Yesterday, for Tackle it Tuesday, despite the storm I was able to get to Joann Fabrics to get some craft materials. Today, for Works for me Wednesday, my hubby was able to get to work by wading through almost 3 feet of water and carrying his uniform, gun belt and laptop in a bag over his shoulder, LOL...he had a fellow officer meet him across the bridge at the entrance to our neighborhood, and he'll have to borrow a car from the shop at work... yup, a Tropical Storm is no excuse to miss work when you are a cop!

Bye Honey, have a nice day! :)

I guess Miss TS Fay has decided to sit herself right on top of us (going about 3mph) and dump rain continually, and it's still coming. This morning we looked down the street and saw yellow tape crossing the road at one of the intersections...

We went for a little bike ride to see if there was ANY way out of our neighborhood. I couldn't take photos of the deepest part because it began to rain hard and I didn't want to ruin my camera. However, at the deepest point, it came to the base of my husbands handlebars - sidenote, just in case you were wondering, it's a great workout to ride your bike through deep water, LOL.

Because of the deep patches at the intersections, there was no way that a car, or even a large truck could get out of the neighborhood, we saw MANY people in various vehicles trying (but it was raining too hard to get photos, sorry). We saw a couple of cars that had been washed up onto the sidewalks.

Not everyone was having a bad day though, plenty of people were out having fun, we saw several canoes and quite a few kids with floaties. Note - not a good idea considering the animal waste and who knows what else that has most likely floated up into the streets. Our neighborhood is surrounded by several canals and we do live in Florida, so I wouldn't be surprised at all if someone spots a gator in street!

Heading back from the "pool" - LOL

Come on kids - let's go get some pizza!

The most recent photos I took were from about 2 hours ago, and the water has risen so much since then. We are quite lucky, as we are located in a good spot in the neighborhood and sit a little higher than some houses. However, the street in front of our house now looks like a river and people are able to canoe in front my house now!!!! However, 3 hours ago there were houses near the entrance to our neighborhood that already had water coming inside, it makes me sad to think of what is happening inside their homes right now.

It continues to be an interesting day, even as I type this, the water has "broadened" our road so much more. I don't want to even think about how my hubby will get home tonight!!!! Hopefully not wading through chest high possibly alligator and snake infested water - I never thought I would say this, but I think he should sleep at work! :(

Stormie says "Mom, what's happening out there????"

UPDATE: Hubby was able to call me from work. The Outback restaurant brought all the guys at his precinct Steak and Lobster for lunch - what a blessing and a special treat. Also, his "loaner" car is a big 4wd truck, so he won't be swimming with gators tonight, (sigh of relief!). :)

For more Works for Me Wednesday posts, please visit worksformewednesday

Have a blessed and DRY day!

Works for Me Wednesday - lunches

I typically make salads, wraps, or sandwiches for my hubby's lunch, as he is unable to heat up meals at work. However, I am not a big fan of processed lunch meats. I know it is possible to buy lunch meats that do not have nitrates or nitrites in them (big baddies), but I am just not into eating meat that is chopped up pieces of meat all smooshed together and compressed into a large egg shape, then seasoned with who knows how much of what and sliced to look like "sliced breastof turkey". :)

Soooo, what I prefer to do (and yes it takes a little time, but it's worth it), is grill and slice chicken breasts myself. I marinate 2-3 breast halves in my marinade of choice. Homemade varieties are great, one of my favorites being a fajita type marinade, however for "quick and easy", I like to use Newmans Light Balsamic Vinagrette. Grill as you would for chicken.

When it is done cooking, place on a plate and cover with foil, let sit for about 5 minutes to let the juices do their thing...

Before slicing your meat, remove all the blackened bits. Yup, they are crunchy and tasty, but they are full of carcinogens, and that stuff is really bad for you. Don't even give it to your dog.

You can slice it warm and then chill it, or refrigerate and slice later. It saves me time to slice now and chill for later, but it's easier to slice when it's cold.

I don't have a fancy slicer, I just take a real nice sharp knife and slowly and thinly slice the chicken longways. This is excellent tossed on a salad with tons of veggies, or in a wrap with a light mayo and a dash of dill, or on bread with spicy mustard and mild yellow pepper rings.

YUMMO!

Happy grilling!