Chicken Stock

I love to make soup in the Fall and Winter months. Many of the soups I like to make have chicken stock as one of the ingredients. There are some good ones that you can buy already made, but nothing compares to homemade stock!! It takes very little time to put it all in the pot, then all you have to do is let is simmer for 4 hours. It will make your house smell wonderful, and you will have a freezer full of wonderful rich stock! I asked my local Chinese Take Out Restaurant if they would sell me a few of their quart containers; they sold them to me for $.25 each. They really work out great!

I will be posting some great soup recipes soon.

Chicken Stock

Makes 6 Quarts

• 3 whole roasting chickens
• 3 large yellow onion, unpeeled, quartered
• 6 carrots, unpeeled, halved
• 4 celery stalks with leaves, cut into thirds
• 4 parsnips, unpeeled, cut in half
• 20 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 15 sprigs fresh thyme
• 20 sprigs fresh dill
• 1 head garlic, unpeeled, cut in half crosswise
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns

Place the chickens, onions, carrots, celery, parsnips, parsley, thyme, dill, garlic, salt, and pepper in a 16 to 20 quart stockpot. Add 7 quarts water and bring to a boil. Simmer uncovered for 4 hours. Strain the entire contents of the pot through a colander and discard the solids. Pack in quart containers and chill overnight. Refrigerate for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 6 months.

Pumpkin White Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Welcome to Foodie Friday hosted by Designs by Gollum . Make sure to stop by her blog to see all the other great recipes!

I love when the seasons change -- I have certain foods that I look forward to with each season. With Fall I love pumpkin -- in my tea, coffee, pumpkin bread, pumpkin cheesecake to name just a few! These Pumpkin White Chocolate Chunk Cookies are so good, the butterscotch chips are ground into the dough and give the cookies a subtle butterscotch flavor without the cloying experience of biting into a bite full of buttererscotch. These are perfect to serve at Halloween and Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin White Chocolate Chunk Cookies

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup butterscotch chips
• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2/3 cup cooked canned pumpkin puree or fresh mashed pumpkin
• 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

1. Preheat the oven to 350.


2. Put the flour and baking soda in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal bladed and pulse to distribute the baking soda evenly. Add the butterscotch chips and process until the chips are ground, with some slightly larger bits remaining. Turn the flour and butterscotch chips out into a large bowl.


3. In a separate large bowl, cream the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar together for 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl from time to time, until fluffly. Add the egg and pumpkin puree and stir to combine.


4. Pour the butter-pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture and stir to combine. Add the oats, white chocolate chunks, and walnuts and stir until the ingredients are combined and no flour is visible. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 10 minutes or overnight.


5. Use a 1/4 cup measure or scoop to drop the cookie dought onto the parchment lined cookie sheets, leaving 2 inches between the cookies.


6. Bake the cookies for 13 to 15 minutes. Cool the cookies on the cookie sheets for 10 to 15 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack.

Makes 2 dozen 3-inch cookies.

Tea for 25? Brew up a Concentrate

It's Foodie Friday.... make sure to stop by Designs by Gollum for other Foodie Friday recipes!

TEA for 25? Brew up a Concentrate!!

If you are planning a tea for a large number of guests, a tea concentrate makes the job easy and guests don't have to contend with wet tea bags!

For 25 servings: Bring 1 quart fresh cold water to a full boil and pour over 25 regular tea bags or 1/2 cup loose tea. Cover and brew for 5 minutes.

Remove tea bags, or strain loose tea.

Keep at room temperature. Do not refrigerate the concentrate and use within two to three hours. For each cup of hot tea, put 2 tablespoons of tea concentrate in a teacup and fill with hot water. Serve with milk, sugar or lemon.

The same technique can be used for iced tea. Use 4 tablespoons tea concentrate in a glass and fill a glass with cold water. Serve with ice, sugar, lemon or mint.