Bison Stock

Last Friday we received some grass-fed bison that we had purchased. Along with all the steaks, roasts, ground bison, etc., we got 35 pounds of soup bones. That takes up a lot of freezer space, and while we had room enough (barely) to fit all 35 pound of them, I decided to go ahead and make use of them. There was a total of 15 packages, so I used 7 of the biggest.

The Lovely Bones

I looked for a few recipes and finally decided to make up my own by combining several ideas from the recipes I had found. Here is basically what I did:



About 1/3 of the bones,which had quite a bit of meat left on them, I put straight into my pot. The other 2/3 I cooked in the oven until nicely browned. Then I added these to the pot. Next went the veggies and spices: carrots, onions, celery, garlic, pepper corns, bay leaves (theses were huge-from a friend in Trinidad), and salt. All this is then covered with water. Then I brought it to a boil, reduced to a simmer and let it go all night.

Raw

Cooked

Veggies and spices

Cooking

The next morning I awoke to a wonderful smell, broth not coffee. I removed all of the veggies, bones, and meat from the liquid. I needed to let it cool enough to solidify the fat. There was a lot of fat. I was able to skim off 1 1/2 soup cans of fat before I chilled it. There was a problem here. I couldn't fit my pot into the fridge. Not a big problem though, we still had quite a lot of snow on the back deck, so I just buried the pot in it.

Nature's Fridge-very green

Some of the skimmed fat

Gelatinous goo

After it chilled, I took the rest of the fat off and had a gelatinous glob left. I reheated it until it was liquid and strained it three times, twice through several layers of cheese cloth. Then I brought to a near boil and pressure canned it. At this point I could have frozen it, but freezer space is now at a premium and since I ended up with 15 pints, it made more sense to can it. We also tend to loses electricity several times a year. We have never lost food due to extended outage, but just in case.

Finished product!

I still have 8 packages of bones to do. The next batch I may cook down much more to have a concentrated stock. It will take up less space and with garden season coming up, I'll need it!

still growing

Broccoli and tomatoes 5 days in.

The tomatoes.  No signs of life.  Yet!

The broccoli.  growing!



Baby it's Cold Outside

Well, it wasn't exactly the winter storm they forecast for our area, but it was icy enough to cause several car accidents.  With the snow and ice, you might think it is a bad time to start gardening.  Wrong!  Now i a great time to begin your seedlings indoors.  Elijah and I got our broccoli and tomatoes started 2 days ago and the broccoli is already sprouting.  In just a few weeks it will be ready to plant out in the garden!

Seed starter kit

soak in water

loosen and plant seeds

Just a few things to plant

BRRRRR!

Sprouting

Vanilla Extract Update

It has been a month since I started making my vanilla extract.  While it doesn't look much different, still a pale brown, it is smelling more like what you expect it to smell like.  At least one more month to go.  Since I had just bought some at Thanksgiving, I may just test it in a month and let it sit even longer. 

Making vanilla extract at home

Well, there's so little to do in the garden, I am trying out some new things indoors.  Here is my latest venture, making vanilla extract.  It seems like it is going to be super easy to do.

What you need:
1 cup good vodka
3 vanilla beans
jar with tight lid
scissors
patience (4 out of 5 ain't bad)

Okay now, pay close attention.  Make sure your jar is clean first of all.  Take three, good quality vanilla beans and cut them in half to with in a centimeter or so of one end.  This will keep them together.  I don't know why that makes a difference, but I didn't argue (much).  Place beans in jar, glass is best, cover with 1 cup of vodka.  I used Absolut, but the better the vodka, the better the extract, once again I didn't argue.  Make sure beans are completely covered and then place lid securely on jar.  Store in a cool, dark place for the next two months.  I guess that is where the patience comes in.  Once a week or so you can gently shake the jar.  Even after just a couple of days you can smell how great this is going to be.  Don't ask me how I know, I just do.  I started mine two nights ago.  I'll keep you posted.

I ws down to just over a cup of vodka so I used the bottle it was already in.

This is after 2 days.  They look a little like giant leeches.  Hopefully it will taste better!



Comments working

Someone emailed me that they couldn't post comments. The template I was using didn't work right. It was the same on my other blog. I know there are thousands of you out there who are dying to comment on my blog, now you can!

Umm, I Got Nothin'

Well, it is definitely a slow time of year for the garden.  About the only thing I have to do right now is to go out and water the strawberries and my flower beds.  I think I may have killed my beautiful pineapple.  I forgot to bring it in when it got cold.  I guess we'll see.

In a few weeks I will start planning and maybe even start some plants indoors.  It has been a while since I have done that.  Right now I am just focusing on clearing out the guest room to make it a craft room.  That and making sure I can keep Elijah interested in school.  He is blowing through everything right now.

Have a great winter!