Comments on: Nourishing Inspiration

By: Sonya Hemmings

Sonya Hemmings — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 02:40:10 +0000

Hi, Wendy! Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment! It was a little intimidating to interview Sally Fallon, but she was very kind. Did you read the part of her book about how stock made from pastured chickens gels when cooled? The gelatin is an important characteristic, you’ll read, and one I never achieved (or even knew I was supposed to achieve) when making stock from regular grocery-store chickens. The pastured chickens I’ve been buying from A Bar H produce a nice, thick gelatin! You’ll have to try it! Gotta look for Pollan’s book for kids—very cool! (Except I get so annoyed with his—and every other author’s—assumption that the THEORY of evolution is correct, and I definitely don’t want my kids to assimilate as the truth that we evolved from apes. There’s a reason that the “missing link” is missing! So I will read the book with them and help them see that when you substitute “creation” everywhere that he uses “evolution” the basic food science still makes sense. Amazing how that works.)
Love,
Sonya

By: Wendy

Wendy — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 20:23:37 +0000

Hi, Sonya! That’s just awesome that you interviewed Sally Fallon. We just picked up her book from the library last weekend, and the girls and I have to take turns with it, as they’re finding useful information for their science research papers, and I keep wanting to steal it back for the recipes! Had I known there was one in there for chicken broth, I would’ve used it instead of Ina Garten’s recipe. Maybe Fallon’s would’ve been even more “nourishing.” I’m loving your blog, although I’m still at a loss as to how you do all this. I happened to check in today to make sure you were OK, since I hadn’t heard back from you yet! That’s OK, my household has been quite sick all week long (thus, the earlier-mentioned emergency batch of broth). We’ll catch up soon! Keep up the fascinating work here! When are you going to interview Michael Pollan? Now would be a great time, with his version of “Omnivore’s Dilemma” for kids coming out!
—Wendy
P.S. We had dinner this past weekend with a food scientist/author from Holland, and just happened to have “Nourishing Traditions” with us. I showed it to him and he looked at it for a very long time. I understand he’s a successful author in the Netherlands, and is looking for someone to translate his book into an American version. Wish I spoke Dutch!

By: Sonya Hemmings

Sonya Hemmings — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 13:37:10 +0000

Hi, Jen! Thanks for the well wishes! And for the stock recipe (and the hint about removing the chicken after 1 1/2 hours!—glad I didn’t have to learn that one the hard way!). The real-food journey is challenging, but so worth it! It’s great to know there are so many of us out there.
—Sonya

By: Jen

Jen — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 06:43:06 +0000

Hi Sonya. I found you through Tuesday Twister, and just wanted to wish you well on your real food journey.

I made broth with a whole chicken last Sunday, and it turned out beautifully! I used carrots, onion, garlic, bay leaf, sea salt, peppercorns, and I always have to throw in some herbs from my garden. I threw in a few sprigs of oregano, tarragon, marjoram, rosemary, basil and thyme. I was out of celery.

I removed the chicken after about 1 1/2 to 2 hours because it gets yucky if you cook it for 24 hours. Once it cooled, I removed the meat for other dishes, then put the skin and bones back in the broth with vinegar. The broth had cooled by this time, and I let it sit for about 30 minutes before continuing to simmer for 24 hours. It gelled perfectly!

Sorry this is so long, but I thought I’d share the tip to remove the meat within a few hours (if you want to use it for something else), before continuing to simmer the bones/skin with the vinegar. Good luck!

By: Sonya Hemmings

Sonya Hemmings — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 06:25:30 +0000

Ren—Thanks for the tip on the wings! I actually just used the leftover bones, skin and liquid from two small chickens I had roasted in the oven, plus water, vinegar, carrots, onion, celery and sea salt. It gelled perfectly—and tasted great, too! Next time, I’m going to throw a whole chicken into the stock pot with the other stuff. I’ll debone the cooked meat and save it for another dish and see how that stock comes out.
—Sonya

By: Ren

Ren — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 01:26:13 +0000

Good for you on the chicken stock! I’ve found that a big bag of wings makes a great stock with so much gelatin that the stock solidifies in the fridge. Chicken feet (if you can get them) do the same.

Please let us know how your son gets on. Thanks!

By: Sonya Hemmings

Sonya Hemmings — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 22:19:11 +0000

Millie—I started the sprouts on Sunday, and they were ready by this morning. But see my comment to Tiffany for the range you might expect. I plan to use some of the pintos to make refried beans for tacos. I made quite a few, so I was thinking of freezing them for later use (chili is a great idea!), but I wondered whether it would diminish their nutrition in any way to freeze, thaw and reheat them. Anybody know?
—Sonya

By: Sonya Hemmings

Sonya Hemmings — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 22:15:38 +0000

Tiffany—I started mine on Sunday, too. I was a little discouraged yesterday when I noticed that several beans had quite long sprouts (maybe a half-inch or so), but none of the others had sprouted. Then today I noticed that almost all of the beans had at least teeny sprouts (about an eighth- to a quarter-inch). I had read online that it could take two to four days, but not to wait too long—even if some beans never sprout—or they would be unpleasant to eat. So I decided to go ahead an cook them today. They cooked in an hour and tasted great! Keep checking your beans—they might surprise you. How old are your beans, and are they organic? I think those things can also be factors. Good luck!
—Sonya

By: Tiffany

Tiffany — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 20:47:04 +0000

How long did it take you to sprout your beans. I’ve had mine going since sunday, no sprout in sight.
Thanks,
Tiffany

By: Millie

Millie — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 18:06:15 +0000

How wonderful to interview Sally Fallon! And I can only imagine your excitement over the hope she offered you.
How long does it take the pintos to start sprouting? Will you use them in regular pinto recipes (chili, burritos, etc)?