RECIPE: Tender Roast Poultry

With Mother’s and Father’s Day approaching, nothing says “I love and appreciate you!” like a home cooked meal! Here’s our favorite recipe for juicy, flavorful chicken and turkey!

INGREDIENTS

1 Chicken OR Turkey

Unsalted Butter*

Celery, cut in half horizontally**

2 Tbsp Poultry Seasoning***

Salt and Pepper to taste

*1/2 stick for chicken, whole stick for turkey

**Use 2 stalks celery for chicken, 4 for turkey

***Seasoning of your choice

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Unwrap bird, place breast up in a roasting pan, and remove giblets/neck from body cavity, Fill cavity with butter and celery. Thoroughly rub seasoning into the bird’s skin, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place uncovered roasting pan in oven for approximately 20 minutes per pound plus an additional 20 minutes (A 3lb chicken would take about 1 hr 20 mins), or until an internal temperature of 180 degrees is reached. (Store bought turkey generally has a small plug indicator that pops up when the appropriate temp is achieved.) Baste bird with pan juices every 30 minutes during cooking.

Let roasted bird stand for 15 minutes before carving.

Having a spring event? Here are some great side dish selections:

Dill Deviled Eggs

Pizza Pasta Salad

RECIPE: Home Canned Bone Broth (AKA Stock)

Coincidentally, I started on this large batch of broth on the eve of Earth Day, a time when there is quite a lot of discussion about food waste and sustainable agriculture. Here’s a great way to cut down on waste, and get delicious soup stock in the process!

Let me start by saying there are exact recipes to follow out there on the internet for bone broth. This is not one of those! Over the winter, I collected up scraps from roasted birds and chopped veggies in gallon freezer bags and threw them in the chest freezer until I got enough to fill a 23 qt pot…

There is quite a bit of information out there online concerning the health benefits of bone broth. It makes an excellent medicinal base for soups during cold and flu season, and it’s delicious! Making your own is definitely worth the effort!

Ingredients

3 gallon freezer bags of misc. poultry or beef bones
1 gallon freezer bag carrot, celery and onion scraps *

8 cloves Garlic

1 tsp. Thyme

1 tsp. Rosemary

1 tsp. Basil

1/8 tsp. Cayenne

Salt and Pepper to taste

* I used carrot peelings and tops, celery leaves and root ends, onion tops and bottoms. Onion portion should be equal to no more than one medium onion.

Put bones, veggies and garlic in a large stock pot. Pour enough water into the stock pot to just cover the bones and vegetable scraps. Bring bones to a boil. Turn heat down til the pot is just at a simmer, and continue to simmer for 12 hours. Add herbs and spices and simmer for an additional 30 minutes.

Let the broth cool til able to be safely handled and strain broth using a fine mesh strainer or colander to remove bones and vegetable scraps. Some tiny bits of meat and herbs may not be strained out, that’s fine. You may want to let it cool enough to remove solidified fats from the surface if you are using beef bones.

Reheat the broth just to a boil, and fill sterilized canning jars leaving 1″ head space. Process the jars of broth at 11 pounds of pressure for 20 minutes for pints, and 25 minutes for quarts. A 3/4 full 23 qt stock pot of bones and veggie scraps made 9 quarts of broth.

DEHYDRATING: Salt & Pepper Stew Chunks

This basic recipe can be used with a variety of meats. It can be eaten as jerky,  or used in soups and stews. It already contains salt and pepper for seasoning, making it a great ingredient for homemade camp meals!

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. Meat, Poultry or Fish, cut into 1″ cubes

1 tsp. Sea Salt

1/2 tsp. Black Peppercorns, freshly ground

Thoroughly mix salt and pepper into meat cubes, coating evenly. Place cubes in dehydrator, drying at 165 degrees for 10-12 hours until no moisture remains. Store in a tightly sealed jar (oxygen absorbers may be used to extend shelf life).

To reconstitute: 1 cup is approximately equal to 1 lb. fresh meat. Add to soups and stews as called for by your recipe.

RECIPE: Crock Pot Chicken Stew

This is a cold day favorite I’ve been making for years! It can be put together the night before, refrigerated, and put on in the morning. There are several variations and substitutions to suit individual tastes as well!

INGREDIENTS:

4 Chicken Breasts

6 Medium Potatoes, sliced

1 c. Frozen or Dehydrated Mixed Vegetables*

2 Cans Cream of Chicken Soup, undiluted**

1 Small Onion, chopped

1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder

1/4 tsp. Basil

1/4 tsp. Parsley

1/4 tsp. Rosemary

1/4 tsp. Sage

Salt and Pepper to taste

*Can be substituted for Broccoli, use Cream of Broccoli Soup.

*Can be substituted for Mushrooms, use Cream of Mushroom Soup.

**DIY Preservative Free Cream of Soup Recipe: HERE

PREPARATION:

Mix potatoes, veggies, onions in bottom of crock. Place chicken on top of potatoes, pour soup over chicken and add spices. Cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours or until potatoes are tender and chicken is cooked through. Serves 4.

RECIPE: Carrie’s Homemade Chicken Soup

This savory soup is a favorite around Lil Raisin Acres, Brittney even requested it for her birthday dinner! It’s especially popular during the dark, cold winter cold and flu season. 

INGREDIENTS:

10 c. Chicken Broth
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup*
1 can Cream of Celery Soup*
2 Carrots, chopped
3 Stalks Celery, chopped
1/4 c Onion, chopped
2 Chicken Breasts, diced
2 c. Egg Noodles
1/2 tsp. Basil
1/4 tsp. Garlic Powder
1/4 tsp. Rosemary
1/4 tsp. Parsley
Salt and Pepper to taste

*Substitute store-bought condensed soups with THIS recipe to avoid sodium and preservatives.

PREPARATION:

Combine broth and cream soups in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and add carrots, celery, onion and herbs, and boil for an 15 minutes. Add noodles and diced chicken. Return to a boil, and cook for and additional 10-12 minutes or until noodles reach desired consistency. Makes 12 servings.

RECIPE: Cream of… Soup Base

I think perhaps it’d be impossible to calculate the number of recipes calling for “Cream of (insert chicken, mushroom, celery, etc. here) Soup”. But, what if you don’t have any on hand, or wish to avoid the high levels of sodium and food preservatives in store-bought canned soups? By simply using the main ingredient of your choice, the applications for this simple recipe are endless! 

INGREDIENTS: 

2 Cloves Garlic, Minced
1/2 Small Onion, Diced
1/2 c. *Main Ingredient, Diced
1/4 c. Unsalted Butter
1/4 c. White Flour
1 c. Whole Milk
3/4 c. *Chicken Broth
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper, to taste

*Main Ingredient Suggestions: Mushrooms, Celery, Chicken, Asparagus, Broccoli, Potato
*Chicken Broth may be substituted with Vegetable Broth for Vegetarian/Vegan diet.

PREPARATION:

Sautee garlic, onion, and main ingredient in olive oil, set aside. Melt butter in pan over medium heat, whisk in flour until smooth, and cook for 2 minutes. Add broth, milk, and sauteed main ingredient. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

*This recipe makes an amount equivalent to one 11.25 oz can of unprepared condensed national brand soup for substitution in recipes. Add an additional 1 1/3 c. milk to prepare soup as a stand-alone meal. May be frozen for later use.