Fall/Winter Vegetable Broth

Who doesn’t love soup?   I enjoy making soup just as much as I enjoy eating it, and the good news is, you can’t mess it up!   Over the past 25 years, I have tried countless soup recipes.  Depending on the recipe, I always start with a homemade vegetable, chicken, beef or lamb broth.  I NEVER buy broth in the grocery store because it usually contains MSG (monosodium glutamate).  MSG is used as a flavor enhancer.   However, it is a neurotoxin and has toxic effects on the body.  For me, that means I get very jittery and have difficulty sleeping.
 
Today I am sharing with you a recipe for Fall/Winter Vegetable Broth.  It is not too time-consuming to make, because you just assemble the vegetables and give them a rough chop. You can use whatever vegetables are in season during the fall and/or winter months such as root vegetables and winter squash.  There is an ingredient that I use in my vegetable broth that you may not be familiar with …Wakame Seaweed.   Wakame is a type of kelp that is high in vitamins A, C, E and K.  It is also a good source of minerals, such as iron, calcium and iodine.  I put in one handful and strain out with the rest of the vegetables when the broth is done.  Now go and have fun making some yummy broth to warm you up on a cold day and remember, no worries, since there is no wrong way to make this vegetable broth. 

2 Tbsp. butter
1 Onion, diced into squares
1 Leek, (use entire leek plus greens), sliced
1 Carrot, peeled and chopped
1 Daikon Radish, peeled and chopped
2 Celery stalks with leaves, peeled and chopped
1  Winter squash (about 1 cup), cubed
1 Sweet Potato, peeled and cut into cubes
Handful of Kale stems and/or leaves
Handful of Swiss Chard stems and/or leaves
Handful of Beet Greens
3 Garlic cloves
¼ tsp. thyme
2 Bay leaves
Handful of Wakame
12 Cups filtered Water

Heat the butter in a large stock pot.  Add the onion, garlic and herbs and cook briskly over a medium flame until the onion and garlic are softened (stirring occasionally).  Add the vegetables, rest of ingredients and 1 cup of water, bring to a boil, cover and cook for 20 minutes at a low simmer.  Pour in the remainder of the water (11 cups) and bring to a boil.  Cover again and cook at a simmer for 2-3 hours.  When done, pour into a strainer and strain out vegetables.  Let stock cool, cover and refrigerate until use.
This stock freezes well.  Enjoy!