Like basically everyone else in this world of ours, my life has been thoroughly upended in the last two weeks. Many of the rhythms remain the same. My kids are still hungry and need to be fed. The interminable laundry still piles up alarmingly. My husband, Superguy, is still going to work.
But, some things are so different. As fears of this pandemic reached my neck of the woods, grocery shelves were stripped to emptiness in strange ways. The symptomatic dearth of toilet paper is accompanied by empty spaces in the medicine and dry goods aisles. While people still greet each other, we keep our distance. My 13-year old, Eowyn, struggles with the reality of social distancing. I struggle with the reality of having to manage my children’s education and their anxieties about all of this.
So, I am taking stock of things. What is essential? What is prudent? Where should I focus my energy? How can I use my resources more responsibly? The final question leads me back to stock.
Stock, that wunder-liquid used so frequently in the kitchen, is often purchased in prismatic paper containers at the store; but, it is exceptionally easy to make. My favorite, and most utilized, way of making stock is with left-overs. Over the course of a week or so, I like to collect fruit and vegetable peelings and cores. When my collecting container is full I place these odds and ends in the pot, sometimes with some bones I have been saving in the freezer, cover everything with water, and simmer the lot for a couple of hours.
I really like that this stock gives me something out of basically nothing. it reminds me of an old American pioneer saying, “use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.” If I pay attention and take a minute, I can make something useful out of something that would otherwise be thrown away. As far as I am concerned, this feels like a better way of utilizing resources in an uncertain environment than stripping store shelves in a mad attempt to prepare for an uncertain future. Now I just have to hope that my toilet paper reserve will last until those shelves get restocked…
Peels and Ends Stock
- 4-6 cups of vegetable peels and fruit cores
- 1 onion, unpeeled and cut in half
- 3 cloves garlic, unpeeled and smashed
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon dried herbs
- Saved bones (especially chicken legs or wings), if you have them
Place everything in a large Dutch oven or stockpot. Add cold water to just cover the peels, etcetera. Place the pot on the stove. Turn the heat to high and bring the liquid to a boil. Immediately reduce the heat to medium low. Watch the liquid and continue to adjust the heat as needed so that just a few bubbles are breaking the surface at any given time. Simmer for 2-3 hours. Remove the peels and everything else and discard. Cool the liquid. Freeze it if you are not planning to use it within two days.
