Friday, February 27, 2009

A Homemade Life - February 27th

I wanted to share two things this week for the "Homemade Life" post. One of the great things about making things is the money that is saved. I buy whole chickens when they are on sale for 89c /lb (usually every few weeks I can get them for this price) we usually get 3-4 meals out of a chicken plus I boil up the bones and make homemade chicken broth to either use for the next night's meal or to freeze. Homemade chicken broth is so easy to make. I simply put the bones in a pan cover with water and bring to a boil. Then I cover it and simmer for 1-2 hours. I have added seasonings to the water to give it a deeper flavor but generally I just leave it plain so that I can use it in any recipe calling for chicken broth.

*Frugal tip* - Don't throw away those plastic containers you get from the deli. They make great containers for holding broth (or snacks or a small child's lunch). I simply wash them out and then, to use for the broth, I measure 1 Cup of broth into the container cover and place all the containers in a zipper storage bag and then into the freezer.


The second homemade item I wanted to share is a sweater I crocheted for my 3 year old daughter. I was a bit disappointed in how it came out because the pattern for the size 4T runs very small. My daughter is very petite and it is a little small on her. Also, next time I would use a single color yarn because I think the variegated yarn with the cable pattern looks too busy. I will hold onto this sweater and when my younger daughter gets a bit older she can wear it. Here are a couple pictures. I still have several skeins of this yarn so I think I will make another sweater for her just using a different pattern.



Be sure to check out all the other great homemade ideas over at Life on a Back Road
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2 comments:

  1. Mrs.TMarch 1, 2009 at 5:10 PM

    Love the sweater! The tips about chicken are great, too. Sometimes, if I just want cooked chicken to use in recipes and some good broth too, I will just put 1 or 2 whole chickens (only one if they are the large roasting type) into the crockpot and sprinkle with some type of seasoning. You could use lemon pepper, or Greek seasoning, or my favorite, Montreal Chicken. (You don't need to add any water.) Then cook on low for 6 to 7 hours, or on high for 4 to 5 hours. You end up with perfectly cooked chicken that falls off the bones, and so all you have to do is strain the broth and you have some wonderfully seasoned broth as well. It will be a concentrated broth that really "jells" so you could dilute it with water for making soups, etc. So easy!

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  2. GailJune 8, 2009 at 12:14 AM

    We always put whole celery stalks and onion halves in our broth. I'll have to check the recipe. Mom has recently started to can her chicken broth. I don't know if you can or not, but it's a nice way to be able to keep it around if you don't have the freezer space.

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