Bone Broth for Nutrients You Can Use

Yesterday, Fred and I went to the Amish farm as we usually do. As we came in the kitchen, we found Lydia and the girls getting ready to can some chicken they had just butchered. And in a big pile on the table were bones, lots and lots of chicken bones.

Hmmmmmm. Now, Fred's in his eighties and a child of the Depression, and I'm a thifty type and I looked at him and saw that we were both thinking the same thing.

So after our greetings and letting Lydia know what we needed that day, Fred asked what they were planning on doing with all the bones. Lydia said she'd hadn't thought about it--probably toss them.

"Can we buy the bones from you, Lydia?" asks Fred.

"Well, no," says Lydia. "But you can have them if you want."

See, these bones had already been cooked once. Lydia had already gotten her use from them, but there was still bits and pieces of meat on the bones and they'd still be good for bone broth. Which is another way of saying that even if you've cooked your chicken or beef or whatever, save the bones for broth.

Bone broth is very good for your health. Here's what Sally Fallon, author of the cookbook and encyclopedia on traditional nutrition, Nourishing Traditions, has to say:

Science validates what our grandmothers knew. Rich homemade chicken broths help cure colds. Stock contains minerals in a form the body can absorb easily—not just calcium but also magnesium, phosphorus, silicon, sulphur and trace minerals. It contains the broken down material from cartilage and tendons--stuff like chondroitin sulphates and glucosamine, now sold as expensive supplements for arthritis and joint pain.

So we took the bones home, or rather I did for I'm the one with the stock pot. I put the bones into cold water, added a couple heads of garlic, an onion quartered, some onion skins and other veggie bits I keep in a bag in the fridge for broth-making, parsley and other herbs and a couple of tablespoons of apple cider vinegar. The vinegar is important as it helps extract the minerals from the bones. The chicken bone broth has been simmering on the back of the stove for almost 24 hours now. About time to finish it off, which is merely straining it, cooling it, and putting it in appropriate containers.

This bone broth will go to Fred, for an all out attempt to get his elbow healed by the next time we have to go to his doctor. He's sick and tired of that cast on his arm. Well, I'll probably keep a quart of it for soup-making purposes, but he can have the rest.

The broth smells lovely. It smells like home, like health, like all good, simple things. And it will do wonderful things for a soup. You can't beat it. In a pinch, if I don't have any broth in the fridge or freezer, I'll use canned chicken or beef broth, and a decent bouillon cube (non MSG for me) if I have too, but you really can't beat homemade stock or broth for flavoring a soup or sauce.

It's great to know that this very simple cooking technique can give you such great health benefits as well as provide potent flavor. Peasant societies and all of our grandmothers knew what was best all along.

You used to be able to get critter and chicken bones from the butcher just by asking for them. These days you have to buy beef or lamb bones--they get packaged and sold with the meat. And that's a shame, but hell, I'll buy them. Or sometimes get lucky and stop by the Amish farm after they've been butchering....

For a couple of great articles that can explain the health benefits of broth better than I can, check here and here. You'll be glad you did, especially if you start making broth yourself.

HM

Home Remedies from Amish Country

Home Remedies from Amish Country
Revised 5th Edition
Published by Abana Books, Ltd.
6523 Township Rd 346
Millersburg OH 44654


I purchased my copy from the Amish bulk store. It is available used from Amazon for a couple of bucks (+shipping at $3.99). It is a very interesting book, heavy on the use of apple cider vinegar, which is all around great stuff. Garlic is big in the book as well. And there's lots and lots of home remedies, all submitted by Amish folks.

The copyright info does say that no part of "this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form ... except for brief excerpts in reviews." I'm including these short paragraphs in my review here as it is a very good synopsis of how disease, toxemia, germs and and unhealthy body work. This section is called Body Cleanser I:

Cleansing the soul if just as important for good health as cleansing the body. Man has been held in the bondage of misery and suffering with negative, destructive influences from licensed and unlicensed witchcraft. [Wonder if the author of the quote is talking about mainstream medicine here?? HM]

Cleansing the body is basic for the elimination and correction of every kind of disease. When we become sick of being sick, then we will learn the truth and it will teach us that we can be free from any disease. Deficiencies in the raw materials our bodies assimilate and use for cell building produce deteriorated cells which in turn will produce toxins. Disease, aging and death are the result of accumulated toxins and congestions throughout the entire body. Germs and virses exist in excess only when we provide a breeding ground in which they can survive and multiply. They are in the body to help break down acculmulated toxins and congestions. Do you think that a microscopic microbe which will make you sick when you are well and strong, that you will ever become strong enough thereafter to throw it off? Infection and fever are not caught; they were created to burn off the excess wastes and toxins our bodies have accumulated. With this understanding, all diseases are varied expressions of the one disease called toxemia. This is briefly defined as a saturation of toxins and congestions in the body. As a person reaches of limit of what the body can tolerate, a good house cleaning is started, and one of nature's most effective methods is to start loosening and eliminating these toxins and congestions with bacterial or viral action. As this action progresses, we become sick and feverish, and the body's other resources kick into action to clean us out as fast as possible. As disease-producing toxins are expelled from our bodies, deficiencies must be restored. Thus a cleansing diet must also incude the proper material for building healthy cells.

.....

Lemons and limes are the richest source of vitamins and minerals of any food known to man. This lemon juice diet has been in use by many thousands of people since 1940 and may be used with complete safety for every known type of sickness. Other reasons to use this diet are for resting the digestive system, losing excess weight, and better assimilation of nutrients from food. Using this diet 3 or 4 times per year will do wonders for your health. Follow the diet for a minimum of 10 days and up to 40 days for extremely serious conditions. All the nutrition needed during the cleansing period is supplied in the diet. This diet does not have any dangerous side effects. Do not substitute any ingredients and make it exactly as shown.
2 Tablespoon lemon or lime juice from fresh fruit only (about 1/2 lemon)
2 T pure maple syrup (less if more weight loss is desired)
1/10 tsp cayenne powder (may start with a dash and increase amount)
Combine the above ingredients and add enough medium hot or cold water to fill a 10 oz glass. Pure sorghum may be used as a lesser substitute when maple syrup isn't available. About 6-12 glasses per day are sufficient. Extra water or mint tea may be taken if desired. When you get hungry just have another glass of lemonade. No other food, vitamins or supplements should be taken during the full period of the diet. If you do, you may defeat your efforts at cleansing the body.

End quote. Also recommended is a herbal tea laxative every morning, aiming at 2-3 bowel movements a day. To come off the diet, drink a glass of orange or grape juice for the first 2-6 meals, adding raw and cooked veggies in small portions after that.

I can vouch for this fast (I call it a fast, they call it a diet) as being very beneficial. Your body will rid itself of toxins, which will make you feel pretty sickly: headaches, dizziness, weakness, vomiting might occur. This is a sign that the fast is working--as your body dumps toxins into the bloodstream on route to elimination, you feel sick--that's the toxins being kicked out and released. Be patient, pray, and let your body do what it knows will work and rid you of excess rotten crap in your system.

The book carries the all important disclaimer that this information is presented only for historical and educational purposes: it is NOT medical advice. Readers should always consult with their physician before trying any home remedies, and etc. That disclaimer applies to this blog as well.

The book is divided into Baby Care, Health Care, Weight Loss, Salves, and an Index. A majority of the remedies include one or more of the following: apple cider vinegar, lemons, onions, garlic, cayenne pepper, honey, and baking soda. The herbs include: ginger, feverfew (for migraine), plantain, boneset, red clover blossoms, goldenseal, echinacea, aloe vera, and more.

Here's a typical remedy that is repeated by many Amish in the book:

The way to stay healthy and alert, well into old age, is to combine one teaspoon of cider vinegar, one teaspoon of honey, and a full glass of water. Take this tonic three times a day, 1/2 hour before meals. Sylvia Shetler

Here's another one, also repeated many times:

1 tablespoon [baking] soda in a glass of water for 3 day, never more than 3 days, the body would become too alkaline. The body is in an acid state when flu strikes. Simon S. Schwartz

The body's acid/alkaline balance is very important. Disease strikes when your system becomes too acidic. Assisting your system to become more alkaline is important.

Here's another remedy for kidney stones:

Wash six ordinary size red beets. Do not slice them. In 3 quarts of water, boil them slowly so as not to boil the water away. After an hour, strain the water and bottle it, placing it in the ice box to prevent souring. Drink 3 glasses of this a day. The drink simply dissolves the stones, and you don't even pass them. Mrs. Lloyd Kuepfer

In our household, we use a lot of home remedies. We do not have health insurance and tend not to use the mainstream medical system much. For one, it has priced itself out of our range. For another, we don't agree with allopathic methods or theory. It is not enough to supress symptoms. Far more important is to get to the root cause of the problem. So Home Remedies from Amish Country is a natural for us, and we have used and will use many of the suggested remedies.

This is an excellent little book, full of interesting ideas. For about $5, used from Amazon, it can't be beat. Then all you have to do is follow the educational and historical non-advice. :)
HM

More on Trading with the Amish

I've talked of this before, but it is worth mentioning again. Every Saturday, a neighbor of ours, Fred, and I take a drive down to our local Amish neighbors. The Amish live in about 20 of the states, as well as Canada and some are moving or have moved down to South America, too, I believe. Wikipedia has a good article on the Amish if you're interested.

The Amish family we visit with and buy from are Old Order Amish. That is, no electricity, no phone at home (they can use a phone if they need to, in emergencies, but otherwise don't), travel by foot, horse and buggy, or horseback (or hire a driver and van to take them somewhere). It's a simple, 19th century sort of life, maybe even 18th century. Fred and I really enjoy our trips to the farm. There we get milk, cream, buttermilk, eggs, butter (sometimes churned as we watch and have coffee in the kitchen), fresh garden produce, meat occasionally if they've just butchered cows or pigs or chickens, baked goods, homemade cider and things like that. We buy the dairy products as "pet food" since you cannot sell raw milk in Indiana. Our "pets" love the dairy products. :) Joaz and Lydia run an organic farm, and we pay a lot less at the farm than we would in the local whole foods/organic coop place a few towns away. It's a good deal for us, and a good deal for them. We buy for all of our neighbors in the valley who want the eggs, etc.

I admire these folks. They have kept their lives simple so they can focus on matters important: their families, their church, their fellowship with God and each other. They speak a dialect of German but all of the school-going kids and adults speak English as well. I've started learning German, so I can talk to them in their language, but the immersion German CDs I got from the library didn't give me much more than "Wo ist die Goethe strasse, bitte?" However, since I've made the effort, Joaz and Lydia and Emme, the oldest girl, usually help me along with the lingo, at least in between laughter at my feeble efforts. Ah, well. It's fun. Wait til I learn some Spanish and start teaching it to them. :)

At most of the Amish farms along the way there are signs for eggs, or fresh produce, or lumber or firewood, and sometimes there's a harness shop, tack store, handmade baskets, etc. When we go to the Troyers (Joaz and Lydia), we often also go to the Bulk Store, which is run by family in their church group. The bulk store is an interesting set up. Here you can buy your necessities--sugar, flour, oats, pasta, sauces, etc. It is mostly food, dry goods, but not produce, with a few other handmade items. Either the bulk food is shipped to the store, or they go into the local Aldi's and Walmart and buy in bulk. I've seen two or three Amish guys buying 4-6 stuffed carts full of groceries at Aldi's. This purchase may be for the bulk store, where it will be measured into smaller portions, repackaged and sold to either other Amish families or to outsiders like Fred and I.

The bulk store makes a lot of sense--a trip to Walmart may be short for automobile drivers, but it is a long way and many hours for the Amish horse and buggy. If you are an Amish farmwife, and you need some dry goods, you can get it from the bulk store a few miles away, rather than an all day trip to the town with the Aldi's/Walmart.

The reason I mention the bulk store is because I bought some oats for oatmeal at this store yesterday. I got 6 lbs for $3. That's a much better price than the $2.39 I'd spend at Aldi's for 2lb10oz oatmeal. I realize I could buy in larger bulk and get even better prices, and I will when we have the room to store it. You can get excellent deals at the bulk store. Honey, blackstrap molasses, maple syrup, various homemade jams, jellies, pickles etc. are also available at good prices.

If you live in Alabama, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Tennessee, Wisconsin and possibly a few other states, there may be Amish near you. I cannot vouch for every Amish farm, but we've found the produce to be outstanding. The dairy is very good, ditto with the veggies and grains and meat. Good food at a good price. Keep in mind that not all Amish farms are organic. You'll have to ask around.

Fred and I also go to the local herb store--well, it is actually more of a pharmacy, Amish style. They don't carry bulk herbs, but they do carry herbal tinctures, salves, ointments, medicines for man and beast, as well as kitchen equipment, some tack, and other items (canning jars and lids, for example). The Amish doctor themselves with herbs and herbal extracts for the most part. They have access to mainstream medicine if they want it or need it, but mostly, for simple problems, they stick with herbs. Lydia and I often sit for a time and talk about physical ills and what to do about them. I traded them some of my elderberry syrup and elderberry extract for some baked goods not long ago. I'm preparing a salve for one of the kid's hands--he burned it on the stove and the scar tissue has tightened up his fingers and has lost flexibility and strength.

Joaz and Lydia are also a resource for us for otherwise hard to find or very expensive items--working cookstoves, lanterns, that sort of thing. They'll know if there's an auction or who might have something used and in good shape.

If you have Amish families and farms in your area, it's worthwhile getting to know them. They're shrewd barginers, but fair and honest. At least all my dealings with them have been excellent.
HM

Trading with the Amish

About a year ago, the Gruff Lord (Michael, the blog-owner to you) suggested that we get some of our produce from the Amish--good, organic, natural produce. So an older gentleman in our community, Fred, and I began to go to an Amish farm so we could purchase fresh, raw milk, free-range chicken eggs, farm-raised bacon and any other goodies that these kindly folks were willing to part with for agreed-upon prices.

It’s been a wonderful thing. The milk, butter, eggs, meat are tasty, fresh, and healthy. Not only that, but Lydia and Joaz sell them to us for much less than we would have to pay in any local organic grocery or health food store. We know, we’ve priced it.

Joaz and Lydia have kept their farm free of chemicals--insecticides, pesticides, fertilizers--for the required three years. This year, they can begin to sell their produce as officially organic. In a nearby town, a new food coop has opened, the Lost River Community Coop, that sells predominantly organic produce. So they have a great market for their home-grown veggies, besides us and all the other “English” who drive out to buy the produce.

Slowly but surely, people are becoming aware that standard American food products are rotten and poisonous--full of chemicals and nearly totally lacking nutrition. Turns out “junk food” is more junk than it is food. And that includes ALL processed foods.

Fresh milk that could be full of enzymes is pasteurized, thus killing all of the health-giving enzymes. So why bother drinking it? Same with butter--but even worse than butter is the pack of chemicals that food companies came up with to surplant natural butter--all the “I can’t believe it is butter” crap. This kind of “food” not only fills you up with chemicals which will eventually kill you, it gives you nearly nothing nutritionally. A modern American can be fatter than one of Joaz’ pigs, and yet have malnutrition. Only in America!

Both Fred and I have studied Sally Fallon, author of Nourishing Traditions, a cookbook, but also an entire course on traditional nutrition in itself. A person can spend hours reading Nourishing Traditions and learn everything he needs to know about nutrition. Those of us in the Sally Fallon school want a traditional 19th century diet of natural, wholesome, healthy foods.

Which is why Fred and I go and buy our goodies from the Amish.

If you are fortunate enough to live near Amish farms, you might want to take a drive out to their neck of the farming lands and see what kind of trade, barter or purchase you can arrange for these good natural foods. We have found the Amish to be wonderful people, kind, good-humored, hard-working. The children are polite, helpful and fun to be around. As we have gotten to know Joaz and Lydia and their kids a bit better, we find we are doing small things for them--research on the web, print-outs of this and that, information about the evil NAIS bill--and they do small things for us--toss in a pound of bacon for free.

A friendship gets established. Connection and relationships. These are good things to have when the SHTF. It isn’t all guns. It’s also butter. If you don’t already have your own cows and goats and small farm, get your good butter from the Amish.

More on this topic as I find the time.
Handmaiden