Lemons of Love

In one week I get my third shot. Holy cow, this is happening fast!! Only five more shots this year :) I wish I felt better and could actually enjoy the amazingness that is NYC. There's so much to do and see - and people to visit. I learned a lot though, about pushing myself. My buddy Libbey is coming with me this time, and we're planning on lazing around in the hotel room, relaxing, working on a puzzle and she doesn't know it, but I'm bringing my board game of Words With Friends. Slumber party! Packing should be easy...PJs and slippers.  I'm excited! We will have a blast, but at the same time I'm frustrated that I have to be careful. I hate that I'm prone to seizures, and that they're induced by stress. Stupid stress.

Doorbell.....

Look what my mother-in-law sent me!!! Wooo hooooo! Organic lemons!! Sweeeeeeet. I wish I lived next door so I could make her lemon shots just to see her face :) If you know Linda, you would be laughing right now, just picturing her laughing at me. Her giggle is fantastically contagious. And she'll eat whatever I make her, but let's just say it's not her favorite food :)

I am so excited for these shots, even though they're taxing on my body. I can't believe I'm able to do this. What a crazy opportunity. I can't say this enough, thank you for the donations! We have also been very fortunate that Dan's work is incredibly busy. He has been working 72 hour weeks, and will continue to do so until at least June. Above his 72 hour work week, he also travels for class once a week after work, and doesn't make it home until around 10:00 p.m. Danny works so, so hard, and I appreciate him very much - and I want everyone to know how amazing he is (as if you didn't already know) :) I worry about his health, though, a lot. He is so wonderful, never complaining, and I've been cooking, and cleaning and doing everything that I can to support him, but it sucks to not only not have a job to contribute, but also be the financial burden. STUPID CANCER! Ugh.

Chicken Broth

I did end up making broth from the chicken bones on Saturday. It was so easy! I took the whole carcass and put it in a great big pot, along with the drippings from the roast.

See what I meant about all that meat?

You cover the carcass with water and boil it.

This is the carcass after just having added water

Some websites say 1.5 hours, others say 3 hours. I decided to go with 3.5 hours of boiling, and I'm telling you it was the easiest thing to clean the meat off the bones. They didn't say either way, the sites that I referenced, but I covered my broth as it boiled.

You know it's ready when it's a milky color

I used a slatted spoon to pull the bones out of the pot. I placed all the meat on one dish (really sift through it - there are some very small bones), and the bones/cartilage/skin in another. When I got to the point where there was stuff floating around, I placed a mesh strainer over another large pot and strained the rest of the broth. Done! I ended up with about two cups of meat, it was crazy!

That's a lot of broth & a lot of meat

I divided the broth into one pot for dinner with the remaining chicken, and the second half, I placed in a container to freeze. You will want to season the broth with whatever you'd like, whenever you use it, but it's all so easy! I tossed some things from my fridge, a celery heart & leaves, some kale, shiitake mushrooms, chives, carrots, cayenne & fresh cracked pepper and a dash or two of finely ground sea salt. Done.

I'm sorry to say I don't have any vegan cookie recipes. I haven't baked in ages. I don't trust myself around sugar - unless it's as an exfoliant. Just thinking about it makes me want a cookie, though. Yum!! I'm such a suggestible person when it comes to food. That's why we don't have anything deliciously naughty in our home. Veggies, meats, nuts and cheese get old very quickly. Can't really binge on those things :)

My favorite part of making chicken broth.....

I'll never tell what I wished for...