Hi guys!! Remember me?! Finals are over and I am back.in.action. Similar to taking turmeric supplements, I have heard the words “bone broth” over and over again as a health “supplement” but my immediate reaction was “no thank you.” I am not a big soup person to begin with, and I literally choke down chicken soup when I am sick. If you read my friendly supplement guide a few weeks back, you know that I am very regimented about what I put in my body. Well GUESS WHAT…much to my surprise, that now includes a big cup of bone broth once a day.

One of my first questions about bone broth was “how is it different than normal chicken soup??” Bone broth is not a “new trend” as many websites and every fitness blogger and their mom will boast: those who follow a paleo diet have reaped the nutrients for quite some time. Essentially bone broth is exactly what it sounds like: stock made with plenty of animal bones and boiled for a much longer time than traditional stock.

I will let The Today Show break it down for you:

“Bone broth calls for a greater number of birds (or beef parts) than traditional stock, though, which increases the protein content, explains Ben Hummel, a brand manager for Pacific Foods. For example, a batch of one  broth calls for two turkeys, 40 pounds of beef shin and 15 hens, all cooked in a massive stockpot. After a serious simmer — as long as 24 hours — the collagen and connective tissue break down, helping boost the protein also, explains Hummel. “It takes many hours of simmering to break the connective tissues down into useable form, but the result is a broth with a high amount of bioavailable protein,” he says, adding that Pacific’s bone broths have as much as nine times more protein than traditional store-bought ones. “

Essentially, bone broth is extremely nutrient rich and seen as a detoxing beverage for our body. Depending on your personal problems (as I have said before, I am not a doctor but go off of my research, my team of doctors, and my personal experiences) bone broth can help alleviate joint pain, improve skin, aid in weight loss and most importantly help gut issues.

*Side note: have you ever noticed that after you have a heavy meal or eat a candy bar your brain gets a little “foggy?” That’s because our gut is linked directly to our brain and when we do not treat our gut right, it has an effect on our brain. If you want to learn more, please read this post by Twist Of Lemons.

After allll of the above, if you want to try adding bone broth into your diet yourself whether for serious health deficiencies or you simply want to see shiny hair and better skin, I have just the recipe for you. This recipe is directly from my mom (hi mom!) It is flavorful and I add a little bit of pink Himalayan sea-salt to my cup when consuming. You can use this within a week or freeze up to 3 months.

WHAT YOU NEED:
• 4 pounds chicken necks/feet/wings
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 3 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 medium onions, peel on, sliced in half lengthwise and quartered
• 4 garlic cloves, peel on and smashed
• 1 teaspoon Himalayan salt
• 1 teaspoon whole peppercorns
2 bay leaves
• 5-6 sprigs parsley
• 18-20 cups water

HOW TO MAKE IT:

Place all ingredients in a 10 quart capacity crock-pot/stock pot
2. Add water.
3. Simmer for 12 hours, skimming fat occasionally.
4. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Discard solids and strain remainder in a bowl through a colander. Let stock cool to room temperature, cover and chill.

This is what your bone broth will look like!

Please let me know if you try this out! If you have any other health recommendations, I would love to hear them! If there is anything you would like me to talk about in an upcoming post, please leave me a comment!

<3 Al