KLEENEX ULTRA SOFT BATHROOM TISSUE in your kitche WINTERY weather makes your insides warm to “comfort food” like hot soups and stews. s, the most and nutritious ones are based on a good stock, r you slaved over a hot for hours to make. ime is sometimes the most difficult ingredient, with today’s busy lifestyles, in mak- ing an old-fashioned, home- made stock for soup, stews or other dishes that benefit irom a flavourful broth, but com- bine it with another activity that keeps you around ute house. Stocks lend themselves to individual creativity, so use your imagination and experi- ment with different herbs or flavourings as vou cook it. ‘Vake the advice of an old hand, and record what you put in, just in case it turns out to be a real winner! Basic Beef Stock Once made, this can be frozen in ziplock bags or reev- cled margarine tubs, ready for use as needed. If you know you'll want a pardcular amount for a future soup, freeze it in that quantity. I¢s amazing how many dif ferent ways you can use this stock to add extra erwise ordinary 2 Ib. beef bones 2 onions 2 stalks celery 1 carrot 1 bay leaf 4 peppercorns 2 cloves 2 garlic cloves 1 tsp. salt 8 c. water Preheat oven to 425 F (220C). Put bones into a roasting pan and roast tor 40 minutes, turning once. Remove from oven and place the bones in a large Dutch oven or stock pot along with the chopped vegetables and seasonings. Cover the bones with water and bring to a boil, - Reduce the heat and simmer with a cover on for another 2- 4 hours. Strain stock into a large bow! discarding the bones, bay leaf and vegetables. Refrigerate the strained stock until it’s cold, then lift and discard any fat, Use within three days or freeze up to three months. Chicken Stock The next time you de-bone FOOD NEWS photo Mike Wakefield THERE’S no better time of year than this to toss together the ingredients for a homemade soup stock. chicken breasts, save the bones with the remaining meat cling- ing to them; purchase necks and backs from your butcher; or remove the next package of chicken parts, for use in the stock pot, or buy a cheap stewing bird. 1 boiling fowl 1 stalk celery 1 onion 1 carrot 2 bay leaves 1 esp. parsley 1 tsp. salt + peppercorns 2 cloves Cut chicken into pieces if needed. Put all the pieces into a stock pot or large pot, Add enough water to cover the chicken bones. Cover the pot and bring to a boil, lower heat and remove any froth that boils up. Add chopped vegeta- bles and seasonings and siny- mer for 2-3 hours. if a boiling fowl is used, remove it after an hour or so tt aside the meat, to be ina chicken pie or for chicken sandwiches. Replace the bones for simi ing another hour or so, Strain the stock into a large bowl and discard the bones and vegeta- bles. Cool to skim off any fat and use the stock immediately or freeze for later use. French Onion Soup This is delicious just as it is, or it can make a grand table entrance, served over dried or toasted French bread which has been sprinkled with Swiss regular $4.50 each Westiynn Bakery 1199 LYNN VALLEY &D., LYNN VALLEY CENTRE 985-1622 cheese. Run individual bowls under the broiler until the cheese browns and bubbles. 2 Thsp. butter Ke. off 2 Ib. onions 1 tsp. salt 4c. flour 2 qt. stock (4 ¢. dry sherry) optional Curt onions in half length wise, then slice them up, using the flat side to make slicing easier, Mele butter in a large, heavy soup or stew pot, add your choice of cooking oil, and when it’s hot, throw in all the onions. Sprinkle salt over it all, and stir together. Cook the onions over low heat, uncov- ered, for halfan hour or so, stirring occasionally to make sure none brown, until they're all limp and translucent. While the onions are cook: ing, heat about five cups (1.25 |) of beef stock and three cups (750 ml) of chicken stock, ready to add to the cooked onions. Sprinkle flour over the onions and stir it in, cooking it for a few minutes. Add hot stock mixture to onion, increasing the heat and stirring until it all recurns to bubbling. Simmer, partly covered, for another half hour or more, stirring occasionally, Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper and a healthy dash of dry sherry, if desired. — Srud your questions on any culinary topics to: A Chef in Your Kitchen, PO Box 18627, Delta B.C, VAK 4V7 or e-mail to: . Oller valid Jan 6-124