It’s time to take stock!

New Years resolutions, time to get fit, eat healthily or jump on dry January? Which one are you, if any? January is the month where we try to take hold of ourselves or certain situations, that we can possibly improve. The month feels so long and tends to drag relentlessly, so filling it to the brim with personal highs is most certainly a must. This year I have made no resolutions as I always tend to fail, that said I am on a no alcohol month and I’m also exercising 31 minutes a day throughout January for a charity I support, ‘Crohn’s and Colitis’. As a sufferer since I was 19, food, health and wellbeing has much to do with my state of mind and health.

As usual throughout December and the lead up to Christmas and the New Year, I over bought slightly when it came to festive biscuits, nuts, chocolate, panettone and of course, cheese. Cheese along with wine are two of my weaknesses, but I will endeavour to eat my way through the remaining wedges with little of no moaning. All the other treat that were boxed and unopened have been gifted to my local food bank.

I have a large American style fridge freezer that houses two very large vegetable drawers. I adore my fridge and its contents and one of my favourite everyday things to rustle up, is a good brodo, vegetable stock. With freshly made vegetable stock you can easily rustle up a risotto, use it as a base for soups, pastina and vegetable (or chicken) brodo is the most perfect broth to bathe my freshly made tortellini or Italian biscuits soup known as zuppa imperiale.

Each time I make brodo, its always different. The choice of vegetables and their skins can change the colour as well as the final flavour of the stock. My most recent brodo was simply delicious and this was my New Years Day family lunch brodo. A brodo to start the new year feels like a well needed and much required warming hug. The stock however is suitable anytime of the year and poured into containers of bags, the stock freezes wonderfully for up to 3 months.

Vegetable broth – Brodo vegetale

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Makes: 1.8 litres

2 shallots, peeled, quartered.

2 carrots, un-peeled, chopped into 3cm pieces.

1 small fennel, quartered.

2 stalks celery, chopped into 3cm pieces.

2 cloves garlic, squashed, skins on

4 large ripe tomatoes, quartered.

2 potatoes, skins on, quartered.

1 Parmigiano Reggiano, rind (optional)

Small bunch celery leaves roughly chopped.

Bunch basil

Parsley stalks roughly chopped.

Salt & pepper, to season

  1. Place all the ingredients into a saucepan apart from the salt and pepper.
  2. Top with 2.5 litres of water.
  3. Simmer for 1 hour 30 minutes over a medium heat.
  4. Using a potato masher, carefully mash the vegetables in the pan, to break them up.
  5. Pass the stock through a sieve and once again use the potato masher or a flexible spatula to push all the goodness through the sieve leaving the dense pulp behind.
  6. Take a spoon and scrape the base of the sieve adding the pureed pulp back into the stock.
  7. Place the stock back onto the heat and cook for a further 15 minutes. Season to taste as required.

Carmela’s tip:  The mashed vegetables would make wonderful fritters too. If you’d like to make the fritters, when you prepare the vegetables, make sure you peel everything, ensuring no skins are used. Then once the brodo is made, place the pulp into a bowl and add a couple of tablespoons of flour, a little of your favourite grated cheese, salt, pepper and some fresh herbs. Form into quenelles and fry until golden in a little olive oil.

Happy New Year, I hope you all have a wonderful month.