Magic Mineral Broth
Faced with row upon row of eye catching, beautifully illustrated cookbooks in Barnes & 
Noble it took some time to choose the right cookbook for Meg’s Christmas basket. The selection criteria were simple – I wanted to find a book I believed would be more than a “one hit wonder,” not a vanity book consigned to a coffee table. The kind of book that has legs, and over time acquires thumb marks and folded corners, handwritten critiques and modifications, and marks out of 10 scribbled onto the pages.
Clean Soups, by Rebecca Katz, stands out because the title sits nicely above a large pot of… clean looking soup, and the pages which follow hand hold you through the basics of creating nourishing broths which can stand alone or become the foundation for other more involved soups.
The idea of beginning with a hot broth, carefully made using good ingredients, is our focus this month. I love this book for its balanced and sustainable approach to nutrition. “Author Rebecca Katz shows you how to use wholesome stocks and soups to naturally detox and stay energized year-round.” The book is structured to give you confidence that following the steps will yield great results, and it does.
A senior in college, Meg’s son Phil took to the book immediately when she asked him to prepare dinner one morning and as I embarked on my slow cooker
adaptation of Katz’s Magic Mineral Broth I called him to compare notes on the aesthetics and flavors of the broth along with the differences in our methods. (Phil cooked his on the stovetop; I made the broth in my slow cooker.) Don’t be fooled into thinking that this is complicated, it is actually very straight forward.
The flavor is really good, savory and different. The addition of Kombu gives it the umami notes and therefore the depth required to make it a broth for sipping all on its own. Refrigerate it and reheat whenever you feel hungry between meals or as a warm drink. I think it is important to note that Katz’s book also includes a bone broth which adds another layer of goodness for anyone trying to rebuild strength from recent illness.
This recipe for for a 6 quart slow cooker or larger, simply because the liquid brings it right up to within an inch of the lid. It cooked on high for 8 hours because it takes time for the water to heat. However you can reduce it accordingly for a smaller batch.
Next week we will use the broth as a base for one of the soups from the book.
- 3 carrots, scrubbed, cut into 1/3
- 1 yellow onion, washed, unpeeled, cut into 1/4
- 1 small leek, washed, cut into 1/3
- 1/2 bunch celery, washed, cut into 1/3
- 2 red potatoes, scrubbed, cut into 1/4
- 1 sweet potato, scrubbed, cut into 1/4
- 1 small yam, scrubbed, cut into 1/4
- 3 cloves garlic, washed, unpeeled
- 1/2 cup fresh parsley, washed, torn
- 1 strip kombu, 8" x 2"
- 6 black peppercorns
- 2 allspice or juniper berries
- 2 bay leaves
- 3.5 quarts cold water
- 1 tsp sea salt
- place your slow cooker onto a heat resistant mat on the counter (this is because it will run at high for 8 hours)
- put all the ingredients into your slow cooker, stir and cover
- cook on HIGH for 8 hours
- strain the broth using a sieve over a large bowl (preferably one with a pouring lip/spout) and transfer to large jars.
- refrigerate until ready to reheat or use in a soup
- my slow cooker didn't ever boil during this process, but bubbles broke on the surface very gradually during cooking
“Start by doing what’s necessary; then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”
-St. Francis of Assisi
