Good Turkey: Get Out the Stockpot and Make Broth!

This book is a winner. My friends Sally Fallon Morell and Dr. Kaayla T. Daniel have written a new book, Nourishing Broth: An Old-Fashioned Remedy for the Modern World. Whether you’ve not yet discovered the wonderful pleasure of feeding high-quality soups and broth to your family or you’re an old hand at it, I think you’ll love this book.

I’ve been making broths since 1973 when I read about their use in French and Italian cooking. (Anyone remember the old Time-Life Cooking Series? They were my mainstay.) Yet in this new book, I’ve found useful tips I never considered, like adding eggshells to the pot while simmering to add more minerals.

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, there is no better time to start! Turkey bone broth is one of the most nourishing and delicious concoctions that can come out of this holiday.

If you’ve been following my blogs for a while, you know that I am a huge proponent of feeding bone stocks to your family, both in sickness and in health. I’ve seen firsthand the health benefits of such fare, and I hope you have, too. But to be honest, I couldn’t explain scientifically why soups and broth are so good for you.

Now I can. A combination cookbook, history book and science book, Nourishing Broth will tell you everything you need to know about the healing properties we all crave.

For example, did you know that broth dates back to the Stone Age? Before people had stock pots, broth was made by putting hot stones inside the abdominal pouches of butchered animals “to simmer up mixtures of meat, fat, bones, herbs, wild grains and water.”

“Until the modern era, most households kept a cauldron simmering over the fire or a stockpot on a stove’s back burner. People regularly ate from it and continually added whatever ingredients became available, making long-cooked soups and stews the original ‘fast food,’” our authors state.

Chicken soup was known as “Jewish penicillin.” Asian families encouraged their children to “drink their soup” for its healing properties and to prevent illness. In fact, most American chicken feet are shipped to China, where they are added to the soup pot (something we need to get back to doing here at home). Even Florence Nightingale advocated using soup for its “easy digestibility” in her 1859 book, Notes on Nursing.

“Today we are witnessing an epidemic of chronic disease that threatens to unhinge our modern world – cancer, arthritis, allergies, digestive problems, mental disorders and even new types of life-threatening infectious disease,” writes these authors. “Bone broth, rich in the elements of cartilage, collagen and healing amino acids, can provide protection for these ailments, can serve as an important element in recovery, and can nourish and enrich our lives in many ways.”

They then explore the science of why broth aids in healing. And we’re not just talking about colds and flu here. They explain how broth can be healing for osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma, psoriasis, digestive disorders, wound healing and even cancer.

And the best part of the book? The recipes! More than 100 pages of time-tested recipes for stock and broth, soups, aspics, stews and stir-fries, sauces and tonics. (Even my own submission of a recipe from my grandmother was included.) This book will instruct those new to the making of these nutritious meals and expand the horizons of those who have been cooking these for years.

This Thanksgiving, don’t let the benefits of the holiday end after one day. Those turkey carcasses can offer up a wealth of nutritious meals, and Nourishing Broth can show you how. Consider this important book as required reading for your kids this holiday.

So, get reading, simmer up those bones, add a little love, and let the healing begin!