Tag: healthy

how to make vegetable broth

November 14th, 2011 · Bambino Steps (Kimberly) ·

In addition to making highly nutritious and delicious bone broth, I also make our own vegetable stock. It’s even simpler, and best of all, virtually free. Try the how-to below and you’ll have scrumptious, preservative-free broths to add to all of your Thanksgiving dishes.

Step One

Simply save all of your high quality vegetable peelings from the week. I store ours in Mason jars in the fridge until ready to use. Alternatively, you could simply chop up a selection of good, stock-worthy vegetables such as carrots, celery, onion, and parsnips. Toss garlic, lemongrass and ginger peelings into the mix to make an Asian-tasting stock, or add a selection of hearty herbs such as parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme for something more savory.

Step Two

Toss the peelings into a large stock pot, cover with water and bring to a gentle boil. Then turn the burner down to a low simmer, cover with a lid and cook for one-two hours. Your home will smell amazing!

Step Three

Allow to cool just a bit, then strain (toss the cooked peelings into your compost) and pour into Mason jars. I keep the jars on a cooling rack for some time, then transfer to the fridge overnight and label, until finally moving them into the freezer. Again, this gentle cooling process insures that the jars will not break.

Step Four

Mangia!

Do you make homemade broths?

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how to make bone broth

November 12th, 2011 · Bambino Steps (Kimberly) ·

When I first started making my own bone broth, I was more interested in saving money on boxed stock, as well as putting all those leftover bones to use. Since then, I have come to love it because it’s incredibly healing for the gut, super duper nutritious and infinitely more delicious. My body craves it really. Making your own broth is so easy and it is wonderful in absolutely everything from soups, stews, in lieu of water in any cooking, such as scrambled eggs, as well as simply sipped hot out of a mug.

Step One

Save those bones! Simply drop fish, pork, chicken or beef bones into separate mason jars and store them in the freezer until ready to use, or use them fresh. If you’re more of a boneless meat eater, below are three easy bone-in chicken recipes that I have featured on my blog. You can also acquire bones from your local butcher.

Roasted Chicken, Carrots, and Potatoes with Olives and Lemon

Roasted Chicken with Balsamic Acorn Squash

Roasted Whole Chicken (scroll down in post; I love it with onions, lemons and Kalamata olives)

Step Two

Toss the bones in a large stockpot along with your high-quality vegetable scraps. I save all of our carrot peelings and ends as well as celery, onion and parsley ends in a Mason jar in the fridge. Alternatively, you could simply chop up several carrots, celery stalks and an onion and toss it in the pot. Cover with water by several inches and add two tablespoons of organic apple cider vinegar or freshly squeezed lemon juice. Allow to sit for an hour; beef or pork for two hours. This draws nutrients out of the bones.

Step Three

Bring contents to a boil, skim off scum that arises to the top, cover with a lid and turn burner down to a low simmer. Cook for 12-24 hours for chicken and fish bones and up to 72 hours for pork and beef bones. Optional: Nourishing Traditions taught me to toss in a bunch of parsley 30 minutes before done cooking for additional nutrients.

Step Four

Allow to cool a bit and then strain. Eat the marrow. Freaky, I know, but it is insanely nutritious; my son actually shakes with excitement when it comes to this step. Pour broth into mason jars and allow to cool, then transfer to fridge for several hours, before finally storing in the freezer. You may skim the fat off the top (rendering lard) and save for cooking, though I keep it in the broth. This gradual, gentle cooling method insures the jars won’t break. Good, high-quality broth will be gelatinous when cold. Don’t be afraid – it will return to liquid when re-heated.

Step Five: Mangia!

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savory stuffed acorn squash

November 7th, 2011 · Bambino Steps (Kimberly) ·

With all of the wonderful squashes this time of year, I have been doing some experimenting in the kitchen these days. I adore the smells, flavors and textures of food in autumn, so savory, warm and comforting. This dish is just that. A homey, delicious, flavorful meal that is absolutely delicious hot out of the oven, cold the next day, or thrown into broth as a hot soup. I keep coming back to this meal, my family loves it, and I am so pleased to share the recipe with you. It would also be great to serve at a dinner party. It has a nice presentation and could even appear complicated or fancy, but I assure you, it’s a snap to make.

Savory Stuffed Acorn Squash

  • 1-2 acorn or danish squash, cut in half, seeds and goo removed
  • 6-8 pork cutlets, cut into small bite-sized pieces
  • coconut oil or lard
  • 1/2 red onion, finely chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1 handful Crimini mushrooms, fine chopped
  • 2 stalks celery, sliced
  • 1 small Gala apple, finely chopped
  • 1/4 cup raisins, chopped up a bit
  • 2 Tbls. organic apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 tsp. sage
  • Celtic sea salt

Directions: Prepare squash and place skin side up on cookie sheet. Add a bit of water to the bottom of sheet and in each squash half. Bake for 35 minutes at 400 degrees. Prepare meat and vegetables as directed above. Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat and cook pork until white, but insides still pink. Sprinkle with salt, set aside. Add a bit more lard or coconut oil to pan and saute vegetables and apple for about 7 minutes, then add seasonings, raisins and ACV, cover skillet with a lid and cook for another three-five minutes. Toss in pork, cook for a few minutes more, then set aside. When the squash is done, stuff with the mixture and bake for another 20 minutes. Eat leftovers cold or hot, or toss it all into a quart of stock, heat it up, and it is an outrageously delicious, flavorful soup. Mangia!

What are your favorite autumnal dishes?

PS – your lovely comments and supportive tweets regarding my last post absolutely overwhelmed me. The love and encouragement sent my way was/is truly appreciated. I carried your positive encouragement with me through the weekend and overall, it really helped me make healthier choices. Thank you so much, from the bottom of my heart. It meant the world.

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i am the biggest loser

November 4th, 2011 · Bambino Steps (Kimberly) ·

Since early July I have been participating in an online Biggest Loser-esque competition that my mom’s friend puts on several times per year. Well…I won. First place. A cash prize. Me. I am the biggest loser.

I don’t remember my winning weight, but the number below reflects my last weigh-in.

And while I gave you an unannounced sneak peek earlier this week, here’s a few full body shots.

I have so many new thoughts about my weight-loss and instead of diving into a 1,000 word monologue, yet again I’ll try to make my random thoughts appear more organized.

  • Holy shit I am in the 150’s.
  • That seems small.
  • That still seems huge.
  • I am fully aware of the term “skinny fat.” Let me say that I don’t think I’m skinny. I know I’m still quite chubby. But if I keep losing weight at the rate that I am, before long, I’ll be skinny.
  • But if I don’t start exercising, I’ll still be fat.
  • Fat. Fat. Fat.
  • Wait, didn’t I start this journey to be healthy? To focus on health and not appearance? To squelch the inner dialogue of thinking skinny vs. fat and feel, nay, be…healthy?
  • Oh right. Crap.
  • My motivation seems off.
  • And come to realize it, I actually appear thinner and healthier in my last weight-loss post, even though I was 10 pounds heavier. What gives?
  • Perhaps it’s from inflammation.
  • Perhaps from all the cheating I’ve been doing the past few weeks by way of corn tortilla chips, gluten-free pizza, dairy on said pizza and Halloween candy that has my priorities all askew and my gut inflamed.
  • And is mainly why I feel like a big pile of poo these days.

It’s time to get real again. Time to turn over a new leaf and re-motivate. Time to focus on healing my gut and not my pant size. I acknowledge that adhering to my own damn “secrets,” will help everything else fall into place. I’ll want to feel healthy, want to allow myself adequate rest and want to *gasp* exercise. But how does one re-motivate once they’ve spiraled? When one goes on a bit of a bender, it can seem so difficult to get back on track. Especially a recovering food-aholic, and especially one with food intolerances. My solution is to focus on hitting my goals at least 60% of the time. Because before long I’ll start to feel better and that 70, 80, 90, 99% will become easier to achieve. And when I’m hitting my mark, I feel on top of the world. Weight-loss is a journey. What I’ve learned thus far is that:

  • Simply knowing what needs to be done without taking action is simply wishing and hoping for change, which is an old “unhealthy-me” habit that ultimately leads nowhere. In other words,
  • one has to stop wishing and hoping and act in order to bring change.
  • So…

Here’s the part where I commit to honoring my body by staying away from my food intolerances, eating healthy, getting to bed early and starting an exercise regime. Here’s the part where I build up a bunch of positivity and perhaps, motivate someone else to make a change. But I’m just not quite there yet. I’d be a big phony if I attempted to craft some epic monologue like that. Honestly guys, I need a bit more time to detox from sugar and lack of sleep before I’m capable of that right now. But I’m slowly heading in the right direction. The key is to continue with that momentum, no matter how small. Follow that kernel of desire to change. Refuse to spiral. So now that you’re all semi-pumped up from this post, I’ll leave you with these parting photos.

I might not be this yet, but over the past five months, I’ve come a long way.

Right now I really need to reflect on that, relish in my progress, celebrate it, like truly celebrate, in order to continue making positive steps towards change. I deserve to focus on how far I’ve come, and not how far I have yet to go. Bambino steps.

How are you doing in your quest for health?

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natural cold remedies: teas, salves and syrups

October 20th, 2011 · Bambino Steps (Kimberly) ·

I am a total wimp. Approximately 2.5 seconds after KCWC was over (um, your comments were amazing, thank you), I came down with a cold. I am still fighting it and am trying so hard to honor my body right now, slow down and give it the rest that it needs. Easier said than done. Over the past year or so I’ve been photographing our natural cold remedies, and it feels relevant to share a few with you now. Rather than bombard you with all our remedies at once, today I will focus on teas, salves and syrups. These are all so simple and satisfying to make, inexpensive, completely natural and best of all, gentle. Make them ahead of time and save your hide when illness strikes.

The last time we were at the coast, my son developed an extremely high fever. Being away from home, and quite ill, is always a bit scary. Without my books at hand, I turned to the Internet and found this recipe for fever-reducing tea, originally from Mothering. I quickly drove to the nearest herb shop* and gathered the supplies, minus boneset flowers and leaves, which they were out of. But within minutes of administering the tea, his fever started to drop, I kid you not.

Fever-Reducing Tea

2 tsp. dried peppermint leaves

2 tsp. dried yarrow

2 tsp. dried elderflowers

In a small bowl, gently mix the herbs. Measure out 1-2 teaspoons of the mixture and pack into a mesh tea ball. Boil a kettle of water. In a mug, pour boiling water over the herbs, place a saucer over the mug and allow to steep for five minutes before sipping. If your child will not take the tea, try adding a bit of honey, or allow it to cool, pour into popsicle molds and freeze. Add remaining tea to a bath. Store excess loose tea in a glass jar with a screw-top lid, in a cool dark place.

The elderberry is a powerhouse, used to support the immune system, treat colds and flus, and contains loads of antioxidants. I have made this elderberry cough syrup countless times over the past year or so and it has become a family favorite.

I do not just use it for colds with coughs, but whenever a cold strikes and intermittently throughout the heavy cold season due to its immune-boosting effects. My husband and I take 2 tsp. off the spoon every few hours; my son receives 1 tsp. We also like this added to bubbly water. I use the simple recipe found in Amy’s emailorder #11; there is similar recipe found in my favorite herbal recipes book.

One of the simplest and fastest ways to heal from a cold is to keep your feet covered at all times. Rubbing a simple, healing mixture onto your achy feet adds another layer of cold-fighting to the mix. This economical and easy recipe can be whipped up in less than a minute and is seriously soothing.

Healing Coconut Foot Oil

  • 2 Tablespoons organic cold-pressed coconut oil
  • 2-5 drops essential oils** – try lavender, eucalyptus, sage, clove, an immunity blend, or peppermint, or use a combination

Gently mix the coconut oil and essential oils in a tin or small glass jar. To use, rub a small amount of oil onto the sickie’s feet and cover with warm socks. Repeat often. I make a fresh batch each time illness strikes and have also used olive oil, tripling the amount, and keeping in a small squeeze bottle. It is also excellent to apply all over the body after a hot bath.


I adore the vapor rub recipe featured in Amy’s emailorder #11, and it is a favorite for rubbing onto backs and chests if there is any congestion present. So soothing, pleasant smelling but not too strong, and best of all, healing. Just like the healing coconut foot oil, my son takes great pleasure in smearing a bit on his chest, under his nose, and then repeating on me.

Be well!

What are your favorite natural remedies for healing and soothing illness?

* Locally I purchase herbs from The Herb Shoppe, New Seasons and this bizarre little shop inside an Old Victorian house on Hawthorne Street just west of The Herb Shoppe. While at the coast in the Lincoln City/Gleneden area, I purchase herbs at the The Herb Store and Trillium Natural Foods. I have also purchased herbs online via Mountain Rose Herbs, which just so happens to be an Oregon-based company as well. There are a lot of hippies in these parts.

** It is important to note that these concoctions work well for me and my family. If you are sensitive to any of these herbs, please do not use. When I prepare natural medicines for my son, I often halve the amount of herbs and oils, or dilute. Tea tree and lavender should never be used on baby boys as it is a hormone disruptor. Sage and clove should not be used while pregnant.

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