When you have to be extremely mindful of what you are putting into your body, it’s rather entertaining being that one person in the grocery aisle for a good five minutes, making sure you have read the labels properly, understanding each ingredient and whether or not it is allowed on your particular eating plan. Even to the point where you have to look up it on your phone to simply remind yourself, “Wait a minute, can I eat that?!” For me, I am constantly scanning for sugar.

It’s not that I am looking at the grams of sugar in a particular food but rather whether or not it is in the ingredients. If it is, I typically put it down and search for something that is without. It’s a weird life now not indulging in sugar the way I used to. Heck, look in the archives of Fork & Beans and you will see that I was ALL about the white stuff. Shoot, if I didn’t struggle with Candida, I am pretty sure I would still be hooked so there is absolutely no judgments to anyone who still loves sugar. All I can say is that how I feel now vs. how I felt when I was eating more sugar, more processed foods, and alcohol is a night and day difference.

I am now at the point where I can feel confident when I go out to eat but I am just so thankful that I no longer have to be so strict with my diet! Hallelujer. I am starting to have more fruit now and SMOOTHIES. Ohmygosh, I have never been so happy to have a smoothie. Come to think of it, I have never been happy to have a smoothie…until recently!! It feels so good to know what balance feels like and I am constantly creating new recipes at home to keep me satiated and satisfied with my diet and this new lifestyle change. I honestly get so energized by making things from scratch and creating homemade food that is good for my body that I have to stop myself at times to go look at myself in the mirror just to make sure some alien hasn’t snatched up my body with an impostor.

I have never made Homemade Vegetable Broth before but always wanted to and when I bought a celery root at the farmer’s market, I thought, what a great way to use it. In fact, I have never tried, eaten or cooked with celery root prior to this and now I am hooked. (You can read more about celery root and what’s in season here). I don’t think I will ever buy veggie broth at the store again (unless I run out and don’t have time, let’s be real) because the homemade version is so much more flavorful and complements cooking grains so well (or whatever you are using it with). Oh and it’s so easy too! Seriously, this is how I figured out how to make veggie broth: I read the label of one of my favorite brand of vegetable broth, gathered the ingredients from my kitchen and just threw it into a pot, crossed my fingers and then watched what happened. Broth is what happened.

Homemade Vegetable Broth ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 4.8 from 4 reviews Author: Fork & Beans

Prep Time: Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: Total Time: 1 hour 10 mins

Yield: Yield: 8 cup s 1 x Print Pin Scale 1x 2x 3x Ingredients 1/2 yellow onion, chopped

yellow onion, chopped 3 cloves of garlic, smashed

cloves of garlic, smashed 1/4 – 1/2 tsp. sea salt (based off of preference)

– tsp. sea salt (based off of preference) 1 small celery root (approx. 1 cup , peeled and chopped)

small celery root (approx. , peeled and chopped) 3 large carrots, chopped

large carrots, chopped 1 large bunch of parsley

large bunch of parsley 1 Tbsp . tomato paste

. tomato paste 12 c. water Instructions Make sure that all of your veggies are uniformly chopped but not too small. About 1″ cubes is best. In a large pot over medium high heat, saute the onions until fragrant (about 2 minutes). Add the garlic and sea salt and cook another 30 seconds. Add the rest of the ingredients into the pot and bring to a boil. If you want to add a bay leaf or 2, fresh herbs of choice, or even leafy greens, do so now. Bring the broth to a boil. Stir gently once and then be prepared to leave it alone for the duration of the cooking time. Allow to simmer on low heat for approx. 1 hour. Here is the best part: The longer you simmer the broth, the more the liquid burns off and becomes more concentrated in flavor. This is where you decide what you like. If the broth has cooked off too much for your liking, you can always add more water at the time. Easy! Strain the broth through a fine-mesh strainer and keep in an air-tight container. Allow to cool down and then refrigerate. Notes This will keep in your fridge for up to two weeks. Be sure to shake it up before you use it. Nutrition Serving Size: 1 cup

Calories: 30

Sugar: 1.9g

Sodium: 90mg

Fat: 0g

Carbohydrates: 4g

Fiber: 1g

Protein: 0.5g

This recipe is fool-proof really with so many places you can go with it! Yes, it has a great base of seven ingredients but you can always add more or take away. Do what you want! Add a sprinkle of black peppercorns, 1-2 bay leaves, add some leafy greens, fresh herbs, or even more root veggies, blah blah blah, yadda yadda yadda (Seinfeld reference happening currently). Do as you see fit, you heard me? Have fun with your own creation of homemade vegetable broth. Grandma isn’t watching your back to make sure you follow the recipe precisely (or maybe she is and if so, Hi Gramms!) Regardless, go and experiment.