bone marrow soup

Ashlita found this recipe online.  Since her body doesn't process meat, this would be a way for her to benefit from the nutrition and healing energy found in bone marrow.

Bone Marrow Soup                         

In Chinese medicine, Jing is equated with our vitality.  Our Jing (or qi “bank account”)  is stored in our kidneys.  We have “congenital” jing (that which we were born with) and “accquired” jing (that which comes from the food we take in).  Bone marrow soup helps to support our congenital jing thus increasing vitality and stamina. This recipe is great for everyone, but especially for fertility (men and women), pregnancy  and postpartum women.  It even helps reduce chronic pain, particularly the low back, due to its proximity to the kidneys.

Recipe adapted from, The Joy of Cooking

Perfected by an Acupuncture Northwest Patient

Ingredients:

2 or 3 lbs marrow bones*

2 medium carrots

1 medium onion

3 celery stalks

1 turnip or parsnip (optional)

dash red pepper flakes

1 tsp dried rosemary

1/2 tsp dried thyme

6-10 black pepper corns

2 bay leaves

Directions:

Crack the bones and then throw everything into a crockpot, cover with water and slow cook overnight.

Cool the soup for a while. Then, strain the soup through a cheesecloth (you should only be left with the broth) and let it cool to room temperature before placing it in the refrigerator.  After it’s cooled, there will be some fat that is congealed on the top.  Skim this off and throw it away and then fill ice-cube trays with the soup until frozen.  You can store the cubes, two each, in zip lock bags.

*You can purchase “natural” marrow bones at PCC, Metropolitan Market and Whole Foods.  You may have to ask the butcher for them.