Strawberryhill- Good idea. I'm always looking for new recipes in this category. If you like the Honey Walnut Crunch, you may also like "Sweetly Spiced Crispy Pecans" - recipe at the link below (I've also made the recipe with almonds and walnuts, but we like pecans the best). This recipe improves the nutrition of the nuts because they are soaked and dehydrated. Soaking makes nuts easier to digest (for anyone who gets a bellyache after eating too many nuts), and their nutrients are more readily available. So soaking them improves the nutrition. Another nutritional plus - palm sugar is a nutritional improvement because it's low-glycemic (doesn't raise blood sugar like granulated sugar) and a nutritional profile that is far and above a better choice than brown sugar (you can see a comparison chart here: http://coconutpalmsugar.com/Nutritional_Information.html) Another plus.... No burned batches because they are dried in a dehydrator. FYI: Walnuts contain large amounts of triple unsaturated linolenic acid and are more susceptible to rancidity, so you can do a couple things to improve the shelf-life - soak them in lightly salted water overnight and dehydrate until they are crispy dry; and always store them in the refrigerator or freezer. As soon as I get walnuts home from the store I soak, dehydrate, and freeze them. High heat will cause the walnut oil to go rancid much faster. I make all our snack foods: microwave sweet potato chips, baked whole-grain "chips" (nothing more than freshly-milled flour, water and seasoning/s of choice - baked on a cookie sheet), dehydrated zucchini and cucumber chips, dehydrated apple slices, granola (especially good with a dollop of homemade coconut milk kefir), gluten-free crackers made with almond pulp, sprouted and seasoned lentils dehydrated until crispy, Lentil Granola Bars (made with sprouted lentils, unsweetened coconut, cacao nibs, chia seeds), homemade "KIND" bars (good for traveling)... At least once a month I make a gelatin-based snack from an assortment of recipes found on-line. Lots of health benefits in gelatin. One recipe is made with blueberries, another is made with fresh orange and lemon juice, "Pumpkin Jello" was good for Thanksgiving week, there are a few coffee-flavored ones that are nice, and in December I made one that was very fudge-like. So "Knox Blocks" can be for adults too ;-). COCONUT-PINEAPPLE GUMMIES 1/2 c. coconut milk, full-fat or light (I use reconstituted powdered coconut milk or make my own with unsweetened coconut) 1/2 c. pineapple juice (I also use pineapple/orange juice) 6 T. gelatin powder 2 T. raw honey (or palm sugar nectar or agave nectar) 1/2 t. vanilla Before heating, combine all ingredients in a pan and stir until lumps are gone. Heat on med-low 5-minutes until gelatin dissolves. Pour into an 8x8-inch glass dish. Cool in refrigerator until it sets. Cut into 1-inch blocks. Perhaps homemade sugar-free marshmallows will be my next use for gelatin now that we are in the middle of cocoa season. -Grainlady Here is a link that might be useful: Savouring Today - Sweetly Spiced Crispy Pecans

Hi! My router was goofed up the past couple days at the pole...just got back online this afternoon! I fry the ancho in a screaming hot SS skillet just a couple seconds until it slightly scorches. Be careful...they can put off fumes that can burn your eyes. The frying intensifies the flavor...it's noticeably in the finished product. Same technique as for making mole. Lindac, I make bean soup similar to yours also but I make several different types. We get bored with the same bean soup all winter. The tomatillos are 14 ounce cans. Yes, it was a lot of shredded pork. I had it leftover so I used it up in the soup. Beverly, I think dried ground ancho or poblano would be fine. Even jalapeno would work...it just for a bit of heat without overpowering the soup. AM, Yes...Norwich is only about 20 minutes (10 miles) from us! Call next time, please!! I don't usually jot down ingredients when I make soup. I'm glad I did this time...it's good! /tricia

Here I am to make things even more complicated...:D When I set out to make a good beef stock for the freezer, I roast some of the bones and vegetables and leave some raw. I think I get a more balanced, complex flavor to my stock by doing so. At the moment, it happens I've got a batch going. The house has become quite "beefy" in aroma, and makes the chicken I'd planned for dinner pale somewhat in comparison to my mental visions of rich, hearty beef barley soup or roast beef and gravy, but oh well.

Thanks, Homepro! I just checked the bottle and, indeed, Bragg's is made from soy protein. I don't know why that didn't occur to me, so I really appreciate your pointing it out explicitly before I had the pot all simmering! Thanks, too, for mentioning that you don't like roasted veg in your broth. I think the roasted flavor would go well with the kind of thing I want to make, but I think it could get too strong, so I'll start out with only some roasted. Maybe the onions and rutabaga. I can imagine what that would taste like. Kiwigem, good point! Probably not. :) Technically, it's activated yeasts that grow naturally on foods combining with wheat that are at issue--we drink wine, after all, which has yeast--but the yeast extract would have to be labelled kosher for Passover (there is kosher for Passover baking powder, based on its flour content, rather than puffing ability, as it is not biblically proscribed, but that doesn't fly if your traditions don't allow it (ours don't)). I do make exceptions for the vegan/vegetarian/pescatarian crowd, but the soup is supposed to be for everybody. Dried vegetables does sound like an interesting idea, but unless I find sufficient at the store, for a reasonable price, it's not happening this year. My previous vegetable stock isn't bad. It's just not ready for prime time, as it were. I'll make a pot of enhanced soon, and see how it goes.