Homemade Chicken Stock

Homemade stocks are one of the most nutritious, cheap, and easy foods to prepare on the planet.  Homemade stocks have been considered a healing food since ancient times.   Bone broths or animal stocks are a great source of minerals.  Ensuring adequate mineral intake is very important!  Adequate mineral balance helps reduce stress, regulate body functions, and support the structures of the body (cells, bones, etc).  

Finished stock - simmered for
8 hours.  The whole house
smells amazing!  

In addition, making your own stock is a great way to be green friendly.   You can use any combination of chicken parts you have on hand (bones, necks, skin, whole chickens, legs, etc).  Using leftover bones and chicken parts helps you get the most out product that you would have otherwise thrown away.  Lastly, making your own stocks help to reduce environmental impact because there is no waste from packaging.  


Use your homemade stock in your favorite soups, rice or other grains, beans & lentils, or to cook vegetables in.  It really is amazing how much you can boost the flavor of brown rice by simply cooking in fresh stock.  No salt needed :-)  

Using an ice bath, helps to remove
the skum from the mesh strainer.  

Homemade Chicken Stock


Ingredients:
2-3 lb pasture-raised chicken parts (bones, neck, & skin)***
1 tbl. raw apple cider vinegar
3 celery stalks, chopped in large 2-3 inch pieces
3 carrots, chopped in large 2-3 inch pieces
2 large onions, quartered into large pieces
1 whole bulb garlic, sliced in half with skin intact
cold filtered water
parsley & any other fresh herbs that you have on hand


Directions:  

Skum (impurities) rising to the top 
of the chicken stock.  

1.  Place all ingredients except herbs in a large stock pot.  Cover with water.  Allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.
2.  Turn to high heat and bring to a boil.  While stock is heating prepare an ice bath in a small bowl and retrieve a small hand held mesh strainer.  When skum (impurities) rises to the top skim it off with the mesh strainer. Dip the strainer into the ice bath each time.  
3.  Turn heat to warm-low, add parsley, and simmer for 6-10 hours adding more water as necessary so bones and vegetables stay covered.  
4.  Remove from heat and place covered into the refrigerator.  Let cool completely.

Adding fresh herbs helps to pull the
minerals out of the bones!

5.  Skim any solidified fat off of the top.  Strain the liquid and place into air tight containers.  The stock will keep in the fridge for one week. To extend shelf life bring stock to a boil every couple of days to kill any bacteria that may have formed.   Can be frozen and kept for a few months.  


***Alternatively, you could use a 2-3lb whole chicken.  Prepare the same way.  Once you strain the liquid.  Pull the chicken from the bones and reserve the meat for soups, salads, dinners, sandwiches, etc. 

Keri is an internationally Registered Yoga Teacher, Culinary Nutritionist, and Wellness Coach.  She owns and operates BAYA Wellness, LLC offering Yoga and Nutrition services and products.  Keri teachers both privately and publicly around the Greenville area offering on-going classes and special events.  Her path as a nutritionist is all about making healthy living approachable... she teaches the components of healthy cooking, eating, and thinking while also offering specialized services like menu planning.  Healthy living is about the whole pictures of wellness... find your path to living well.

BAYA... Be As You Are!

Contact me for details: www.BAYAWellness.com 

Improve Your Posture with Yoga

     Your posture is one way to practice Yoga whether you are on the mat, sitting on the couch, scrubbing the tub, or in any  of life's activities.  Posture has profound effects on our mood, digestive system,  and overall health.   Personally, through practicing Yoga  I've been able to reduce the amount of headaches I experience, strengthen my digestion, and eliminate low back pain.  Sometimes it's the little things in life that have the most profound effects. 

Consider this...we are most likely to injure ourselves whenever we are not being mindful.  When your mind is else where, it's easy to slouch your posture.  Before you know it your mind is going a million miles an hour.  Then you're sitting or standing with really poor posture - contributing to every painful spot in your body.  Take some time to think about how you sit, stand, walk and transition between those things. 


Here are some Yogic tools to utilize throughout your day:

-  Lengthen your spine.  Lift your heart center and sit up tall.  By lengthening your spine you can work to strengthen the muscles of your core to support you.  In time, finding a neutral spinal position will help to reduce back pain, improve digestion, and boost your mood.

- Hug your navel into towards your spine and lengthen your tail bone down.  Tune into your core strength all throughout the day.  Core makes up all the muscles that support the heart.  Your core muscles are on the front, back, and sides of your torso.  By using all of the core muscles we bring ourselves into a greater state of balance which can help to alleviate tension in the muscles of your back. 

Head Forward Posture

Head Aligned Over Center of Spine.

The Center of your ear aligns

with the center of your shoulder.

-  Center your head over your spine.  So many people suffer from head forward posture, in which, the head juts forward from the spine.  Head forward posture can lead to pain in the back of the neck which is associated with headaches and migraines.  Another common head misalignment is to subconsciously tilt or hold the head in an angled position which can strain the muscles of your neck.

-  Connect with your feet and stand evenly on both legs.  Ground both feet evenly into the earth so that you avoid putting weight more onto one side than the other.  Chronically putting more weight onto one side leg more than the other can lead to discomfort in the knee joint, muscular tightness, or other problems.

- Bring mindfulness into the picture.  Often times when we go through the motions of day to day life we are totally oblivious of our bodies.  We all have habit energies of leaning against counters when they are near by, slouching when we sit on the couch, and letting our backs do most of the work when the muscles of are abdomen and legs should carry some of the burden.  Practice being mindful of how you stand, sit, lean, bend-over, etc.  Be mindful of your posture throughout the day and bring yourself as close to a place of balance (as described above) as often as possible!

In Yoga, Mountain pose (Tadasana)  incorporates all of the above and even more techniques to improve your posture.  On your Yoga mat it's easy to be aware of all of these techniques but the real challenge is taking these tools off your mat and out into your day-to-day!  

Keri is an internationally Registered Yoga Teacher, Culinary Nutritionist, and Wellness Coach.  She owns and operates BAYA Wellness, LLC offering Yoga and Nutrition Services.  Keri teachers both privately and publicly around the Greenville area offering on-going classes and special events.  Her path as a nutritionist is all about making healthy living approachable... she teaches the components of healthy cooking, eating, and thinking while also offering specialized services like menu planning.  Healthy living is about the whole pictures of wellness... find your path to living well.

BAYA... Be As You Are!

Contact me for details: www.BAYAWellness.com 

February Yoga Schedule

Special Events

Yoga & Nutrition Workshop:  The Sugar Blues & Foods To Boost Your Moods $20on Saturday, February 18th from 10:15am-12:15pm with Westside Aquatic Center.  
Yoga & Nutrition Workshop:  Healthy Eating for Busy Folks & Families $20on Saturday, February 18th from 2-4pm with Greenville Yoga Studio on Augusta Rd.  


Ongoing Public Classes
Sundays
2-3:15pm Restorative Flow Yoga $10 with Greenville Yoga Studio on Augusta Rd.
Tuesdays
4:15-5:15pm All Levels Yoga $7 with Westside Aquatic Center.
7-8:15pm Restorative Flow Yoga $10 with Greenville Yoga Studio on Augusta Rd.  
Thursdays
5-6pm All Levels Yoga $10 with Elite Conditioning on East North St.  
7-8:15pm Restorative Flow Yoga $10 with Greenville Yoga Studio on Augusta Rd.
Saturdays
8:30-9:30am All Levels Yoga $10 with Elite Conditioning on East North St.  



 Lessons, Yoga Parties, & Corporate Yoga

Private lessons, Yoga Parties, & Corporate Yoga are available by appointment.  All of these Yoga offerings are at the destination and time of your choice.  We provide the mats, sound equipment, and music... all you have to do is show up!  

- Private Yoga lessons are great for individuals, couples, and families who want a specialized Yoga practice customized to meet their needs.

- Yoga Parties are great for small groups who want to have a special Yoga class to celebrate an event or just want to have a small private class.

- Corporate Yoga is designed for workplace wellness and is offered to businesses around the Greenville area for weekly classes or limited class series.  

Now offering a referral savings program!

About me...

Keri is an internationally Registered Yoga Teacher, Culinary Nutritionist, and Wellness Coach.  She owns and operates BAYA Wellness, LLC offering Yoga and Nutrition Services.  Keri teachers both privately and publicly around the Greenville area offering on-going classes and special events.  Her path as a nutritionist is all about making healthy living approachable... she teaches the components of healthy cooking, eating, and thinking while also offering specialized services like menu planning.  Healthy living is about the whole pictures of wellness... find your path to living well.

BAYA... Be As You Are!


Contact me for details: www.BAYAWellness.com 

BAYAWellness@gmail.com or 864-430-1275