The most important base for soups, sauces, risotto and so on is vegetable stock. There are endless possibilities to make stock. The preparation of most of them takes no time at all!

Wash the onions thoroughly, maybe remove the outer layer, quarter and roast until they start caramelizing. Slightly press the garlic cloves. Wash and dice the vegetables. Combine with the onions and stew for some minutes. Pour in 2 - 2,5 liters cold water and add the washed herbs and the spices. Bring to a boil and let it simmer for 1 hour on low flame. At the end sieve the stock through a (cheese) cloth and season with salt. It is most convenient to freeze the stock in small quantities. If there is not enough space in your freezer, try to make stock powder yourself. Peel and dice onions, garlic and the other vegetables. Mortar the spices. Shred all ingredients in a blender. Dry the mass for several hours in the oven at 50°C or in a dehydrator. Then finely grind everything once again. Finally season everything with sea salt and seal in an airtight tin or jar. Dried and stored correctly, the stock powder can be preserved for several months. You can modify the recipe according to your own taste. You could add fennel or different herbs and spices like juniper or turmeric. Or keep the paring of the vegetables you used for cooking (onions, garlic) and stems (cauliflower, broccoli) and use these for your vegetable stock before throwing it away.

FOR 2 Litres

2 onions

2 cloves of garlic

1 small celery root with greens

4 carrots

2 parsley roots with greens

1 stalk of leek

1 parsnip

ginger

extra virgin olive oil

1 bunch of lovage

3 bay leaves

3 cloves

20 black peppercorns

some sprigs thyme

salt