Making (taking) Stock

It’s a joke in my family that I only cook between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. And it is true that is when I cook the most. Of course, there are the big food events like Thanksgiving and Christmas. Sometimes I’m responsible for all of a meal, sometimes just a dish. Then there are the cookies and candy – now that I’ve learned to make Divinity. But it’s also the time of year that I make large pots of soups and beans and the homemade cornbread that goes with them.

When making soup, the first step for me is making the stock. There are a variety of opinions about what stock is. For some, it has to include bones, but we’re vegetarian so that’s not what I make. For some, there’s a difference between vegetable broth and stock. My favorite vegetarian cookbook doesn’t quibble about that so I don’t worry about it. I do always take the time to make stock, sautéing vegetables and herbs and then letting them simmer in water until it reduces to something more flavorful than water. I’ve found that taking the time to make stock first before I start the process of making the soup or beans adds to the flavor of the soup.

Gage’s cooking time means that we are headed toward the end of the year. This means we’ll start hearing about the best way to make resolutions for the New Year. We’ll hear about the reasons not to make resolutions, but instead to distill everything down to one word that will guide your year. Other people will tell us to make goals, yearly or quarterly, big ideas or very specific, to improve our year. And then of course, there are the folks who disdain the process having learned that they give up on the whole thing a few weeks into a new year.

But as I was thinking about making stock today, my mind shifted gears to the idea of ‘taking stock’. I wonder if that’s the missing part of the equation when it comes to the idea of preparing for a New Year. I think this idea may also apply to starting anything new – new job, new hobby, whatever. Instead of diving right in to planning for the new, (starting the soup), what if we pause to take (make) stock.

I understand the reality that looking back at this past year or two is difficult for most of us, and truly sad for others, but unless we understand what we have been through, it is difficult to effectively imagine the future. I think this is also true for our work environments. We need to take stock of all that has changed, of the challenges experienced, and of the new questions we are asking of ourselves, our organizations and our communities. Without this reflection time, it is likely that our resolutions, goals, plans, or ideas won’t be as rich as they could be.

Making stock takes a bit of time, but adds depth and flavor to anything you cook with. It seems to me that taking stock by oneself, and with colleagues, friends, and family may take a bit of time but will add depth to our future experiences. We have about three weeks until the calendar changes. There’s still plenty of time to take stock as you think about the year to come. Taking stock may also help you make more sense of all that you’ve experienced this past year. It’s worth the time. Good luck!

Take care,

Gaget’s a joke in my family that I only cook between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. And it is true that is when I cook the most. Of course, there are the big food events like Thanksgiving and Christmas. Sometimes I’m responsible for all of a meal, sometimes just a dish. Then there are the cookies and candy – now that I’ve learned to make Divinity. But it’s also the time of year that I make large pots of soups and beans and the homemade cornbread that goes with them.

When making soup, the first step for me is making the stock. There are a variety of opinions about what stock is. For some, it has to include bones, but we’re vegetarian so that’s not what I make. For some, there’s a difference between vegetable broth and stock. My favorite vegetarian cookbook doesn’t quibble about that so I don’t worry about it. I do always take the time to make stock, sautéing vegetables and herbs and then letting them simmer in water until it reduces to something more flavorful than water. I’ve found that taking the time to make stock first before I start the process of making the soup or beans adds to the flavor of the soup.

Gage’s cooking time means that we are headed toward the end of the year. This means we’ll start hearing about the best way to make resolutions for the New Year. We’ll hear about the reasons not to make resolutions, but instead to distill everything down to one word that will guide your year. Other people will tell us to make goals, yearly or quarterly, big ideas or very specific, to improve our year. And then of course, there are the folks who disdain the process having learned that they give up on the whole thing a few weeks into a new year.

But as I was thinking about making stock today, my mind shifted gears to the idea of ‘taking stock’. I wonder if that’s the missing part of the equation when it comes to the idea of preparing for a New Year. I think this idea may also apply to starting anything new – new job, new hobby, whatever. Instead of diving right in to planning for the new, (starting the soup), what if we pause to take (make) stock.

I understand the reality that looking back at this past year or two is difficult for most of us, and truly sad for others, but unless we understand what we have been through, it is difficult to effectively imagine the future. I think this is also true for our work environments. We need to take stock of all that has changed, of the challenges experienced, and of the new questions we are asking of ourselves, our organizations and our communities. Without this reflection time, it is likely that our resolutions, goals, plans, or ideas won’t be as rich as they could be.

Making stock takes a bit of time, but adds depth and flavor to anything you cook with. It seems to me that taking stock by oneself, and with colleagues, friends, and family may take a bit of time but will add depth to our future experiences. We have about three weeks until the calendar changes. There’s still plenty of time to take stock as you think about the year to come. Taking stock may also help you make more sense of all that you’ve experienced this past year. It’s worth the time. Good luck!

Take care,

Gage