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Its The Maples!

Adventures of a 🇨🇦 Expat Family in Portugal 🇵🇹

The Magical and Healing Powers of Bone Broth

bone broth

Having a pitcher of refrigerated bone broth is a staple in our house.

Contents hide
1 An All-Day Affair
2 How To Make Bone Broth
3 Nourishing Traditions
4 The Amazing Health Benefits
5 A Cup A Day
6 Final Thoughts

Every week we make a beautiful pot of bone broth from the bones of grass-fed and finished animals from our local farm where we live in rural Nova Scotia. The bone broth we make at home is often beef or chicken broth, sometimes turkey.

The kids have gotten used to this lovely tradition and making the bone broth makes me feel good. I believe that I am helping boost my children’s immune systems, teaching them about the preparation of simple but healthy and life-giving food, and I cherish the ritual of my little one climbing up on his wooden stool to stand beside me and watch the broth simmer, hoping that soon enough he’ll get to sip some.

Funnily enough, my 5-year-old can name all the reasons his bone broth is good for his growing body: he will tell you that it is good for his teeth and helps with mineralization (yes, he this exact word), heals his stomach and you can’t forget how delicious it tastes! My eldest who has been the recipient of bone broth the longest (since he was about 4 which is when his mam got serious about making it) loves to get the bones roasted and has become an expert at prepping all that goodness and getting it ready to go into the pot.

An All-Day Affair

With all its restorative properties: amino acids, protein, gelatin, and fats, bone broth is one of the easiest things to make! You do not need to be a whiz in the kitchen to figure out how to make delicious and healthy bone broth to enjoy.

It usually is an all-day affair, a slow simmer on the stove, which is why we do it on the weekends when the days are slow, lazy and we have the luxury to lounge around reading a good book.

The pot simmers on the stove for several hours, and at the end, one of my favourite things to do is pour off the bone broth into a pitcher, several mason jars, and in muffin tins (to freeze). In the past, we would freeze more of our bone broth but we go through it so fast, that unless we’re doing larger amounts, most of it is done within 5 days.

How To Make Bone Broth

After getting your collagen-heavy bones; so bones and cuts of meat with lots of connective tissue, like marrow and knuckles, it starts with roasting the bones for about half an hour in the oven at 450 degrees.

Some people add veggies to roast with them, I have done it both with and without depending on how I’m feeling. If I don’t roast the veggies, I will add them later in the simmering process. Our bone broths usually have onions, garlic, and celery, along with bay leaves to enhance the flavour (as bone broth is quite strong) but you can add any veggies you like.

Once we’ve roasted the bones, we put the bones in a stockpot or slow cooker (I know that people have made their broth in a slow cooker, but we haven’t tried it yet) and start it with a little apple cider vinegar to draw out the minerals, cover the bones with cold water from our Berkey Water filter and then we simmer!

I will remove the veggies after simmering awhile as I don’t want them to break down completely.

Nourishing Traditions

I first heard about bone broth over 15+ years ago from very health-conscious family members.

What I didn’t realize is that my mother has been making a variation of bone broth for years, using marrow.  Then because of personal health issues in my family, I heard about the Gaps Diet and was also introduced to the book, “Nourishing Traditions” from a Naturopath we consulted. These health issues with my family included myself but when my oldest son at the age of 4 started experiencing problems we got serious about bone broths, the GAPS DIET, and healing his gut.

The Amazing Health Benefits 

My little guy sipping bone broth after the stomach flu.

Bone broth is restorative. Such a simple food with amazing health benefits. 

The benefits of bone broth are:

That it helps boost the immune system. 

  • That it helps boost the immune system. 
  • It aids in digestion and aids in gut repair – I know that when I suffered from a gastritis flare, bone broth was extremely healing and soothed the lining of my stomach.
  • Is a good source of collagen, it is great for joint and easing pain and is wonderful for hair, nails, and skin.
  • There are so many minerals in the bone broth too that it can help replenish electrolytes (great for my son who plays elite-level soccer over 20+ hours a week)
  • It’s also great for remineralizing teeth!

A Cup A Day

We try to have a cup of bone broth a day, to maximize the health benefits. I like to have it first thing in the morning, either when breaking a fast of 16 hours or on an empty stomach.

The great thing about bone broth is that it is so refreshing to drink in the morning. My kids have been enjoying having bone broth in the morning as an accompaniment to our traditional Canadian breakfasts. My kids like to have the warm broth in the morning as well, or the last thing at night.

Final Thoughts

With all its restorative properties, bone broth is simple to make and along with sipping it by itself, making it the base of flavourful stews and other soups is beautifully rich and delicious.

If you haven’t tried making this healing food in your own kitchen, give it a try!

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I lied. I said I would be posting more pictures so I lied. I said I would be posting more pictures soon after my last post and now it's literally been another month and a half! 🤦🏻‍♀️
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I still really underestimate the time it continues to take us to get settled in a new country and all the stuff we need to do (yup, we are still in our car 🚗 dilemma but hoping to get it resolved tomorrow - after today's holiday!) 
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As I mentioned in my last post, which contained the only family picture we took from our first beach day ☀️🌊🇵🇹 in Portugal in November 2021, it has taken me almost 5 months to recover from all the "newness" to start posting on a regular basis. 
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So here you go, some more of our "other" pictures from this beautiful day that found us discovering this gorgeous beach but also getting stranded there at nightfall. ✨🌘
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Thank goodness, the owner of the beach restaurant drove us home after taking pity on us, but that's a story for the blog and another day! 😅😅😅
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Thanks to you all for following our adventures (mainly on FB right now) and if you feel inclined, I'd love to know what "oops" type situations you've found yourselves in when travelling! ✈️🧳
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#portugal #portugaltravelers #portugaltravels #portugal🇵🇹 #familytravelblog #portugalguide #familytravelbloggers #portugaltravel #familytravel #familytraveltips #movingtoportugal #learnportuguesewords #travelingfamily #portugal_lovers #familytravelblogger #portugal #portugaltravelling #portugalfoodandtravel #portugaltravelpt #travelfamily #travelfamilyblog #familytravelling #learnportuguese #movingtoportugalsoon #learnportugueseportugal
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Sent via @planIoly #planoly
Hello from Portugal!! 🇵🇹
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If you've been following "It's The Maples" you know that we are a Canadian family who up until recently lived in our beloved Nova Scotia after making a spontaneous move from downtown Toronto almost 13 years ago!
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Well, new news...Back in late September/early October of 2022 we made another BIG decision to move our family to Portugal.
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Since my husband and I have worked full-time from home since University, with our online marketing and content creation company, the move was easy enough to make - at least from a work standpoint because all we need are our phones, laptops and internet connection- but more on the many other unforeseeable hiccups we encounter later!
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That said, the minute I stepped off the plane I, of course, thought that I would start sharing our experiences right away...but with the excitement, the ups and downs and the complete culture shock, it has taken me over 4 months to even begin to write my first post here on Instagram and my blog post. 
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So today, writing from a different lens, one that isn't quite as emotional and now has some distance between when we first arrived, I am thrilled to share our journey and this sweet and beautiful life we have built here over the last few months.  So stay tuned as I share more pics! 
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Sent via @planoly #planoly #portugal #portugal #portugaltravel #portugalguide #portugal_lovers #portugal🇵🇹 #portugal #portugaltravelers #portugaltravels #portugaltravelpt #portugalfoodandtravel #portugaltravelling #movingtoportugal #movingtoportugalsoon #familytravel #travelfamily #travelingfamily #familytravelblog #familytravelblogger #travelfamilyblog #familytraveltips #familytravelbloggers #familytravelling #learnportugueseportugal #learnportuguese #futebol #thebeautifulgame #canadianstravel #canadianfamilytravels
These boys make my heart sparkle like champagne! 💗 Happy National Sons Day! 
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Monstera friends, is this a new baby leaf? . . #m Monstera friends, is this a new baby leaf? 
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Monstera love 💗 . . Share your Monstera pics wi Monstera love 💗
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Share your Monstera pics with me pleeeeaaase! 😊🪴🪴🪴!
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Peach picking. . . #summer #fruitpicking #peaches Peach picking.
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My 12 year old wrote this on the kitchen board las My 12 year old wrote this on the kitchen board last night. I just found it this morning since I wasn’t feeling well yesterday and went straight to bed. He’s such a light in my life.
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Browsing through my memories and this pic came up. Browsing through my memories and this pic came up. 
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It doesn’t seem so long ago, but this beautiful boy will be a teenager in just a few short months. How quickly the time goes.
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Lately, I find myself staring at his face, realizing how much he’s changed. It’s so bittersweet because no matter how amazing it is to watch him grow, I also miss him being little enough that I could scoop him up in my arms, as I still do with his little brother.
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Choose to be kind. . . #kindnessmatters #kindnessc Choose to be kind.
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Love this photo of J! . . #footy #adidas #adidasc Love this photo of J! 
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Low key Easter with my 3 beautiful boys! . . Have Low key Easter with my 3 beautiful boys!
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Have to say, I’m loving the Amish Butterprint Pyrex on the table.  It’s a happy day when we use it!  How was your Easter weekend? 
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This past year during lockdown, we started using t This past year during lockdown, we started using the meal kit service, Chef’s Plate.
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We love to cook in our house but despite our love to cook, getting the meal kit was more of an “event”. Sort of like eating at a restaurant; eating something you wouldn’t normally cook but with all the convenience of eating at home. 
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Check out the blog, because on it I wrote an article on the “ Top 10 Reasons We Use Chef’s Plate” and it’s been a lot of fun, especially for the kids!
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So if you’re looking to break the monotony of weeknight dinners, let me know.  I’ve got $40 off coupons to share and occasionally a FREE box, too!
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Read the blog post and watch the video when the kids get involved and cook the Bavarian Pork Chop meal - such a great experience for the little ones and so delicious!
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Boys went tobogganing today! . . #outdoorfun #out Boys went tobogganing today! 
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As he was getting dressed to play outside, Henry w As he was getting dressed to play outside, Henry was struggling to put on a glove and he said to me, “Mommy, I don’t think I have enough fingers for this.” 😂
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