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Basic Vegetable Broth

You may want to add an additional herb or vegetable, depending on what you plan to do with the broth, or use leftover scraps and stems of vegetables.
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Ingredients
  

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 large onions, quartered (include the skin)
  • 1 large carrot, sliced
  • 4 celery ribs, sliced
  • 8 ounces button mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 whole garlic bulb, unpeeled, broken up, and smashed with the back of a knife
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 3 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon cayenne
  • 9 cups water

Instructions
 

  • In a stockpot over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Add all of the ingredients except for the water.  Saute, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes.
  • Add the water, bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, uncovered, until the vegetables are meltingly tender, about 1 hour. If you have extra time, you can turn off the heat and let the broth sit for another hour or two to enrich the flavor further.
  • Strain the vegetables, pressing down on them to extract all their liquids. Discard (and compost) the cooked vegetables.