Victorian Era Vegetable Stock

Discovered this recipe in The Great Victorian Cookbook by John Midgley, published in 1995...It's one of the simplest, fastest recipes for vegetable stock that I've ever seen, making it an excellent choice for beginning cooks. Placing it here for future use and safekeeping!

• Ready In: 1 hr 15 mins
• Serves: 4
• Yields: 4 pints

Ingredients

• 4  tablespoons olive oil
• 2  medium onions, peeled and quartered
• 2  leeks, chopped
• 4  carrots, chopped
• 5  celery ribs, chopped
• 8  parsley sprigs, with leaves (fresh)
• 1  tablespoon tomato paste (no salt added preferred)
•  salt and black pepper, to taste
• 4  pints water

Directions

1. Put everything into a large pot and bring to a boil; then cover and reduce the heat to low and simmer for 1 hour.
2. Check the seasoning; add more salt and pepper, if needed; then strain and refrigerate for 24 hours or freeze until needed.
3. TIP: if you like adding starchy root vegetables to your stock mixture, please remember that the more you add, the cloudier your stock will become.