In a large stock pot, or the largest pot you have, put cleaned carrots, onions, celery, garlic, parsnips, broccoli stems, parsley, thyme, bay leaves, tops of leeks, green beans, sea salt (1 -2 tbsp, depending on size of pot), black peppercorns. The cooking pot should be at least 1/2 full with vegetables. Any of the above vegetables can be omitted if not readily available, however the stock should have a mix of at least 3-4 vegetables and as many of the herbs as possible. Fill the cooking pot with cold water, cover, and bring to a boil over high heat. When mixture is boiling, turn down temperature to keep it just at a simmer. Simmer for at least 2 hours, stirring occasionally. After about 2 hours turn heat off and leave pot covered while letting the stock cool. Once the stock is cooled off enough to handle the pot, strain stock into another pot using a colander to catch all the cooked vegetables. Discard vegetables. Use stock for a soup recipe or freeze in small containers to use as needed in recipes.

For a variation on this stock, clean and roughly cut all vegetables you plan on using and place them with a bit of olive oil in a roasting pan. Roast vegetables in oven at 450 degrees for about 20 minutes. Transfer roasted vegetables to stockpot, add hot water to roasting pan and with a whisk stir the water around removing the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Pour the water into the pot with the vegetables and cook as directed above.