Spring Cleaning Time Again: DIY Natural All-Purpose Cleaner Recipes

This weekend is spring cleaning time again around my house.  As you may have read in previous posts I try to use inexpensive, effective and natural cleaners wherever possible. I swear by vinegar for cleaning counter tops, stainless steel and cutting boards, but when it comes to all purpose cleaners for bathrooms, floors, etc. I have a new recipe:

All-Purpose Cleaner

1/2 Gallon of Water

2 tsp Borax

1/2 C vinegar

As for everything in the bathroom, when in doubt, just use borax. It’s abrasive and natural and leaves everything clean, shiny and fresh. I sprinkle some around inside my toilet and let it sit while I clean, then I just use my little scrubby brush and voila! It’s clean and fresh! Essentially, some mixture of vinegar, borax and water can clean anything in your house. If you have stains and you need some abrasive, just add the borax.  For dusting, cleaning wood floors and furniture polish though I recommend buying. I use Method’s Wood for Good because it removes scratches and leaves everything smelling almondy and rich,  but there are lots of healhty and natural options out there. You can even use a bit of olive oil and lemon juice to make a good wood cleaner/polisher if you want. I don’t have to use it enough to be concerned about the economic impact of my wood cleaner because I use mostly all-purpose cleaner around my home. What about you? What natural and/or DIY cleaners do you use around your home? Do you have any great recipes to share? If so, leave them in the comments below.  Happy Cleaning!

Safeway is Heading Back to Nature

Fortunately I live in an urban area that borders on the suburban so I have tons of access to healthy, natural foods. However, many are not so lucky. As an example, when I go to visit my father who lives in a more rural area, it’s much more challenging to find vegan/vegetarian meat alternatives or healhty organic foods at the grocery store. Even in my daily life, while I do have access to Wegman’s and Whole Foods, they are considerably more expensive than my local Safeway, so I have to be far more selective with my food purchases than I would like. Luckily, Safeway wants your business and is looking to appease those of us who want healthy, natural foods, but don’t want to spend our whole paycheck. They have several brands including their own store label “O” which focuses on organic food products. These have been available for many years, but now Safeway appears to be adding a new natural foods brand called “Open Nature“. According to the website, “Open Nature” is “Food thoughtfully prepared and shared with care“. I love, love, love this concept. So many times I have wanted to be able to pick up a quick, inexpensive meal to go for my family and have left with just a salad or veggies to grill. Even more often when we’ve had friends over for a cookout, party or pot-luck I’ve been saddled with making a tough choice between buying inexpensive foods that run against my moral grain (I’m strictly opposed to factory farming and the heavy handed use of unhealthy preservatives, sweeteners and far too much fat in most prepared foods). While I may not choose to eat meat myself, I can still purchase and make good food for my friends and family and now I have even more options. The new Open Nature product line boasts that it is minimally processed, with no artificial ingredients and it’s 100% natural. How exciting!  Read about the new products, including natural meat and poulty products, their plans to expand to other product offerings like bread, pasta, yogurt and more. Finally, you can read more about why Safeway is moving to natural ingredients and humanely raised animals.

From the website FAQ:

What is OPEN NATURE™ Beef?

Under the OPEN NATURE™ brand, you will find premium quality beef that is graded USDA Choice. Additional product claims include:

• 100% Natural
• 100% Angus Cattle
• Raised without Antibiotics
• No Added Hormones
• All-Vegetarian Fed
• Guaranteed Tender
• Product of U.S.A.
• Certified Humane

What are the benefits of barnraised hogs?

The key benefits are animal health and meat quality. Because they are raised in a barn, the animals are not exposed to the extreme temperatures of the Midwest. It also allows our farmers to monitor their diet. Our hogs eat a controlled, 100% vegetarian diet and drink clean water that hasn’t been exposed to pesticides and herbicides. A healthy animal is a happy animal, and provides the best product quality for you and your family.

What types of feed are chickens fed and what is a vegetable diet?

We strongly believe that the flavor of the chickens comes from the feed that they eat. Our feed is made from high quality, nutritionally balanced ingredients. It is composed of approximately 70% corn and corn gluten meal and 15-18% soybean meal, with the balance of the diet made up of salt, vitamins, and minerals. The diet is called a vegetable diet because the protein and energy sources, corn and soybean meal, are all vegetable in origin. NO animal by-products or animal fat are used in the chicken feed.

While, personally I would rather everyone eat less meat so that we can raise cage-free, free range, healthy animals everywhere, I feel like this is still a step in the right direction. While I may choose not to eat meat for personal reason, I have many friends and family members who still enjoy a good meatatarian cookout and this will help me feed them responsibly. Thanks to Safeway for continuing to offer new varieties of healthier foods.

The ‘Buch is in the Bottle!

Good news! As a follow-up to my previous post “The ‘Buch is On!” I can say that it appears to have been a successful experiment. I finally had a thin, white, filmy pancake looking SCOBY grow on top of my tea brew. It looked like kombucha, it smelled like kombucha, so I called it done. I removed the new SCOBY that grew on top and placed it into a glass jar with a cup of the kombucha to sit while I brewed, sweetened and cooled a new gallon tea. Once the tea cooled to room temperature, I plopped in the SCOBY and juice and recovered my jar with cheesecloth, a rubber band and returned it to it’s special place to await another fermentation cycle. The completed batch I bottled in four growler’s that I had set aside after my last visit to the Pub Dog.  The to-go bottles from Pub Dog are the perfect size if you want to make mutliple flavors or share your batch with friends. To each bottle I added a bit of pureed peaches and lightly capped. I’ve left them out to complete a second fermentation over the next few days to allow the flavors to marry and to make my sweet nectar a bit fizzy. I’ll post the results of the taste test once I crack it open for drinking this weekend.

Pizza Party Leftovers + Polenta = Yummy!

So, if you decide to use my earlier posted pizza recipe for your next pizza party, you are likely to have a few leftovers.  If you take those leftovers and mix them with prepared polenta, you can end up with something really, really tasty.  Here’s what to do:

Use a pre-cooked roll of polenta and thinly slice little rounds. Next, lightly oil the bottom of a deep dish or glass pan (I used an 11×13 lasgna pan for mine). Place a layer of the polenta rounds down first. Next, cover with sauce. Pizza sauce is great, but if you don’t have enough leftover there are two alternatives. You can use spaghetti sauce in a jar or make your own sauce quickly. In a bowl mix (2) 16oz cans of tomato sauce with (2) 6 oz cans of tomato paste. To the mixture add dry Italian Seasoning or thyme, rosemary, marjoram and garlic. Fresh works easily well.  Mix in salt and pepper to taste and pour half over your polenta slices.

*If you want to get really fancy, here’s how I made my sauce.  In a large saucepan I added a tablespoon of olive oil and warmed. I then added 1 clove of chopped garlic, a chopped onion, and about a pint of sliced cremini mushrooms. I sauteed until everybody was soft, but not mushy (about 5 minutes) and then added the two cans of tomato sauce and two cans of paste.  I stirred on medium heat until bubbly and then poured over my polenta and sprinkled dry Italian Seasoning over top.

Next, layer on your leftover toppings. I used vegetarian pepperoni, green peppers, black olives and shredded mozzarella cheese. Cover with another layer of polenta slices, then more sauce and top with fresh mozzarella cheese. (Shredded works fine too). Cover the pan with aluminum foil and broil on low setting for about 30 minutes to ensure that the polenta is warmed all of the way through. Take the foil off and kick the broiler up to high and cook for another 5 minutes or until the cheese is browned and bubbly. Allow to cool and then scoop a heaping pile into a bowl and enjoy. This is the best and easiest way that I have found to use the last of my pizza leftovers and the family loved it.

Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soap

Firstly, Dr. Bronner’s is celebrating their 60th anniversary! They’ve been making soap for a really long time, which means it must be good. I first learned of Dr. Bronner’s Magic soap some time ago, but I’m a bit embarrassed to say that I hadn’t actually tried it unitl recently. I think that in talking with friends and family that Dr. Bronner’s is most notable for their soap making, but they do offer lines of other products including hair care and cleansers. Some benefits of the soap touted on the website include: 

Fortunately for me, my local Target had a temporary price reduction on all of the soaps and I took this as a sign that I needed to finally purchase this soap. I chose the lavender for a  few reasons, but mostly because I love the smell. Dr. Bronner’s website has the following description:

DESCRIPTION:
A relaxing fragrance for tired and stressed-out souls lavender calms the nerves and soothes the body. Perfect just before bedtime or to start your day out with a tranquil peace of mind. All oils and essential oils are certified organic to the National Organic Standards Program. Packaged in 100% post-consumer recycled plastic bottles.

INGREDIENTS:
Water, Organic Coconut Oil*, Potassium Hydroxide**, Lavandin Extract, Organic Olive Oil*, Organic Hemp Oil, Organic Jojoba Oil, Organic Lavender Oil, Citric Acid, Tocopherol
* CERTIFIED FAIR TRADE INGREDIENTS
** None remains after saponifying oils into soap and glycerin

This soap is Fair Trade, organic and not tested on animals, and packaged in 100% recycled plastic bottles, so I can feel good about buying it. More importantly the ingredients are proven to be good to your skin. Now let’s take a look at the ingredients individually:

The ingredient second to water is organic coconut oil. According to the website Organic Facts:

Hair Care: Coconut oil is one of the best natural nutrition for hair. It helps in healthy growth of hair providing them a shiny complexion. Regular massage of the head with coconut oil ensures that your scalp is free of dandruff, lice, and lice eggs, even if your scalp is dry. Coconut oil is extensively used in the Indian sub-continent for hair care. It is an excellent conditioner and helps in the re-growth of damaged hair. It also provides the essential proteins required for nourishing damaged hair. It is therefore used as hair care oil and used in manufacturing various conditioners, and dandruff relief creams. Coconut oil is normally applied topically for hair care.

Skin Care: Coconut oil is excellent massage oil for the skin as well. It acts as an effective moisturizer on all types of skins including dry skin. The benefit of coconut oil on the skin is comparable to that of mineral oil. Further, unlike mineral oil, there is no chance of having any adverse side effects on the skin with the application of coconut oil. Coconut oil therefore is a safe solution for preventing dryness and flaking of skin. It also delays wrinkles, and sagging of skin which normally become prominent with age. Coconut oil also helps in treating various skin problems including psoriasis, dermatitis, eczema and other skin infections. Therefore coconut oil forms the basic ingredient of various body care products such as soaps, lotions, creams, etc., used for skin care.

Infections: Coconut oil is very effective against a variety of infections due to its antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial properties. According to the Coconut Research Center, coconut oil kills viruses that cause influenza, measles, hepatitis, herpes, SARS, etc. It also kills bacteria that cause ulcers, throat infections, urinary tract infections, pneumonia, and gonorrhea, etc. Coconut oil is also effective on fungi and yeast that cause candidiasis, ringworm, athlete’s foot, thrush, diaper rash, etc.

All of that information sounds good and I had no idea that coconut oil could be so useful. The next ingredient is used in making soaps and is essentially lye. It dissolves in water, which is why it is marked with a double asterisk and the note that explains that it is used to make the soap, but disappears once mixed in. The next ingredient present that is of significance is Lavandin Extract. What is lavandin extract exactly? Well, according to Snowdrift Farm:

Soapmakers love lavandin oil, and it is grown as a major commercial crop throughout Europe, though its origins are in France. Lavandin is an hybrid — a cross between Lavender officianalis and Lavender aspic or spike lavender. This cross-breeding provides the plant with the stamina needed to grow abundantly at lower elevations.

Most of the gorgeous deep blue and purple flowers seen in travel photos of the French countryside and attributed to growing lavender in France — is actually lavandin. Lavender grows well only at elevations of 1800 feet or greater. The heartier lavandin can grow at 1000 feet elevation and upwards. Snowdrift Farm imports our lavandin oil directly from the grower, near Grasse (France).

So, what’s the difference for you, the handcrafter? For starters, there are structural differences between the plants. Lavandin produces a 3-pronged flower-head, while true lavender gives a single “spike”. Scent-wise, the lavandin contains far more camphor, making it a “louder”, far less subtle note than true lavender. We prefer true lavender, such as Bulgarian lavender in perfumes, but do not discount lavandin when it comes to soaps and body care products. Lavandin has the capability of sticking around longer in soaps and lotions because of its chemical composition, making it the perfect oil for these applications. For more information about Lavandin, we recommend Julia Lawless’, “The Encyclopedia of Essential Oils.”

Further, according to Victoria Anisman-Reiner in her article titled, “Lavandin Not the Same as Lavender” she indicates that it is important to note that Lavandin extract does not have the same health benefits as lavender. However, lavandin extract is frequently used in soap, shampoo and cosmetics because the scent lasts longer and, “Lavandin is known to be highly antiseptic, antifungal, and antibacterial…Both lavandin and lavender are non-toxic, non-irritating and non-sensitizing to the skin”. Lavender oil is used in smaller quanitites in the soap though, so we’ll just go ahead and cover those benefits now.  The benefits and uses of lavender oil are many and varied, so I’ll return once again to Organic Facts for the details on this essential oil. You can read the details provided in the article by clicking on the link above, but here is a quick summary of the benefits:

• pain relief: muscle aches and join pain
• nervous system: calming scent that helps with stress, migraine headaches, anxiety, depression nervous tension, emotional stress and increases mental activity.
• respiratory disorders: colds, asthma, flu, infections of the throat and respiratory tract.
• skin care: lavender has been used to treat a plethora of skin conditions including acne, psoriasis, eczema, sunburn, wounds and more.

I’ve covered the benefits of olive oil previously and it has done wonders for my skin. Used alone it wasn’t sufficient to keep my face clear, but it’s super for removing eye makeup and moisturizing the under eye area. All of the oils used in Dr. Bronner’s soap are non-comedgenic and health benefits that range from moisturizing to antiseptic. They are mild and unlikely to cause skin reactions.

I have some seriously sensitive skin, so sensitive that  I can’t even use products with witch hazel becuase I have an allergic reaction ending in contact dermatitis, which is an extremly rare reaction to the herb. I’ve been using it for about two weeks now in the shower as a bath wash. My skin is clear, smooth and not oily at all. Given the good response that I’ve had to date I decided to expand my use of it to my hair and face. I washed my hair with it and it suddenly felt very, very weird. I can’t describe it exactly but it was like my hair felt heavy and didn’t separate easily. I’m not sure what would have happened had I washed with just the soap, but I immediately followed with my regular shampoo and conditioner to no ill effect. Phew, that was a close one! If I had read the FAQ’s section of Dr. Bronner’s website prior to washing my hair with the soap I would have read the following:

Can I shampoo and condition my hair organically?

1) Shampoo with your favorite Dr. Bronner’s soap. True soaps clean hair well but can leave a tangly look & feel; however…

2) Rinsing with our new Organic Shikakai Conditioning Rinse results in spectacular look and feel! Just stir 1- 2 capfuls of this rinse into a cup of water, close eyes and slowly pour while massaging into hair. Keep hand combing hair until hair feels entirely sleek (~30 seconds). Rinse out well. Repeat if necessary in extra hard water conditions or with longer hair.

3) After drying lightly with a towel, massage in Dr. Bronner’s new USDA Organic Leave-In Conditioning Crème for added silkiness and softness.

I’ll experiment with that on a weekend, but not before work.  I did wash my notoriously sensitive, acne-prone, combination to oily skin with it though. So far, so good. My face doesn’t feel oily, but it does feel very soft and smooth. It didn’t sting, tingle or feel weird in any way. I’m recovering from the witch hazel experiment, so I didn’t want to feel anything at all. I’ll report back on how my face handles the transition, but at the first hint of breakout I will jump ship!  So, while it isn’t likely that I’ll be doing all 18 suggested uses for the soap (listed in the FAQ’s and below), so far as a body wash it’s pretty excellent. It’s good for the environment and feels good on my skin; no complaints there so I feel as if it is money well spent and mission accomplished. I’ll continue to use Dr. Bronner’s and if I am feeling advertous enough to employ my soap for different uses other than skin care, I’ll be sure to report back.

The 18 Uses for Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soap:

What are the 18-in-1 uses?

Dr. Bronner recorded the “18 in 1 uses” on his label, which we have left mostly intact since his passing in 1997; however, people have told us many, many more uses for it than that. Here is his version. A more paraphrased one follows.

Dr. Bronner’s version:

1. Always dilute for Shave-Shampoo-Massage-Dental Soap-Bath!
2. Peppermint is nature’s own unsurpassed fragrant Deodorant!
3. A drop is best Mint Toothpaste; brushes Dentures Clean!
4. A dash in water is the ideal Breath Freshener & Mouth Wash!
5. Peppermint Oil Soap for Dispensers, Uniforms, Baby, Beach!
6. Dilute for ideal After Shave, Body Rub, Foot Bath, Douche.
7. Hot Towel-Massage the entire body, always towards your heart.
8. Pets, silk, wool & body tingles head to toe – keeps cool!
9. 3 dashes in water rinse most Sprays Off fruit & vegetables!
10. 1/4 oz in qt H2O is Pest Spray! Dash, no rash Diaper-Soap!

Paraphrased:

• For everyday body-washing: Get wet and pour soap full-strength onto hands-washcloth-loofah. Lather up, scrub down, rinse off, and tingle fresh & clean.
• For other uses, dilute from one part soap into 40 parts water for light cleaning, to cutting it in half or using it full strength for heavy-duty grease-cutting jobs.
• For shampoo, though we now recommend our new Shikakai soaps for this, many people are fond of using it as such. The method of application is to wet hair and scalp very thoroughly, squirt some soap into hands and work into a lather. Wash hair, then rinse well. Afterwards use our new citrus hair rinse and leave-in conditioners as directed.
• For the laundry, use 1/4 cup to 1/3 cup for one regular load; adjust as needed depending on hardness of water. I’ve been told that adding a dash of baking soda makes it even better.
• For toothbrushing, apply a drop or two of Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soap to a wet toothbrush. Brush as you normally would, rinsing accordingly. Be careful about using more than a couple drops of soap, as you might start foaming at the mouth. Many people with sensitive or softer teeth like to use our soap as a toothpaste because it lacks abrasives.

What’s So Great About This Greek Yogurt Anyway?

My first exposure to eating Greek yogurt for breakfast came from my friend and coworker who swears by the stuff.  As a person with a laundry list of gastrointestinal issues I’m no stranger to yogurt due to the probiotic content. I’ve used plain fat-free yogurt in sauces for some time, but I’ve never really learned to love the taste of yogurt. Yogurt became just one of those healthy foods that I knew I had to eat from time to time like celery or seitan. I mean, it’s ok, but I wasn’t going to my list of favorite foods or anyting. So finally, I started poking around and asked, “So what’s so great about this Greek yogurt anyway”? Is it made from goats? Does it taste different? What’s going on here?  Rebecca answered that it was higher in protein. Now my interest was really piqued and I began to do a little online research. She was absolutely right, it is higher in protein. According to Healthy Cooking, Greek yogurt is made by straining out the whey (liquid) which makes a thicker, creamier yogurt. Even more fantastic is that unlike regular yogurt, you can actually cook with it and it won’t curdle or separate. This means that you can make healthier, lower-fat versions of some of your favorite creamy dishes!

“Plain yogurt can also easily be substituted for buttermilk or cream when stirring the wet-dry ingredients together, giving the recipe the needed tartness that buttermilk brings and richness that whole cream brings.Plain yogurt can also easily be substituted for buttermilk or cream when stirring the wet-dry ingredients together, giving the recipe the needed tartness that buttermilk brings and richness that whole cream brings.” Read more at Suite101: The Differences Between Regular and Greek Yogurt: How to Best Use Both in Recipes and as Ingredient Substitutions http://healthycooking.suite101.com/article.cfm/the_differences_between_regular_and_greek_yogurt#ixzz0lepaIBMn

I decided to pick some up on a recent trip to Safeway and I purchased the fat-free, peach flavored version made by Chobani. Where has this yogurt been all of my life? This yogurt was so creamy and sweet and wonderful that it tasted like dessert, yet it had no fat and few calories (140), but lots of protein (14 grams). This is an excellent distribution of protein to carbs 41% to 59%; Amazing!  All of that protein means that you feel full longer and it is an excellent recovery breakfast on strength training days. So, Thanks Rebecca! As for the rest of you, check it out. It tastes good and it’s good for you, and that really is a rare treat.