Homemade Laundry Detergent

A few months ago as I was buying laundry detergent and as I was placing the bulking plastic container in my cart I promised myself it was the last.  I counted down the loads until it was empty and I could replace it with homemade laundry detergent.

I don't know why I waited so long to try it.  I guess I though it would be time consuming and more expensive, but actually it's neither!

I researched liquid and powder varieties and the powder recipe seemed to be the way to go.  It's cheaper, faster to make, and easier to store.  I can make several batches of the powder at a time saving even more time!

It only takes 3 ingredients (all found in the laundry isle at our grocery store).

• 1 - 5.5 oz bar of Fels-Naptha
• 1 1/4 cup borax
• 1 1/4 cup washing soda

Directions:

      1.  Grate the bar of soap in a bowl.

      2. Add borax and washing soda and stir well.
      3. Place in container for storage.  And that's it!

Use 1 Tbsp per load (or 2 Tbsp for heavily soiled loads).
Each batch yields approximately 32 ounces. (between 32-64 loads based on how many Tbsp used per load).

Price break-down

1 – 5.5oz bar of Fes-Naptha = $0.97 (at wal-mart)
1 – 76oz box of 20 Mule Team Borax = $4.99
1 – 55oz box of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda = $3.99

That's $2.36 per batch or only $0.04 - 0.08 per load (depending on how much you use).

How does that stack up to store bought?

Seventh Generation Liquid Laundry - 50oz (33 loads) $8.99* = $0.28 per load
Tide Powder Detergent - 95oz (68 loads) $23.49* = $0.34 per load
Homemade Powder Detergent - 32oz (64 loads) $2.36 = $0.04 per load


*prices from Amazon.com will cross price at the grocery and update.

High Efficiency (HE) Washers

HE front-load washers require “special soap” for one reason alone – low suds. Because they use less water, they require soap that is less sudsy. The good news is, this homemade detergent is VERY low suds. The ”special” HE detergent is just another advertising mechanism to push consumers to buy “special soap” for unnecessarily high prices.
Regardless of your washer type, just make your own in confidence.

 

Safe for septic tanks and fields

This is the best laundry soap to use with septic tanks because it contains zero phosphates and zero fillers (like montmorillonite clay) that cause commercial powder detergents to clog lines. It is also completely non-toxic so it will not harm necessary septic bacteria like toxic detergents and antibacterial soaps. Use with confidence.

 

Is Borax Toxic

After thorough research, I concluded borax is only as toxic as baking soda or table salt; if you ingest it in high quantities, it may make you sick. If you use it as described in our recipes, it poses no toxic threat.

Paleo Moussaka-Style Stuffed Eggplant

I came home yesterday with a bag full of eggplants picked from the farm where I teach.  I honestly don't have a lot of experience cooking eggplant as it isn't a vegetable I think to buy while at the store.  This will now change.  This recipe is so yummy!  It's a little time consuming, but well worth it.

Moussaka-Style Stuffed Eggplant

Ingredients:

• 3 eggplants
• 3 TBS olive oil
• 1/2 pound sausage
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 garlic gloves, minced
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 3/4 tsp ground cumin
• 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• pinch of cayenne
• 1 can tomato sauce
• 1 cup green bell peppers, diced
• 1 3/4 cups cottage cheese
• 2 egg whites
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Slice eggplants in half length wise.  Scoop out flesh with a melon baller, careful not to pierce the skin.  Leave about a 1/2 inch-thick shell.  Reserve the flesh for use in the filling.
   
3. Brush eggplant shells with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt. Place face up on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes, until very tender.
4. Meanwhile, cook sausage until brown.  Remove from saucepan.
5. Heat oil in a saucepan.  Saute the onions for about 8-10 minutes.
6. Add the garlic and spices and continue to saute for about 1 minute.
7. Cut the reserved eggplant into small cubes and add them.  Saute for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
8. Add tomatoes and bell peppers.  Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes and add sausage back to pan to combine filling.
9. Fill each shell with filling. Evenly cover with the ricotta custard and then the grated cheese.
10.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden on top.

Paleo Cereal Bars

My son would live off of cereal bars if I let him.  And whereas we are less stringent with him and carbs, I really wanted to find a healthier alternative to the premade, loaded with junk cereal bars found at the store.  Even the "healthy" ones aren't.

I found this recipe and he really likes them (so do I!). It's quick and easy to make.

Paleo Cereal Bars

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cup blanched almond flour
• 1/2 teaspoon celtic sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 cup grapeseed oil
• 1/2 cup agave nectar
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1 cup sunflower seeds
• 1/2 cup blanched slivered almonds
• 1/4 cup raisins or dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips
  
  

1. In a food processor, chop up pumpkin seeds until about 2/3 of the seeds are chopped.
2. In a small bowl, combine almond flour, salt and baking soda.
3. In a large bowl, combine grapeseed oil, agave and vanilla.
4. Stir dry ingredients into wet.
5. Mix in coconut, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, almond slivers, raisins, and chocolate chips.
   
   
6. Grease an 9x13 inch Pyrex baking dish with grapeseed oil.
7. Press the dough into the baking dish, wetting your hands with water to help pat the dough down evenly.
8. Bake at 350° for 20 minute. 

Makes 12-16 bars

Paleo Golden Harvest Soup

This has been my favorite soup even before we went Paleo.  If it so yummy with the pairing of harvest vegetables and curry.  I make it a few times every year and often take it to potlucks where it is always a hit.

Golden Harvest Soup

Ingredients:

• 12 oz lean boneless pork
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 celery stalks, sliced
• 2 tsps curry powder
• 32 oz chicken broth
• 3 cups cubed, peeled and cubed butternut squash
• 1 1/2 cups baby carrots
• 1 large cooking apple, cored and cut into small cube

Directions:

1. Slice celery and core apple. 
   
   
2. Peel and cube squash.  (This is perhaps the hardest part of the recipe.  I have such a hard time cubing the squash, but that might also be because I have dull knives.  Anyway, take care to not cut yourself in the process).
   
   
3. Add all ingredients to your crock-pot.  Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 7.
4. Once the squash is soft and cooked, use your immersion blender to blend the soup.  Or, if you do not have an immersion blender, you can spoon out the chunks of squash into a normal blender and pulse on high, then add the blended squash back to soup.  If you prefer a chunky soup to creamy, you can skip this step altogether.
5. Serve with toasted sunflower seeds and pepitos.
   
   

My husband isn't crazy about soup, so I have discovered that soup freezes well.  I spoon the left-overs into a metal muffin tin and place in the freezer.  I then pop the frozen soup out of the tin and place into a container to store in the freezer.  Each frozen section is about 1/2 cup of soup, depending on the size of your tin.

Wool & Alpaca Dryer Balls

We recently attended a festival nears us called Cyclops Fest and it was such a great day.  The fest was for homemade products, jewlery, and art and had wonderfully funky music playing in the background the whole day.

My cool niece trying out some hula hoops.

While there, we found ourselves at the booth of L&L Natural Products and the boy-child was drawn to her Wool & Alpaca Dryer Balls.  I was too, honestly.  I am slowly trying to ween us off the chemical wastefulness of purchased products.  After he threw one across the way, I decided I should probably buy it and 3 companions.

I just used it for the first time this morning and was very impressed!  My clothes took half the time to dry (and it was a load of jeans and towels)!!

Usually I don't link products here, and although I work on a farm and could get free wool, I don't know yet how these are made.  Please take a look!  They are worth the money!

I also found that you can scent the dryer balls with essential oil.  My favorite is lavender, but I'm not sure if the husband will go for that.  Time to go peruse the essential oil isle for a scent we can agree on!

Goodbye Dryer Sheets!  Its been real!

Paleo Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is by far the best Paleo cookie recipe I have tried.  My first attempt failed as I used alomnd flour instead of coconut flour and ended up with little pancakes, but the second attempt with the correct ingredients was a success!  Such a delicious treat!!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1/2 cup raw honey (or natural sweetener of choice)
• 4 omega 3 eggs
• 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract
• 1/8 tsp of celtic sea salt
• 1/2 cup of shredded unsweetened coconut
• 3/4 cup of 70% dark chocolate chips (or raw cacao nibs)
• Parchment Paper (optional)

Process:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. In a medium sized bowl, combine eggs, coconut oil, honey*, vanilla extract and salt. Once this is mixed, blend in the coconut flour.
3. Stir in shredded coconut and chocolate chips

    
  4.  On parchment lined baking sheets, drop heaping tablespoons of cookie batter **

  5.  Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.

*In a smaller bowl, I used the microwave to melt down the honey and coconut oil together. Heat until liquid form.
** Make sure to form the cookie shape when placing on the baking sheet, as these do not rise and spread like conventional cookies.

Sore Throat Relief

A simple and natural home relief for winter sore throats:

1. In a jar, combine lemon slices, organic honey and sliced ginger. 
2. Close jar and put it in the fridge, it will form into a "jelly". 


To serve: Spoon jelly into mug and pour boiling water over it. Store in fridge 2-3 months.