Homemade DIY Deodorant - (Cornstarch and Baking Soda Version) Yes it really works!

To make this you will need a container to keep your deodorant in.  If you have some (or friends or family do) - wash them and reuse them.  Great money saver.  However, if you have thrown them all out or the center piece that holds the product and moves up and down the container is gone, you can order empty containers from Amazon (I'll link at the bottom of this post!)

You can put it into a muffin tin and apply it with your hand each morning (messy) or put it in a jar and scoop some out to rub on if you wish, but if you have an empty deodorant container, you can use it and it will 'roll up' as it's being used, just like regular deodorant does.  This recipe will make enough for 1 really large container or about 1 1/2 of the normal smaller sized.   I also sometimes add a fragrance oil to this but it doesn't need it and it's optional.

Homemade Deodorant

2 empty deodorant containers (or 1 but you'll have a little left over)
1/4 c baking soda
1/4 c cornstarch
5 T coconut oil (when you buy it, it's solid, like shortening)
2 T beeswax (I like white for this but you could use yellow)
optional:
1/4 t vitamin E oil (a preservative)
8 drops tea tree oil (natural anti-bacterial oil with a strong scent so you may not want to use this)
drops of your favorite fragrance essential oil

Melt the coconut oil and beeswax in the microwave in a small bowl or container and stir until smooth (about a minute or so).  Add to everything else in a small bowl and stir until smooth, blended and incorporated.  As it starts to cool, the coconut oil starts to make it thick.  You can pour it directly into your container (if you stir for a minute or two more, it gets to the consistency to scrape and push it into your container if that is what you prefer, although  it's messier.  If you take too long and it's thickened up too much, just pop it into the microwave for 30 seconds and melt again. 

Gently tap the container on the counter during the filling process and after to get it completely to the bottom, and release air bubbles.  Then, refrigerate or let set in a dark, cool cupboard until it completely sets up.  When you use it, you gently glide it on your skin. 


*NOTE - the reason I was going to 'update' my deodorant post (that I never posted in the first place) is that I have found through my own trial and error that BRAND NAMES MATTER.  The first 3 or 4 times I made this, I used the coconut oil I had on hand that I always buy for cooking, baking, salves, etc.  It's a cheap brand I pick up at almost any grocery store or Walmart.  My finished products were fine and useable but it wasn't until I happened to invest in better quality coconut oil on my last shopping trip, and also happened to pick up a different brand of corn starch that I made this latest version of deodorant and OMGOSH I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT.  Yes, I typed that in caps.  Using a little bit more expensive brand of coconut oil and a different brand of cornstarch completely made this an even better quality product and it's ON PAR with ANY deodorant I've ever tried that was store bought and full of chemicals.

Homemade Applesauce in a Slowcooker, Crock Pot OR in your SOLAR OVEN! Yep - So easy!

When I started making this last year, I created a monster!  This is a 'must have' on hand at all times for my husband.  I started to can all of my homemade applesauce in pint sized jars as he takes one to work with him almost every day but the funniest thing is that almost every morning I get up to make my coffee and find an empty container and a spoon next to the sink.  Yep!  This is his 'go to' snack at night while he watches TV after I go to bed!

Lucky for me this is so incredibly easy to make and takes almost no work.  Lucky for him it's healthy.

Depending on the apples I use, I usually don't add any sweetener at all, so it's all natural.  When I do decide to mix it up a little and add a cinnamon stick and a bit of sweetener, I use natural, healthy sweeteners - (not sugar) so it's still sugar free and so healthy for him.  

I've also found my husband eats these so quickly I don't can and process them unless I'm doing a large batch, as he'll eat 1-2 pints a day between work and late night snacks!

Homemade Applesauce

About 10 medium apples of any variety reds you have on hand
About 1/3 - 1/2 cup water
1 Tbsp lemon juice (this is needed if you are canning them, but I add a splash of it anyway even if I'm not)

optional:  sweetener and/or cinnamon to your taste

Combine the apples with just enough water to coat the bottom of your crockpot or slowcooker so they don't stick.
Cover and heat on high for about 2-4 hours depending on your brand, size and style slow cooker.  Do not let them burn, but turn it off when the apples are completely soft.  You can also cook them on the stove if you wish.  On the stove, add enough water so the bottom of the pan is covered and the apples won't stick or burn.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Immediately educe heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 20 minutes, until apples are tender. Remove from heat and let cool about 5 minutes.

You can add sweetener and/or a cinnamon stick either when you start to cook them or add a bit of ground cinnamon when you process them.  It's up to you.  Process in a food processor or blender in batches until as smooth as you wish.  You can eat immediately, place in a container in the refrigerator to eat that week or can them in a water bath for longer storage. 

Solar Oven:  With temperatures hovering at 100 degrees, I've been using my solar oven as it's just so quick and easy.  This batch of applesauce is made just like the instructions above for a slow cooker or crockpot.   Place your apple slices into a pan that fits in your solar oven.  Add just enough water to coat the bottom of the pan (your apples won't burn in a solar oven like they might in a crock pot or slow cooker, but the tiny bit of liquid just adds a bit of juice to the processing later).

If you are choosing to add sugar, cinnamon or a natural sweetener you can do that now or when you process them.

Place the lid on the pan, place in the solar oven and forget about it for at least 2 hours, or until the apples are soft and you are ready to process them.  Unlike stove top cooking or slow cookers, your apples won't scorch or burn.  They will just cook nice and soft and wait for you, on your schedule.

Process in a food processor or blender until as smooth as you wish.  You can eat immediately, place in a container in the refrigerator to eat that week or can them in a water bath for longer storage.

IF YOU WANT TO CAN THEM:

Get your canning supplies ready while the apples are almost done cooking and ready to process.  The jars should be clean and hot; kept in simmering water until you need them.  The rings and lids clean and hot. Have a pot on the stove with water ready to process them in boiling water.

Working in batches depending on the size of your food processor, process them on pulse with the S-blade until just smooth.  Don't over process.
 
Place apple mixture in a saucepan. Add lemon juice. Bring to a simmer slash boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently to prevent sticking. 

Ladle the applesauce into hot jars leaving 1/2 inch head space. Remove air bubbles by sliding a butter knife or skinny spatula around the jar and jiggling it a little to settle the sauce. Wipe the rim with a clean, damp rag or paper towel. Center lid on jar. Screw on the band just to hold the lid in place, not too tight.

Water bath process the jars in a boiling water for 20 minutes. Remove jars and let set on the counter to cool slowly. The lids should all be sealed down tight and not 'give' when pressed in the center with your finger or thumb.  That's it!  You're done.

BERRIES: PART 2 - Blackberry Raspberry Butter from freeze dried fruit

The previous post for the berry sherbet was the result of actually starting to make this recipe!  In the middle of making it, I saw a can of sweetened condensed milk I had bought for a second Key Lime Pie and decided on a whim to use it to sweeten the berries, then during a taste test to see how much sweetener and what flavorings I needed, I decided it was incredible as a frozen dessert and made half the batch into the sherbet!  But THIS is the recipe I was actually making. 

This was a complete trial recipe - tweaking, substituting, brainstorming.  Really, I was just using up the berries I had been picking this summer from our wild blackberry patch growing by the creek.  The end result is pretty good.  It's just a very thick, spreadable jam really.

Here is the original recipe I was going to follow...  it's a long term food storage recipe using freeze dried berries.

Blackberry Blueberry Butter

2 c freeze dried blueberries
2 1/2 c freeze dried blackberries
2 c water
1 1/2 c sugar
1 T lemon juice

In a blender, process the freeze dried fruit until it's a smooth powder.  In a saucepan on the stove, add the water, sugar and lemon juice to the berries.  Cook all on a low boil for 30-40 minutes, stirring constantly to prevent burning on the bottom.  Cook it down until it's as thick as you like and then jar and seal.  Let cool completely and store in the refrigerator.

What I did

Since I had fresh berries to use, I got all the berries I had been picking and storing in my deep freezer.
Processed them until smooth in the food processor with the S-blade
Placing them into a saucepan on the stove, I added 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 1/2 c sugar and 1 T lemon juice and about 1/2 cup water.  I didn't add all the water because I was not using freeze dried berries that needed to be reconstituted. 
Taste test yours.  I think most people would like to add about 1/2 cup more sugar at this point.  Cook down until it's as thick as you like.  Pour it into your clean, warm jar and seal.  Let cool and store in the refrigerator. 

BERRIES! Homemade Berry Sherbet

If you follow me on Twitter you might recall seeing my excited Tweet last month, with photo, that our blackberries had started to ripen. I spent just over a week, 'picking berries' each evening as they slowly ripened.  It was a great way to slow down, relax, do some deep thinking and enjoy the quiet that picking berries forces on you.  If you attempt to go quickly, not only will you miss plump, ripe berries hiding under leaves, but the thorns will get you and your clothes and rip both skin and fabric into little shreds!

As I pick berries I popped them into the deep freezer until I had enough to do 'something' with.  That something turned into 2 different things.  I intended on making some Blackberry Butter (a thick jam) but as I started to make it I ended up making a homemade sherbet out of this batch!  Completely random and unplanned.  No recipe - it just made itself.

 Frozen berries into a food processor with an S-blade
You can use all one kind of berry or mix blackberries, raspberries, etc.  It's up to you!

 Process, scrape the sides and process more until as smooth as you can get it.

While I planned to use a sweetener substitute and make jam or butter out of it,

suddenly I spied an extra can of sweetened condensed milk in the pantry from

my Key Lime Pie shopping trip.

Added 1 can of sweetened condensed milk to the berry puree

Upon taste-testing I decided just a smidgen of vanilla Torani flavored syrup would do.

(You could add more sweetener and/or vanilla extract)

Taste test to get the sweet level to your liking.

When you like how it tastes, put it into a container that can be placed in the deep freeze.

After freezing at least a few hours, scoop out and serve!

Homemade White Cake

All the years of making homemade cakes and I still don't have a "oh my gosh, this is IT' go to, homemade white cake recipe.  I've made plenty that are good, a few that were great... but none of them have been so incredible that I stopped looking or trying other recipes.  And... admittedly this one isn't either.   

This one is ok - and it's incredibly popular, found all over the internet as well as in cookbooks and recipe cards in many grandmother's recipe boxes.  I had 4 different recipes in front of me when I made this one, and this one sounded the most promising.  It's pretty good and worth making, and yes, it is one I would make again.

White Cake

2 1/4 c flour, sifted
1 c milk, room temperature
6 egg whites
1 t almond extract
1 t vanilla extract
1 3/4 c sugar
4 t baking powder
1 t salt
1 1/2 sticks butter

Grease and flour 2 round cake pans (8").  In a bowl, mix the milk and egg whites with vanilla and almond.  In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Add the butter and mix with an electric mixer for 2 minutes until combined.  Add the milk mixture and beat 2 minutes.  Pour the batter into pans.  Bake 350 for 30 minutes or until the cneters are done.  Cool to room temperature before icing with your favorite frosting.