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Author Archives: Rural Spin

About Rural Spin

I'm a gardener, cook, writer, weaver, soap-maker, cheese-maker, horticulturist, anthropologist, ecologist, and more. I've studied and practiced home and garden care traditions since I was 10 years old, and I'm finding that many of these skills are quickly being lost or have gone the way of the covered wagon. I'm here to share my knowledge with and learn from those interested in living sustainably, self-sufficiently, naturally, and cheaply.

Dandelion Sunshine Jelly

09 May

Dandelion Sunshine Jelly by Rural Spin - www.ruralspin.com.

Making jelly using dandelion flowers is a commitment, no doubt about it. But if you enjoy tedium and working with lovely flowers, this is the jelly for you! And there is a real feeling of satisfaction you get from making a delicious food from what some call a weed.

My recipe is not straight-up dandelion jelly. To me, dandelion jelly deserves to be elevated a bit to reflect what I think of as its sunshine status. I wanted to layer flavors with dandelion’s honey-like flavor so the jelly tastes more like dandelion than just jellied flower parts. Because of this, I use honey as the sweetener to accentuate the natural dandelion flavor, lemon juice and zest for brightness, and cinnamon for warmth. This is a lovely, light, tasty  jelly to serve on toasts, with cheese and crackers, or as a glaze to a baked ham.

Dandelion Sunshine Jelly ingredients: dandelion flowers, honey, cinnamon, and lemon zest.

Dandelion Sunshine Jelly ingredients: dandelion flowers, honey, cinnamon, and lemon.

INGREDIENTS

Makes 2 pints

3 to 4 cups dandelion petals

3 to 4 cups water

2 cups honey

1 tsp cinnamon

Zest from 1 lemon

1 tbls lemon juice

4 tbls low-sugar pectin

PETAL PICKING

The hardest and most time-consuming part of the process is collecting enough dandelions and plucking the petals off of them. I suggest collecting a good gallon of flowers, but make sure those flowers are from an area that has been chemical-free for several years. I’m lucky enough to live in a neighborhood where very few residents use chemicals on their lawns, and they happily gave me dandelion-picking rights.

Pick more dandelions than you think you'll need so you can pick-and-choose the best for your jelly.

Pick more dandelions than you think you’ll need so you can pick-and-choose the best for your jelly.

The petals need to be removed from the flowers as quickly as possible after picking them; the flowers close up quickly after harvest and after that happens, collecting the petals becomes much more difficult.

It is very important not to get any green parts (sepals) mixed in with the petals. The sepals will not only affect the color of your jelly, they also affect the taste, and not in a good way. Dandelions contain a milky sap, and you don’t want any of that bitterness to contaminate your jelly. It takes a long time to get just the petals off of the flowers, but if you’re going to make this jelly that is what you have to do. Make yourself a nice relaxing beverage and enjoy the peace and quiet.

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Cut the flowers in half to make it easier to remove the petals and prevent the green sepals from making their way into your jelly.

Cut the flowers in half to make it easier to remove the petals and prevent the green sepals from making their way into your jelly, which will result in a bitter taste.

Most bloggers making dandelion jelly use scissors to remove the petals. I personally find it easier to use my finger nail. It not only greatly reduces the amount of sepals that make their way into your petal pile, I find that it is quicker than clipping carefully.

To remove the petals, I first cut the entire flower in half. Then I use my thumb nail to pull only the petals off the flower. It’s pretty easy to avoid the sepals with this method, and in two or three pulls, you’re ready to move on to the next flower. And, your petal harvest quotient per flower is much higher than multiple clips. I find this to be important unless you have quadruple the amount of dandelion flowers you need, and have the luxury of only clipping the very top of each flower once.

Make sure you only remove the petals from the flower; including the green sepals into your jelly will result in a bitter taste.

Use your thumb nail to pull the petals from the flower, avoiding the green sepals.

You can stop this tedious process when you have between 3 and 4 cups of petals.

JUICE GETTIN’

There are two ways to get your dandelion juice from the petals: simmer ‘em or steep ‘em.

Simmer ‘em

To simmer them, combine your petals with an equal amount of water and simmer for 10 minutes. Strain through a jelly bag or dish towel to remove all of the dandelion liquid. Measure out 3 cups of liquid for making the jelly. If you don’t have quite enough for 3 cups, add a bit of plain water to top it off. (Make sure you squeeze the juice from the petals, too.)

At this point I like to filter the juice through a coffee filter to remove any bits and pollen that sneak through. This also makes a clearer jelly. Once you’ve done this, proceed to Jelly Makin’!

Dandelion tea oxidizes from yellow to a lovely russet color with time. This does not affect the taste of the jelly.

Dandelion tea oxidizes from yellow to this lovely russet brown color with time. This does not affect the taste of the jelly in any way, and the final product will be a lovely dark gold color.

Steep ‘em

You can also get the liquid by making a tea out of the petals. To do this, place your petals in a bowl and cover them with boiling water (use the same amount of water as you have petals). Let them steep overnight, then strain in the morning through a jelly bag or dish towel into a bowl.

As with the “Simmer ‘em” method, I suggest running your dandelion tea through a coffee filter to fully remove any petal bits and pollen. It makes for a nicer looking jelly product. And, again, if you don’t have a full 3 cups of dandelion juice, just top off with water.

A note on color: Dandelion juice will oxidize with time. Fresh juice will be yellow in color, but the longer you wait to make your jelly the color will darken to the russet color shown at left. I don’t mind this as I am adding cinnamon and honey, which darken the color.

JELLY MAKIN’

Wash your lemon and zest it. Cut the lemon in half and juice half, which will end up being about 1 tablespoon of juice. Set the zest and lemon juice aside.

Take your 3 cups of dandelion juice and pour it into a sauce pan. Bring to a simmer and add your lemon zest and lemon juice. Add the cinnamon. Continue to simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring.

Slowly add your pectin. But watch it…if you add it too fast it won’t mix in well with your juice and will be clumpy. I use a whisky to stir briskly after I put a bit of the pectin into the mixture.

After all of the pectin is incorporated  bring the mixture to a full rolling boil that can’t be stirred down. Make sure you stir constantly.

Add your honey and return the mixture to a full rolling boil. Boil hard for one minute, again stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and skim off any foam.

Immediately pour your jelly into clean, prepared pint jars. If you are canning the jelly, process the jars

in a hot water bath for 10 minutes at normal elevation, and 15 minutes at high elevation, following normal canning protocols as outlined at the National Center for Home Food Preservation.

Dandelion jelly can be eaten with cheese and crackers, on toast, or added as a glaze to meats.

Dandelion jelly can be eaten with cheese and crackers, on toast, or added as a glaze to meats, such as ham. It also makes a lovely addition to pastries and baked goods.

Colors3

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10 Comments

Posted by on May 9, 2013 in Edible Plants, Food Preservation, Homesteading, Recipes

 

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Cottonwood Bud Salve: Soothing and Healing

22 Apr
Cottonwood bud salve is easy to make and has many medicinal qualities.

Cottonwood bud salve is easy to make and has many medicinal qualities.

I’m a big believer in people making their own salves and healing oils, not only for controlling what ingredients touch your skin (especially open wounds), but also to save money. Cottonwood bud salve has been a well-known European and Native American ointment for ages, and is easily made if you have access to dormant buds from a poplar tree.

The salve can be made using the dormant buds from different species of poplar trees (Populus sp.). Cottonwood is the most well-known, but aspen and poplar can be used too. The active ingredients are salicin and populin, pain relievers and anti-inflammatories related to aspirin. (Poplars are healing for other purposes, but here I’ll focus on the salve.)

This salve is sometimes called balm of gilead, or oil of gilead, a valued salve from biblical times. However, the plant used to make oil of gilead was likely one among several options, all indigenous to the Middle East, including desert date (Balantes aegyptica), mastic tree (Pistacia lentiscus), or the most likely candidate, myrrh (Commiphora opobalsamum). In fact, many consider myrrh to be the only true source for Balm of Gilead (or Balsam of Gilead). Therefore, the balm made from poplar buds, even though it is definitely effective as a salve, is not true Balm of Gilead though the name is probably interchangeable at this point.

 

 

Cottonwood bark is very coarse and distinctive looking.

Cottonwood bark is very coarse and distinctive looking.

USING THE DECOCTION

You can use the oil or salve on your skin wherever you are feeling discomfort from aches, pains, inflammation or sore joints. Some massage therapists use the oil for clients who experience arthritis pains, or for athletes with very sore muscles. It can also be used to help heal burns or various skin irritations like chapped skin or scrapes. Just rub the salve on your skin as needed.

GATHERING THE BUDS

Collect the unopened leaf buds when they are dormant, in winter to early spring, between January and March. I like to wait until early spring right before the buds open; I find the amount of resin is higher in early spring than when the tree is in full dormancy.

The bark of cottonwood is dominated by large, grey blocks of bark on the tree trunk. The leaf buds are distinctive, large, and pointed, arranged alternately along the stem. The bud scales are a yellowish green with reddish or orange tinge at the edges. It is not uncommon to see beads of resin on the buds, especially in early spring (my preferred collection time).

The buds of poplar trees, like this cottonwood, are distinctive looking.

The buds of poplar trees, like this cottonwood, are distinctive looking.

I collect the buds after a windy day or a storm; bits of branches break off and fall to the ground, making collection a simple process. If you can find low-hanging branches, that works, as well, but fallen branches are easier and they don’t damage the tree since they have already been removed by natural forces.

MAKING THE DECOCTION

There are two ways to extract the active ingredient from the buds: simmer it or let it steep.

Let it steep:

To let it steep, remove the rinsed, dried buds from the stems and place them in a jar. Cover them with about twice as much olive oil as you have buds and put the lid on the jar. Let it steep in a cool, dark place. Some let the buds steep in the olive oil for a year or more before calling it good. Some leave it sit for a week. Because of this variability, I feel I am getting the most out of the buds using a low simmer (heat that is too high, however, will damage the active ingredients so watch it).

Let it simmer:

Remove your buds from the stem, rinse them to remove any dirt, and let them dry. Place them in a saucepan and cover them with about twice as much olive oil as you have buds (you can also use coconut oil). Turn the heat to as low as you possibly can, and let the buds simmer for two hours or more, then strain.

These cottonwood buds will be rinsed, dried, and simmered very gently with olive oil.

These cottonwood buds will be rinsed, dried, and simmered very gently with olive oil.

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The oil is good as-is after this process. You can just jar it up, store it in a cool, dark place, and rub it on your skin as needed. Or you can take it a step further and make a salve from it, which will make it a bit easier to apply. (Note: If you use coconut oil, it will solidify on it’s own in temperatures above 76F, but will melt in warm weather.)

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Grated or chopped beeswax can be melted gently with the cottonwood oil to create a salve.

Grated or chopped beeswax can be melted gently with the cottonwood oil to create a salve.

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To make a salve, add no more than 1 oz of beeswax (by weight) for every 5 oz of cottonwood oil. You can either grate it or chunk it up with a good knife. Add it to the saucepan along with the strained cottonwood oil, and melt the beeswax on low heat. Once it is all melted, pour it into a jar. As it cools it will solidify and be ready for use.

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Add the beeswax to the cottonwood oil and gently heat until the beeswax is melted.

Add the beeswax to the cottonwood oil and gently heat until the beeswax is melted.

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Colors3

 
3 Comments

Posted by on April 22, 2013 in Home Remedies & Apothecary, Homesteading, Saving Money

 

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10 Reasons to Ditch Morning Coffee for Morning Cocoa

17 Apr
Cocoa powder has amazing health benefits, and as a morning beverage can easily replace coffee.

Cocoa powder has amazing health benefits, and as a morning beverage can easily replace coffee.

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Know what my beverage of choice is in the morning? A hot cup of cocoa. But it’s not the calorie-laden version you might be thinking of…it’s the healthy version that does the same job (for me) as coffee but with more health benefits. Plus, I think hot cocoa has a superior taste to coffee. And, yes, cocoa powder does contain caffeine, but not as much as coffee.

And while a Starbucks 16oz hot chocolate has 370 calories, 16 grams of fat, and 50 grams of carbs, this recipe for 16 ounces of sweetened hot cocoa is only 54 calories, 2 grams of fat, and 15 grams of carbohydrates. It’s only when people add fat to cocoa that it becomes, well, fattening.

HEALTH BENEFITS OF COCOA

We have known about the health benefits of cocoa for centuries. And now we have dozens of scientific studies to back up this historic knowledge. We can thank the high concentration of polyphenols (especially flavanols) in cocoa for these health benefits, even when compared to levels found in other sources like red wine and tea. Here is a list of some of the many health benefits of regular cocoa consumption:

  1. Cocoa and chocolate can cut your rate of heart disease, and cut the death rate of heart-attack survivors.
  2. Cocoa can help decrease the risk of stroke.
  3. Cocoa can decrease blood pressure, including in pregnant women.
  4. Cocoa has the potential to improve kidney function.
  5. The caffeine in cocoa can protect your skin against sun damage and skin cancer.
  6. Older folks who eat chocolate (and wine or tea) have higher cognitive abilities than those who don’t.
  7. Consuming cocoa powder can increase cognitive function and may help prevent Alzheimer’s disease.
  8. Chocolate can relieve stress.
  9. Eating cocoa or chocolate can increase feelings of satiety, which can help with weight loss.
  10. If you’re sick, cocoa can relieve coughs almost as well as codeine.

HEALTHY HOT COCOA

Cocoa powder and hot water are all that is needed for a tasty morning beverage, but you can add sweetener and milk to taste!
Cocoa powder and hot water are all that is needed for a tasty morning beverage, but you can add sweetener and milk to taste!
  • 16 ounces of hot water
  • 2 tablespoons real unsweetened cocoa powder (or to taste)
  • 1 teaspoon honey (or more to taste)
  • 1/4 cup milk (optional…I use coconut milk)

While your hot water is boiling, place your dry cocoa powder in the bottom of your cup. After your water boils, pour about 2 tablespoons of the hot water into the cup (if you use more or less cocoa powder, just use an equal amount of hot water here).

Using a spoon, stir the cocoa and water until smooth, to eliminate any lumps. Then fill your cup the rest of the way with hot water.

Add sweetener and milk to taste. For an extra treat, add a bit of vanilla, almond, or hazelnut extract per cup. That’s it! Drink away! What a way to start the morning!

RESOURCES

I used these sources (and others) for my research on the health benefits of cocoa. Click on each study title to be sent to the original article:

Chocolate consumption and mortality following a first acute myocardial infarction: the Stockholm Heart Epidemiology Program

Blood pressure and endothelial function in healthy, pregnant women after acute and daily consumption of flavanol-rich chocolate: a pilot, randomized controlled trial

Effect of dark chocolate on renal tissue oxygenation as measure by BOLD-MRI in healthy volunteers

Effects of chocolate, cocoa, and flavan-3-ols on cardivascular health: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials

Flavonoid-rich cocoa consumption affects multiple cardiovascular risk factors in a meta-analysis of short-term studies

Increased caffeine intake is associated with reduced risk of basal cell carcinoma of the skin

Chemopreventive effects of cocoa polyphenols on chronic diseases

The neuroprotective effects of cocoa flavanol and its influence on cognitive performance

A reduced-calorie dietary pattern including a daily sweet snack promotes body weight reduction and body composition improvements in premenopausal women who are overweight and obese: a pilot study

Theobromine inhibits sensory nerve activation and cough

10 important health reasons to replace morning coffee with morning hot cocoa from Rural Spin

 
7 Comments

Posted by on April 17, 2013 in Home Remedies & Apothecary, Recipes

 

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7 Ways to Use Eggshells (and tips you need to know)

07 Apr
Eggshells can be ground in a blender and used for many purposes, indoors and out.

Eggshells can be ground in a blender and used for many purposes, indoors and out.

If you eat eggs, make sure you make the best use of those shells! Most of an eggshell is calcium. In fact, about 95% of shells are calcium carbonate…the same stuff that sea shells, coral, and limestone are made from (the other 5% includes proteins, calcium phosphate, and magnesium carbonate). Here’s a list of what you can do with those shells so the calcium and its brittle shell don’t go to waste.

USE EGGSHELLS FOR THIS

1) Give your hens a calcium boost. Eggshells contain 95% calcium, and hens need calcium to lay eggs that have those strong shells. There is nothing unhealthy about feeding your hens eggshells, as long as those shells have been sterilized to kill bacteria (see below on how to do this) and offered in ground form. Pay special attention to shell sterilization if you get some of your eggs from another source where you can’t be sure of the laying hen’s health.

2) Give your pets a calcium boost: In the case of eggshells, what is good for chickens is good for your pet. Adding pulverized eggshells to their food provides extra calcium for bone health. And just like using shells for chickens, be sure to sterilize the shells first.

3) Give yourself a calcium boost: Consuming calcium from eggshells can help you, too. In a 2003 study published in the International Journal of Clinical Pharmacology Research, eggshell consumption helped stop bone loss in postmenopausal women. While you can consume pulverized eggshells for added calcium, remember that calcium amounts very greatly in shells, so there is no way to tell exactly how much calcium you are getting (but we know you are getting more than if you didn’t consume the shells at all). Be sure you bake the shells before consuming to prevent ingesting any bacteria if you haven’t washed the shell before eating the egg (see below).

The finer your grind your eggshells, the sooner the calcium will be available to garden plants.

The finer your grind your eggshells, the sooner the calcium will be available to garden plants.

4) Incorporate them into your soil: It’s a great practice to add ground eggshells into your garden soil (and your indoor pots, too). But realize that it takes awhile for those shells to break down enough for the calcium to be available to your plants. In fact, eggshells can take many years to decompose fully and it will take several years to see the benefits of those eggshell additions to soil. But don’t let this deter you as adding eggshells to soil is great for plants! Start now…in a year or two you’ll start to see benefits (the finer you grind the shells, the more quickly you’ll see benefits). And don’t forget to sterilize those shells before adding them to the soil to prevent adding bacteria to your garden.

5) Keep garden critters at bay: Slugs are slippery little devils, and they dislike the chalky sharpness of ground eggshells. Cutworms don’t like it, either. Sprinkle the eggshell around plants like tomatoes, peppers, broccoli, and cabbage to keep their stems safe and destructive critters away. Make sure you cover the surface of the soil around the entire stem.

6) Clean your pots and pans: Yes, you can grind your eggshells into a powder and use it as an abrasive. But, it being an abrasive and all, it will scratch! I’ve used this for especially stubborn spots on cast iron pans or stainless steel (on the insides). Don’t use this on any surface that you want to see a scratch on.

7) Make your coffee sweeter: Adding crushed eggshells to your coffee grounds helps to lessen the acidity of your coffee. Then you can toss the used grounds and eggshells in your compost bin. Better yet, toss them both into your garden soil! The eggshells have the calcium, but the coffee grounds provide the nitrogen.

You can use a blender to grind eggshells fine. (Bowl by the Little Pottery Venture.)

You can use a blender to grind eggshells fine. (Bowl by the Little Pottery Venture.)

PREPARE EGGSHELLS LIKE THIS

For most eggshell uses, it is better to make sure they are clean and free from bacteria. If you don’t wash the eggs thoroughly before using, bake the shells at 150 degrees Fahrenheit on a cookie sheet for about 10 minutes.

You can grind your eggshells either wet or dry. I personally find grinding  them dry to be easier, but decide which method works best for you in your kitchen:

To grind eggshells wet, simply take all of your eggshells, place them in a blender and fill the blender with water to about 1/2 way up the eggshells. Then whizzzzzzzzz, and drain. What to do next is where I find the difficulty. Small bits of wet shell are not necessarily cooperative, and most uses for eggshell are easier to implement when the shells are dry.

To grind eggshells dry, you can either leave them sit in a bowl until they are thoroughly dry (I keep the pretty bowl shown above next to my sink and simply stack eggshells as they accumulate), or you can bake them. Baking to dry and sterilize them can serve double duty here! If 10 minutes baking at 150F doesn’t dry all of the wet egg remnants inside the shell perfectly, just leave them bake in the oven until the insides of the egg are perfectly dry. (To see a video on how to use your blender and a mason jar to grind your eggshells and other foods, click here.)

DON’T USE EGGSHELLS FOR THIS

I just can’t recommend that you use eggshells to start seedlings, even though this is a popular infographic on Facebook and all over the interwebs as an eggshell tip (I know…I’m the problem child sometimes). Seedlings are like icebergs…at best what you see above the soil is equal to what is going on below the soil. In fact, sometimes the root system is much larger than the seedling. Half an eggshell just doesn’t have the space necessary to support a growing and intricate root system unless you transplant it pretty quickly to the garden. In drier climates it is also difficult to keep such a small amount of soil moist enough to keep a healthy seedling happy.

Eggshells do not sharpen garbage disposal blades. I don’t think it harms the garbage disposal any more than anything else, but I have read that egg shell bits in the drain, because they are heavier than usual kitchen sink refuse, can contribute to drain clogs. The idea being they settle into a pipe at some point, and slowly start to trap debris. Even more reason to use eggshells for one of their many beneficial purposes!

Rural Spin

 
16 Comments

Posted by on April 7, 2013 in Animals, Gardening, Home Remedies & Apothecary, Homesteading, Kitchen Tips

 

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10 Natural Tips for Healthier Hair

30 Mar
Women used to have long, luxurious hair using only natural methods and ingredients.

Women used to have long, luxurious hair using only natural methods and ingredients.

Long, flowing, thick locks used to be much more common than we see today. Some practices that promoted long hair, like washing hair once a week, are not things we’re likely to return to anytime soon. But we can look to the past and bring forth the best of natural hair care practices to make the most of what we have. Try these XXXX hair care tips to minimize breakage, maximize growth, and maintain it once you get it:

1) Brush your hair 100 times a night

There’s a reason for the old wives tale to brush your hair 100 times a night; it’s very beneficial to hair health. Brushing your hair with a good quality brush from root to tip distributes your hair’s natural oils down the hair shaft and makes hair shinier, more manageable, and less prone to breakage. In fact you might be able to eliminate some hair-care products if you devoted time to brush the 100 strokes as recommended. Be sure you start your brushing at the bottom of your hair, and gradually work your way up; this will allow you to gently remove and tangles until you’re just smoothly brushing from root to tip.

2) Use a boar bristle brush

Don’t use just any brush for your 100 strokes…use a boar-bristle brush. Boar bristle brushes are more expensive than synthetic brushes, but they are densely packed on the brush and last for years. This dense construction is the secret to their being able to remove dirt, dust, and debris from hair and move your natural oils along the hair shaft, essentially giving the hair a bit of cleaning without the shampoo (you’ll want to clean your boar bristle brush regularly because of this). Boar bristle brushes have tough but flexible bristles that are wonderful for taming and smoothing even curly hair. And don’t worry, they won’t rip your hair out as long as you start at the bottom and slowly move your way up until you can stroke smoothly from root to tip.

3) Don’t brush your hair when it’s wet:

Wet hair is weaker than dry hair, so don’t ever brush or use a fine-toothed comb on your hair when it is wet. After washing and towel drying your hair, only use a wide-toothed comb to detangle it if you must.

4) Police your commercial shampoo

Many people don’t realize the lax federal regulations regarding beauty products, including shampoos, beyond a mandatory listing of ingredients. It’s up to you to decide if the listed ingredients are safe for you. Many shampoos you buy at the store contain toxic ingredients, and don’t be fooled if the word “natural” appears on the bottle. The word “natural” is not regulated, and anyone can use the word no matter what the product contains. Artificial and drying scents, artificial colors and harmful detergents can damage hair, necessitating the purchase of additional “product” to fix that damage. Ingredients like sodium laurel sulfate, parabens, and benzyl benzoate (and similar) are just a few of the common shampoo ingredients that have been linked to cancer, skin irritation, and even birth defects.

But you’re probably not a chemist, so what to do? Look for ingredients you can pronounce and know what they are. And luckily there are online resources that rate the safety of products for us, like the GoodGuide, which allows shoppers to discover products that are healthy, safe, green, and even socially responsible. The GoodGuide covers everything from shampoo, food, electronics and even cars. Head to the GoodGuide and type “shampoo” into search and you’ll see a list of commercial shampoos and their ratings.

Baking soda, white vinegar (you can also use apple cider vinegar) and essential oils are an alternative to commercial and toxic shampoos.

Baking soda, white vinegar (you can also use apple cider vinegar) and essential oils are an alternative to commercial and toxic shampoos.

5) Avoid commercial shampoo

If you want to be super safe, don’t use commercial shampoos; some avoid using shampoo and instead wash their hair with baking soda and vinegar–see my article “Tips and Tricks to Go Shampoo Free” for more info on this method. But be aware, local water chemistry and individual hair make up plays a part in this method, and experimentation is necessary to determine what quantities of each are the right mix for your hair.

If this sounds daunting, you can make or buy your own shampoo bar or use liquid castile soap. Bars of shampoo soap generally do not contain the toxins found in commercial shampoos (but check the label) and do just as good a job (or better) of cleaning hair. Liquid castile soap is conditioning and mimics the method of washing hair with liquid shampoo products because it can come in liquid form as well as bar.

6) Deep condition once a week

A deep hot oil condition improves hair manageability and shine while decreasing breakage; it’s easy and can be incorporated in with household tasks. Simply take about 1/4 cup of a favorite oil (olive oil, coconut oil, almond oil, etc) and heat it until it is warm to the touch but not too hot to handle with your hands. Once it is warm, saturate your hair with it, from root to tip, using your fingers. Don’t be shy about it, you’ll be washing it out later. Place all your hair on the top of your head, wrap your head in plastic wrap or don a shower cap, and then wrap your whole head in a towel. The plastic and towel will trap the heat around your head, and allow the oils to penetrate the hair shaft. Ideally you want to leave it sit for a few hours, but even 30 minutes will help. When the time is up, wash as usual. You may need to wash twice to remove all the oil (if you’re using baking soda/vinegar to wash your hair, add some liquid castile soap to the baking soda mix to remove the oil–this will help greatly).

A protein mask provided by eggs or other ingredients will help decrease frizz.

A protein mask provided by eggs or other ingredients will help decrease frizz.

7) Add protein for frizzy hair

If your hair is especially frizzy, substitute the hot oil treatment with a protein mask once a week. Mix the yolk of two eggs with a bit of warm water (not hot, you don’t want to cook the eggs). Using your fingers, massage this into your scalp and hair shaft. Wrap your head in plastic wrap or a shower cap, and then wrap your head in a towel. Leave this sit in your hair for an hour, then rinse in warm to cool water (again, you don’t want to cook the egg). You can also use a mix of bananas and avocados for this, or mayonnaise, which is just egg and oil.

8) Use leave-in hair oil

Just a few drops are all you need (using more will just make your hair oily needlessly) to impart shine and decrease frizz. There are hair oils on the market (argan oil is very popular now), but you can easily make your own with olive oil and, if you wish, some essential oil. Just place two or three drops of the oil in the palm of your hand, rub your hands together, then smooth over your hair, paying attention to the ends.

9) Treat dandruff naturally: Unfortunately, there is no cure for dandruff, which is a skin disorder also known as seborrheic dermatitis. But you can treat dandruff to manage the symptoms. If you want to avoid the chemicals found in over-the-counter dandruff shampoos, there are other things you can try.

Tea tree oil has been shown to treat dandruff. Add about 20 drops of tea tree oil to your bottle of hair cleanser, or keep a bottle of tea tree oil in the shower and use two drops or so every time you wash your hair. Alternatively, you can also add about 20 drops of tea tree oil to 1/4 cup of olive oil, rub this into your scalp, wrap your head and sleep on it. Wash normally in the morning. You can use this as a “jump start” treatment for your dandruff.

Apple cider vinegar is another safe option that has been shown to assist with dandruff. Rub apple cider vinegar into your scalp (dilute with about 50% water if you have sensitive skin), wrap your head in plastic or a shower cap, then in a towel. Leave this sit for about an hour, then wash. Do this once a week or so to keep dandruff under control.

If these options don’t work, you could choose an old fashioned bar of tar soap. Tar soap has been used as an effective dandruff treatment for hundreds of years and is still recommended by dermatologists for some skin disorders like scabies and ring worm. Tar soap is also recommended for treating lice. But it is, in fact, made from coal; it can smell bad and it can also stain light hair a darker color. Used in low doses, scientific studies have shown that tar soap is safe for treating true medical conditions but it can cause skin irritation in some, and I personally would only use it as a last resort.

10) Eat for your hair

Your hair is a barometer of health–if your hair is dull and lifeless it could mean that your body is as well. In the past people ate food that was as close to the earth as possible and we should, too. Nutrition from the full color spectrum ensures that you are getting the vitamins and minerals necessary for healthy hair. A balanced diet, including healthy oils for essential fatty acids, is important for hair health and shine. Make sure you are eating on a regular basis foods such as salmon, walnuts, and yogurt, sweet potatoes, spinach, blueberries, and more daily to get levels of protein, zinc, vitamins, and minerals needed for happy locks.

Colors3

 
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Posted by on March 30, 2013 in Home Remedies & Apothecary, Saving Money

 

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Rustic Sprouted-Wheat Bread

11 Feb
You don't need anything more than sprouted wheat berries to make a loaf of rustic bread.

You don’t need anything more than sprouted wheat berries to make a loaf of rustic bread.

Yes, you can make a rustic and tasty loaf with nothing but sprouted wheat seeds. While this isn’t the light and airy bread you might be thinking of for sandwiches, it is a wonderfully chewy loaf that is the perfect accompaniment to soups, stews, or a plate of cheese and fruit. It has a marvelous rich flavor and is moist, with a crisp crust. Best of all, you only need ONE ingredient: wheat seeds. I do provide a few options here, however, for different flavor enhancements if you feel like changing things up. I do find that adding molasses or olive oil improves the texture, but if wheat berries is all you have, you can still make bread.

You will need to sprout wheat berries (wheat seeds) for this. Read my blog post on sprouting wheat berries here for a tutorial, and the health benefits of sprouted wheat berries over non-sprouted. And while this is not a gluten-free bread (it does contain wheat), those who can’t tolerate gluten frequently don’t have as much of a problem with this, simply because it is sprouted grain, which makes it easier to digest. I’ll leave it to you to decide if it would be a safe option to try.

INGREDIENTS

For sprouted wheat berry bread, you want to grind your grains when they are just sprouted, as shown here.

For sprouted wheat berry bread, you want to grind your grains when they are just sprouted, as shown.

Using just wheat berries for this loaf means you can make different additions easily, depending upon what you’re in the mood for. Each recipe makes about 2 servings unless you are really hungry; it’s a dense loaf and goes a long way.

When you sprout your wheat for this recipe, make sure you don’t let the tails get too long; you only want them to just sprout, not to start growing. The longer you let the tails become, the more the flavor of the bread becomes “green” and the texture ends up having strings in it, which is not all that appetizing, trust me.

Recipe 1

  • 1 cup wheat berries, sprouted (see link above on how to do this)

(Seriously…that’s it though the flavor is greatly enhanced with other ingredients…)

Recipe 2

  • 1 cup wheat berries, sprouted (see link above on the how-to)
  • 1 tablespoon unsulphured molasses, honey, or maple syrup (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
  • dash of salt (optional)

Recipe 3

  • 1 cup wheat berries, sprouted (see link above for the how-to)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil (optional)
  • dash of salt (optional)
I like to grind my wheat berries to include some whole kernels for texture, you may want to grind yours more fine.

I like to grind my wheat berries to include some whole kernels for texture, you may want to grind yours more fine.

HOW-TO

I do this either first thing in the morning for an evening loaf, or at night for a morning loaf. Using the slow cooker means you can leave it cook all day or night while you’re away from home doing other tasks.

Take your slow cooker, line it with some tin foil, and pre-heat it on the low setting. The tin foil will help you to easily remove the loaf when it is done cooking.

While the slow cooker is preheating, grind your sprouted wheat berries. To do this, take your well-drained sprouted grains and place them in a food processor or Vitamix (it’s tough to do this in a blender). Add all of your ingredients and then blend. As you blend the grains into a paste, they will greatly decrease in volume, this is normal! I like to leave a few whole kernels in my loaf; I just like the bite they provide but you can grind the paste until almost smooth. I recommend against making it too smooth, however, as you will make the texture of the bread too dense.

Take a piece of parchment paper and lay it on a plate; the parchment paper will make removing your cooked loaf much easier. Because of how the loaf caramelizes as it cooks, it has a tendency to stick to solid surfaces, even if they are oiled.

Remove your paste and, using your hands, form it into a round loaf. Place it on the parchment paper and leave it rest for about 30 minutes while your slow cooker is heating. After 30 minutes or so, place the parchment paper and your formed loaf into the slow cooker and put the lid on. (If you want to use an oven for this, preheat the oven to 225F and leave the loaf to cook on parchment paper and a cookie sheet for about 4 hours.)

Here's your loaf, fresh from the slow cooker after about 8 hours, ready to eat.

Here’s your loaf, fresh from the slow cooker after about 8 hours, ready to eat.

Leave your bread to cook for about 8 hours (there have been times when I’ve left it for 10 hours by accident…it was still good). During this time, avoid removing the lid from the slow cooker as this causes heat to escape and this will affect cooking.

After about 8 hours, remove the loaf from the slow cooker (I use the corners of the tin foil for this). Let it sit for about 15 minutes, then serve! It is especially tasty with winter soups and stews as it holds up well to soaking up juices. Yum!

 
8 Comments

Posted by on February 11, 2013 in Uncategorized

 

Sprouted Wheat Berries: Whole Grain Goodness

03 Feb
Sprouting wheat berries provides whole grain, enhanced nutrition to your diet.

Sprouting wheat berries provides whole grain, enhanced nutrition to your diet.

Wheat berries (or wheatberries) are completely unprocessed wheat that contains all parts of the seed: the germ, the bran, and the endosperm. This means the complete nutrition from all of the whole grain’s minerals, phytochemicals, and vitamins is retained. While wheat that has been highly processed into flour and used in junk food byproducts can harm your health, studies show that whole grains such as wheat berries have positive health benefits, such as lower cholesterol, and reduced risk of Type 2 diabetes and heart disease, among other benefits. And keep in mind that wheat seeds can remain viable for up to 30 years, if stored correctly of course. This means you can buy in bulk and have whole-grain, sprouted green goodness for many years.

HEALTH BENEFITS

Overall sprouting wheat berries increases their nutrition, and since sprouted grains are a “living food” their nutrients are more readily accessible (yes, you can sprout many kinds of seeds and beans besides wheat, but we’ll cover those in another post):

  • By sprouting the grain you enhance some benefits such as increased calcium and some vitamins, like vitamin C (though other vitamins are decreased, like some B vitamins).
  • Sprouting grains helps to decrease the amount of antinutrients (like tannins) that interfere with nutrient absorption. The result is that many nutrients in wheat that would otherwise not be available for absorption become available with sprouting.
  • Sprouting grains increases enzymatic activity, which makes them easier to digest. 
  • The glycemic index of sprouted grains is lower, which is better for heart health and helps you feel full longer. Diabetics also benefit from a lower glycemic index.
  • Sprouted whole grains are easier to use in a wider variety of dishes and increasing your intake of whole grains is a huge benefit to health.
Cover one cup of wheat berries with some warm water and let sit overnight or up to 24 hours.

Cover one cup of wheat berries with some warm water and let sit overnight or up to 24 hours.

BEFORE YOU START

When you sprout any grain, it will double or  triple in volume so be sure you use a container that is large enough to contain it as it expands. You can buy a designated grain-sprouter for about $5 from your local health food store or food co-op; it is simply a jar with a lid that has a screen on top. You can also make your own from a half-gallon canning jar. Use the ring of the jar lid to hold into place cheese cloth, muslin, an old nylon, or a piece of screen. You could use a piece of decorative cotton, too, if the weave is not too tight. If you’re upcycling a jar from a food you bought at the store (free!), use a rubber band or string to hold your cloth or screening onto the jar  instead of using the solid lid.

SPROUT YOUR GRAINS

One cup of wheat berries triples in volume when sprouted, so make sure your jar is large enough to accommodate.

One cup of wheat berries triples in volume when sprouted, so make sure your jar is large enough to accommodate.

Place about a cup of wheat berries in your jar and rinse with warm water. Then, add fresh warm water to the jar, making sure your seed is covered with water about an inch over the grains. Soak the seeds overnight or up to 24 hours.

The next day, rinse your seed in warm water once, and then drain well (this is where your screen or cloth come in). After the seed is drained well, tilt your jar on its side and spread the seed out a bit. All you’re doing here is making your layer of seed thinner so seeds at the bottom aren’t too crowded. Place your jar in its side on a counter and wait for the seeds to sprout (a day or two…). You want the jar in a place where it will get some light (but not direct sunlight). Some sources say to place the seed in a dark place, but I find that this slows down the germination significantly.

Make sure to rinse and drain your seed at least once a day, or twice if you live in a drier environment (here in semi-arid Colorado, I rinse in the morning and evening). Just lightly rinse the seed in room-temperature water, drain thoroughly, spread on its side again, and let sit. In two to four days your grain will begin to sprout (depending upon air temperature).

After a day or two, you'll see the grains have sprouted. I like to continue growing mine with daily rinsing until the tail is about 1/4 inch long and just starting to green up.

After a day or two, you’ll see the grains have sprouted. I like to continue growing mine with daily rinsing until the tail is about 1/4 inch long and just starting to green up, about an additional day.

How long you leave your sprouts to mature and green is a matter of choice–I like to leave them until they get about 1/4″ of growth on them, although they are “officially sprouted” with just 1/8″ of growth. After they reach the stage you like, you can feel free to add them liberally to stews and soups, spreads, salads, or serve alone as a breakfast cereal. I have also served them warm with olive oil, garlic, and Parmesan cheese, or with olive oil and herbs. I even make a kind of luscious “bread” (don’t think it’s a regular loaf, because it’s not!) with the berries, so stay tuned for a special blog post on that, coming up next week!







.Colors3

 
12 Comments

Posted by on February 3, 2013 in Food Preservation, Great for Kids, Homesteading, Recipes, Saving Money

 

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Slow Cooker Fruit and Oat Breakfast

27 Jan
Overnight cooking in a crock caramelize apples, honey, cinnamon, lemon juice, and coconut oil into a tasty, healthy breakfast.

Overnight cooking in a slow cooker caramelizes ingredients into a tasty, healthy breakfast.

The beauty of this recipe is that it is very adaptable; you can substitute different ingredients depending upon what you have on hand and make the most of personal taste preferences. This is also very easy and allows you to have a healthy, hot, hearty, and delicious breakfast ready for you when you wake up in the morning. Kids can even serve themselves.

I love the caramelization that occurs with this method — it creates a very deep and satisfying flavor. A slow cooker (Crock-Pot) is needed to create the depth of flavor, and of course the convenience of having a hot breakfast ready for you before your eyes have even adjusted to the morning light.

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INGREDIENTS AND HOW-TO

(This recipe makes two large servings, or four smaller servings as part of a larger breakfast menu)

Into a slow cooker unceremoniously toss and stir well:

My dog, River, supervising food photography.

My dog, River, supervising food photography.

  • 3 apples, which you have washed, cored, and chopped into bite-sized chunks (no need to skin)
  • 1 cup rolled oats
  • 1 to 3 tablespoon honey (I don’t like things very sweet, so I only use 1 tablespoon)
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • 1 tablespoon water (you may want to add more water depending upon how moist you want it; I like mine on the dry side so add another tablespoon of water if you want something more moist)

Set your crock pot to low, put the lid on, and let it cook overnight. In the morning, place into bowls and top with a healthy dollop of pureed sweet potatoes — I use organic canned sweet potatoes, you can use organic canned pumpkin, too, which is very tasty, or of course make your own! It is also tasty with yogurt or a bit of milk.

Don’t feel limited to apples; I frequently make it with mixed berries, bananas, or nuts depending upon what I have on hand. It is also very tasty with a healthy tablespoon of peanut butter added!

 

 
5 Comments

Posted by on January 27, 2013 in Great for Kids, Recipes

 

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5 Benefits of Cleaning Wood Floors with Tea

20 Jan

You can keep your wood floors clean and looking great using black tea.

Tea is more than just a tasty beverage–it can do wonders for cleaning wood floors! This goes for both hard wood and laminate flooring. Just buy the cheapest black tea you can find, brew it up, clean the floors, buff the floor with a dry cloth, and you’re done. Here are the 5 benefits of cleaning your wood floors with black tea:

IT’S EASY: Simply brew 3 tea bags with four cups or so of boiling water. Let it sit to cool a bit, then use a funnel to transfer it to a spray bottle. It’s ready to use. Spray it on your floor enough to see a sheen of wetness, but don’t overdo it; too much moisture takes too long to dry and can warp your wood through time. After you spray it, wipe or mop to remove dirt. I use wash cloths that I attach to a Swiffer sweeper. Or I get on my hands-and-knees and clean the floors old-school. Rinsing isn’t required.

Black tea is strong enough to clean the dirt, but not strong enough to damage your finish.

Black tea is strong enough to clean the dirt, but not strong enough to damage your finish.

IT’S CHEAP: A box of cheap black generic tea can be had for a few dollars, and only three tea bags are needed to fill an empty spray bottle with the black tea cleaner. How long that will last depends upon how much floor you have to clean, of course.

IT WORKS: This is the most important benefit–it actually cleans the floors. The slight acidity of black tea (about pH 5) is enough to lift the dirt off the floor and onto your cleaning rag. Water doesn’t quite cut it, soap can be too hard to remove from the floor, and vinegar is too harsh. Which leads me to…

IT WON’T STRIP THE FINISH LIKE VINEGAR: White distilled vinegar has a pH of between 2.4 and 3.4 (apple cider vinegar has a pH of 2.8 to 3.0). These acidic levels are too harsh for a floor’s finish and as a result shouldn’t be used to clean your wood floors. Tea, however, won’t strip the finish. It is strong enough to remove the dirt, but you won’t have to refinish your floor every few years.

IT MAINTAINS THE WOOD’S PATINA: The color of the tea is enough to deepen and enhance the natural color of your wood floor. This is also good for floors that get a lot of traffic or dog nails–the tea helps disguise the lighter wood color that results from buffs and scratches.

Colors2

 
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Posted by on January 20, 2013 in Home and Living, Kitchen Tips, Saving Money

 

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5 Holiday Decorations for Less than $50

18 Dec
This wreath was not expensive to make, and will last for years to come.

This wreath was not expensive to make and will last for years to come.

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One thing about professional magazines like Martha Stewart Living (don’t get me wrong, love The Martha) is that it can cost an arm and a leg to outfit a table, much less decorate a house. Not only do few of us have that kind of cash laying around, we have even less time to devote to the shopping, gluing, sewing, and accessorizing that magazine-perfect winter displays require. Here are some cheaper, and doable, options for home decorations for those of us who are short on cash but with some time to invest. And you can reuse these decorations year-after-year so this $50 is a one-time investment for most of these ideas!

THE SUPPLIES

Here is a list of what I bought for less than $50, and with these items I made: 1 wreath, a 10-foot string of garland, a centerpiece, a mantelpiece, and I wrapped all my presents. The wreath and garland I can pack away and use in subsequent years, so it’s a good investment. Here’s the list of items purchased:

  • One grapevine wreath base
  • Two stalks of fake flowers (which included some leaves)
  • Five small balls made from vine bits
  • Red raffia
  • 4 spools of ribbon (two red, one aqua with silver dots, and one white, all on sale)
  • Three stalks of fake red berries
Some people see a pile of brush, I see decorative possibilities.

Some people see a pile of brush, I see decorative possibilities.

And here is a list of what I either had on-hand, or got free:

  • 1 brush pile (work with me here!)
  • 1 spruce tree
  • 1 glue gun
  • Sheets of plain newsprint saved from a move
  • A few sequins
  • Needle and thread
  • Some screw eyes (sold in the picture-hanging area of a hardware store)
  • 1 loaf pan
  • Tinfoil
  • 1  half-gallon mason jar
  • 1 string Christmas tree lights

A note on glitter and baubles: I did not use any glitter  (except a bit on my Christmas cards) or glass ornaments this year — I have in the past and love their effect, but this season I wanted something more natural. The purpose of this article is not to tell you what to make, but to provide INSPIRATION for you to create your own. So if glitter and glass ornaments is what you fancy this year, have at it and enjoy your personal creativity!

A WREATH

This wreath (pictured above) took the majority of my budget, including buying the wreath, flowers and berries for its use. The other items (ribbon and raffia) were used elsewhere. But I will use this wreath over and over; one I made for my brother and his wife is still being used…15 years later!

It’s pretty simple to make…take the two purchased flowers and hot glue them to the bottom of the grapevine wreath base. Highlight them with some kind of “filler.” I could have used pine cones here, but the fake flowers came with leaves attached to the stems so I clipped them off the fake stem and used these for a touch of green.

I took the small balls made from vines that I purchased and clipped them off their stems. I then wove bits of red raffia into them to add a bit of color and hot glued two of these at the bottom of the wreath. I then added one at the top of the wreath as an anchor. I hot glued a length of ribbon at one end, and wove the ribbon around the wreath, drawing it under some of the vines, and attached it at the top (with a bit of flair). Lastly, the berries were snipped off their stems and glued in strategic locales. That was it…45 minutes later I had a wreath that would sell for twice that at a store, and probably not look as nice.

HUMBLE GARLAND

This garland is made simply with found pine cones, ribbon, thread, and a few sequins.

This garland is made simply with found pine cones, ribbon, thread, and a few sequins.

This is very simple to make if a bit time consuming; it took me an entire evening to make the whole 10-foot strand but I’ll use this year after year. I gathered the pine cones from my backyard; if you don’t have a spruce or pine tree handy, perhaps you can find a source for free cones during a walk to a local park or a neighbor’s yard. Picking items off the ground in parks and such generally doesn’t require a permit, but call your local city to see of they have any rules against it. And I bet your neighbor won’t mind if you harvest some cones if you take the time to ask.

To make the garland, take your pine cones and screw into the tops small screw eyes. From here, you can sew the screw eyes/pine cones to a length of ribbon 3″ to 4″ apart. I tried sticking a needle through pine cones to avoid the whole screw eye business, but I ended up bending and ruining a needle trying it; pine cones are woody (I know…duh, right)! You can control how long you want your pine cones to dangle by regulating your thread length. I then used hot glue to attach one large sequin to the attachment point on the ribbon. You can also add more flair here, like sewing on small bells or gluing on small red bows. The choice is yours depending upon the look you want to achieve!

A bread pan, tinfoil, pickin's from a brush pile, ribbon, and a candle make for a lovely centerpiece for only a few dollars.

A bread pan, tinfoil, pickin’s from a brush pile, ribbon, and a candle make a lovely centerpiece for a few dollars.

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CENTERPIECE

I literally jammed ribbon and Christmas lights into a jar. It looks lovely and was super cheap.

I literally jammed ribbon and Christmas lights into a jar. It looks lovely and was super cheap.

This table centerpiece was made in a bread pan covered in tin foil. Ha! I then stuck a large candle I already had in the pan and surrounded it with bits of blue spruce branches, spruce cones, dead lambs ear flowers from my brush pile, bits of red raffia stuck in for color, and I wrapped the base of the loaf pan loosely in red ribbon. It’s pretty, was nearly free, and looks super nice on the table surrounded by a nice place setting and good food. And you can add whatever decorative embellishments you want: dip the spruce cones in glue and glitter, add small ornaments, use a few taper candles instead of a large candle, whatever you’d like!

MANTELPIECE

This was easy and also cost a few pennies. It would cost you a few dollars if you didn’t already have a string of white Christmas lights. To make this I just loosely wrapped the string of lights in some white and red ribbon and jammed it all in the jar. You can also do things like add small Christmas ornaments if you’d like, or even tulle…try to use what you have on hand. Just remember that less complicated tends to look better if you’re not a professional, so keep it simple.

GIFT WRAP

There are years when I am into silver paper and gold bows for wrapping, along with adding embellishments to the mix like small glass balls, greenery, and more. Then there are years like this year when all I wanted was something very simple; there is just as much beauty in “simple” as there is in “glamorous”…it just depends upon what you’re in the mood for and your personal tastes. This year I took plain newsprint I had saved from my move to Colorado and used the ribbon I purchased (and bits from the brush pile) to wrap lovely presents for people. And the wrapping coordinates with my other decorations, which is an added bonus!

Used newsprint leftover from a move and the remains from the rest of my decoration frenzy made up my gift wrap.

Used newsprint from a home move and the picked-over remains from the rest of my decoration frenzy made up my gift wrap ensemble.

 
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Posted by on December 18, 2012 in Hobbies and Arts, Holidays, Saving Money

 

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