Homemade Laundry Soap

So, I thought I might try my hand at the "eco-friendly" soap. Here is the recipe I used. The stuff smells really "clean."  Now, I will let it sit overnight and will try in the morning, I will let you know what I think! This is what you need.....Some kind of bucket to mix all your ingredients in. I used a 2 gallon paint bucket.
1/3 bar of Fels Naptha Laundry Soap
1/2 cup Borax
1/2 cup Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda



Step 1: Cut your bar of Fels Naptha Soap into thirds and finely grate one third of it.

Save the other two thirds because next time you make a batch of laundry soap it will feel like you are doing it for FREE!


Step 2: Put your grated soap in a pot with 6 cups of water and heat on low until the soap melts. Don't let the soap boil. Once all the soap is completely melted add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved. Continue stirring until the mixture thickens (almost as thick as honey) Remove from heat.


Step 3: Pour 4 cups of hot tap water into your bucket. Add the soap mixture and stir it up. At this point you could add a few drops of essential oil like lavender or tea tree oil if you wanted your soap to have a fragrance. Add nothing and your clothes will simply smell clean.


Now add one gallon of hot tap water plus 6 more cups.

Give it another few minutes of stirring and then let it sit overnight.

Step: 4 In the morning your soap might look runny, or like gel, or separated with big clumps of slime on top and water on the bottom. This is all normal depending on the weather, the type of soap you used, and how much of a tree-hugging hippy you are. At this point you can be done and simply keep your laundry soap in the bucket and just scoop out 1/2 cup per load. Or you can give it another good stir and funnel it into your old well rinsed laundry soap bottle. OR you can be a sucker for cute packaging like me and take it one step further.


Step 5: I wanted to use a Beverage Dispenser with a spigot but my soap came out all clumpy and I knew there was no way it would flow through. So I busted out my immersion blender and smoothed all the clumps layer by layer.

I funneled each layer into my container then went back and blended the next part. Blend, funnel, blend, funnel, blend, funnel...etc.


I found this cute plastic cup at a thrift store and it holds exactly 1/2 cup. Perfect!



An adhesive plastic hook gave me a cute litle laundy soap set-up. Oops, I attached it to the wrong side. Easily fixable. But wait! There's more!



If you have a Downy ball, you can put about 1/2 cup of Distilled White Vinegar in there and it makes a fantastic fabric softener. And no, your clothes do not come out smelling like vinegar. If you don't have a Downy ball just add your 1/2 cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle. I don't like babysitting my washing machine so I have a Downy ball.





Got this recipe from frugallygreen.blogspot.com

I LOVE PINTEREST

Once again, I have tested another pinterest recipe. I found this one the other day and since it is super cold and windy and slushy snowy today I figured it would be a great day to bake! These truly are the BEST cookies EVER! They literally melt in your mouth! If you didn't want to take the time to chew them you probably wouldn't even have to! (Please do though, as I don't want to be responsible for your choking! ) :) I found this at kelseyappleaday.blogspot.com. Kudos to wherever and whomever this recipe originated! Enjoy!Best-Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies

barely adapted from Anna Olson, Food Network Canada

Ingredients: 

3/4 c. unsalted butter, softened 

3/4 c. brown sugar 

1/4 c. granulated sugar 

1 egg 

2 tsp. vanilla extract 

2 c. all purpose flour 

2 tsp. cornstarch 

1 tsp. baking soda 

1/2 tsp. salt 

1 c. bittersweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2.  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugars until fluffy and light in color. Add egg and vanilla and blend in.

3.  Mix in flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Stir in chocolate chunks.

4.  Using a standard-sized cookie scoop or tablespoon, drop dough onto a prepared baking sheet.  Bake for 8-10 minutes, until barely golden brown around the edges.  (The tops will not brown, but do NOT cook longer than ten minutes.)

5.  Let cool, on the sheet, on a wire rack for five minutes.  Remove from baking sheet and let cool completely

Recipe

I found this recipe for Snickerdoodle Cookie Bars on another blog and made them yesterday. They are delicious! The only complaint I had was that the center of the bars "sank" in the middle. I don't know why, maybe it was my oven. Regardless, they were great, moist chewy and very addictive!

Snickerdoodle Cookie Bars

Snickerdoodle Cookie Bars: 

1 cup butter or shortening (shortening, though evil, gives a better texture)

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 eggs
1/4 cup sour cream

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cream of tartar

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup sugar

1 Tbsp cinnamon

Cream the sugar and butter.  Add the eggs one at a time, scraping the bowl between eggs.  Add the sour cream. Combine the flour, soda, cream of tartar, powder and salt and mix into the sugar mixture.   Combine the other sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Grease a 9X13 pan and coat the bottom and an inch up the sides with half the cinnamon mixture.  Spread the dough in the pan and then cover with the remaining cinnamon and sugar.  Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees or until done (the center will not be doughy, but will still be moist).

Wacky Cake

I do not know where this recipe originated from. Quite possibly from my Grandma who was apparently a wonderful cook. My family has used this cake recipe for birthdays for as long as I can remember. Except for when I was young and had to have the original strawberry jello poke cake. We don't make it as much anymore but it is still a favored treasure.

3 cups. flour
2 cups sugar
6 Tbs. cocoa
2 tsp. soda

Mix all dry ingredients together in a med. bowl, set aside. In another bowl mix;

1 c. oil ( sometimes, I use half the oil and the other half applesauce or you can strictly use just applesauce to cut down on the fat. )
1 c. water
1 tsp. vanilla

Stir well, add to dry ingredients, mix with beaters. Pour into a greased 13x9 pan. Bake for 25-35 minutes.

This cake is so moist and gets a glossy glaze on top. It is really yummy without frosting but you can also top it with some. My favorite is the Seven Minute Frosting! Enjoy!

Spring Break Vacation

So we have about 29 days until our 2nd annual spring break vacation. We used to always try to go somewhere, usually Colorado, in the summer. Since Jeremy no longer works for his Dad, we have to go when we can all go together. This year, will be different. Jeremy, the kids, and I and his parents, and my parents are all going. Heading way south to Galveston, Texas. Really hard to find somewhere "warm" to go in March. We are all very excited about going and seeing the ocean, and staying in a beach house. Hopefully, it will be 75-80 degrees while we are down there...and little rain!

Is it really almost Noon?!

I have been on Pinterest this morning. I love all the ideas on there. I am afraid though. that I am going to have to set myself a timer and get off the computer when time is up. I have wasted an incredible amount of time on there....now I am on here talking about it. Sigh.... Going to shut down the computer now.. :)

Stuffy and Runny

I can feel a head cold coming on! Mallory has been very stuffed up the last couple of mornings, and then once she is up and moving she can't seem to stop blowing her nose! I just continue with this sinus pressure. I really wish it would just let loose so I can get rid of it!

The kids are outside playing. I love it when the weather cooperates and we can be outdoors! I was starting the grill, even! I love the fact that my kids can make digging in a hole so darn much fun! This last July we lost our dog of 13 years, Chevy. There was this hole on the side of a hill in the backyard that he always was barking at and digging in. Now, the new dog, Oliver does the same thing...something interesting is in there. The kids thought they should investigate it and so they are out there with plastic digging devices and my garden hand trowel and rake....I am hoping not a skunk! I am just going to continue letting them dig..their imaginations are going wild out there!