How to Make Soap...sorta

I know this is sort of funny, but my friends have loved it so much and have been asking me about that I thought it would be fun to share. I’ll start with the “how to first”, because it is more fun that way. But for the back story, go to the bottom.

First of all, why is this Making Soap, BUT not really? Because we are not starting from scratch. (So I don’t want to make any pretenses about that.) We are going to use existing soap; if you are really, really making soap you would start with lye, yup all soap start with lye, can’t get around it. Onward…

What you will need

Soap about 4 cups of it (I would use soap that has the least about of scent, like Ivory or the like. The cheap stuff or the ones you get from hotels are a good choice. This is a way of making cheap soap into the good stuff.)

Water
Essential oil of choice
Oatmeal, optional (it is really good for your skin, so up to you, it also acts as an exfoliant.)
Lavender seeds, optional (also works well as an exfoliant.)
Coconut oil, grapeseed oil, olive oil, or whatever you want to add for moisturizer, optional

Directions

Grate your soap with a cheese grater, the large is fine. I you don’t want to do this that is not a problem. It will just cook down a lot easier if you do.

Place all of the soap into a small pot with water, but not to cover the soap. On medium heat, heat the mixture stirring with a wooden spoon until the soap turns into a smooth mush. It should be really thick, about the consistency of thick oatmeal. While it is heating, add lavender seeds, essential oil and moisturizing oil. This is really up to you how much you put in. For me I put add about 20 drops, put my nose to the pot and when it smells like I like, I am good. As for the oil, I don’t know to feel slippery so I put in about 2 tbsp, because it sort of freaks me out to put in more.

yes, I collect my soap in a vase	not too much water, it will take too long to dry and will shrink	no need to boil, ,but simmer and keep stirring until it is smooth.
When your soap has broken down and smooth. Remove from heat and add 1 cup of oatmeal. I do this when it is off the heat so that I don’t “cook” the oatmeal.	add lavender	stir it all together
Pour your soap into some sort of a mold. I just happen to have aluminum can in the recycle bin, so I cleaned them out and cut off the tops with a pair of scissors. You can also line a bread pan with parchment paper and use that.	Fill your cans with soap. I fill it all the way to the top because it will shrink as it dries.	Allow to cool and settle over night, remove your mold. If you are using a can you can simply “peel” away the can. Slice the soap to size. The longer you allow the soap to dry the less it will break apart when you use it.

The Story

Over the years with all of the traveling and the hotel stays we seem to have accumulated a lot of soap. But as I have become more and more aware of post-consumer waste I have decided not to use the hotel soaps until I used everything that is in my closet. This in addition to the awareness that I had soooo much body soap that I made a conscious decision NOT to buy soap until I have consumed everything that is in my house.

How is this working out for me? It has been almost 9 years since I have paid for body. As if it was not enough that I had this inventory; people keep giving me soap for “thank you” gifts! I think I am in soap purgatory. (I must be really stinky.)

Aside from getting rid of soap there are the pantry items. About 2 years ago I assessed our pantry and decided I needed to deplete everything except for staple items (salt, pepper, garlic, basil, etc…). And to date, we are still going. How does this play into soap making? The lavender seeds! (No, the oatmeal did not count as it is a staple in our house.)

So soap making served several purposes. Deplete the pantry, reduce waste by using what we have, and make a few great gifts. Despite all of this effort I think it will be a never ending effort. Even though I now travel with my own soap, from time to time Andy still forgets and opens a new bar. (And me being me, I take those home.) I am also pretty sure that my friends will continue to give me soap, don’t ask me why. For now I am going to be simply amused by how long this is going to drag on before I allow myself to buy a bar of soap.

Lasagna Soup Recipe

Lemon Garlic Dressing

• 1 1/4cups apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/4cups canola oil (you may use olive oil but it changes the taste completely)
• 1 tsp Mrs. Dash® Original Blend 
• 1 tsp sugar adjust to taste
• 1 tsp salt to taste
• 1/2 tsp black pepper finely ground 
• 3 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp fresh crushed garlic
  

Banana Bread Recipe, The Story

This recipe was given to me 20 years ago from my then boyfriend’s sister in law. If you know me you will know that I don’t eat bananas, ever. But I will from time to time make and eat banana bread. (I do realize this is a little weird.) But after having tasted her BB I had to have the recipe. Upon receiving the recipe my then boyfriend said, “That was way too easy, she doesn’t share that easily. I am pretty sure that will not be the right recipe.” So I took it a friend of mine who is a food science major and asked him to review the recipe. And so there it was, she left the baking powder off the list of ingredients. With the fix in hand I now owned the world’s best banana bread recipe.

I would like to be clear, I am in no way saying that I am the only person to have such recipe. So if your recipe looks like this one, you too have the world’s best banana bread recipe.

To date everyone who have contended this fact has lost and gracefully asked for the recipe. And after an event I had last week I decided it was time to just put it at a central place for everyone, as I have become tired of having to remember who all I promised the recipe to.

For years I have made this as just straight up banana bread. But earlier this month I saw a recipe on Facebook where they added a layer of cheesecake on top. Upon reviewing the recipe I decided to use my banana bread recipe with their cheesecake recipe and it was a hit.

Here is the banana cake recipe and at the bottom you will find the cheesecake recipe.

Banana Bread Recipe

Cream together

1 stick butter
1 1/4 cup sugar

Add the following ingredients

2eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3 ripe bananas
4 tbsp sour cream
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 cup flour

Pure into a loaf pan. Bake 1 hour 350F

If you want to remove the bread from the pan the easiest way to make it release is to line the bottom with a piece of wax paper.

Banana Bread Cheesecake

Start with the recipe above, but instead, pour the batter into a 9” round cake pan lined with wax paper on the bottom. Bake for about 45min or until you can pull out a clean bamboo skewer. Allow to cool about 30 minutes. Flip out onto the bottom of a 9” spring form pan and remove the wax paper. Place back into spring form and lock in place.

Cheesecake Recipe

 32 oz (900 g) cream cheese, softened
½ cup (100 g) sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup (240 mL) milk
1 tablespoon gelatin powder

In a large bowl, add the softened cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla. Whisk until combined.

Microwave the milk until hot for about 2 minutes, and add in the gelatin powder.

Quickly stir until gelatin is dissolved, about 5 minutes.

Pour the gelatin mixture over the cream cheese and whisk again until smooth.

Pour the cheesecake mixture over the baked banana bread.

Cool for 3 hours or overnight.

Thanks to a student for not only sharing these delicious cookies in class but also the recipe. Yeah, she actually came prepared with the recipe in hand. This was in her mother's recipe box going back to the 60's and enjoyed it throughout her childhood. She recently discovered that it was GF and wanted to share it. How cool for us!

I have since made it about a dozen times and everyone has enjoyed it and asked for the recipe. Sharing it here makes it much easier for everyone to always have it.

Cream together:

1 c. white sugar
1 c. brown sugar
½ c. butter

Whisk:

3 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla add butter/sugar mixture add
1 ½ c. creamy peanut butter

Mix:

4 ½ c. oatmeal
2 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt

Add wet ingredients and stir well

Stir in:

½ c. chocolate chips
½ c. mini M&M’s

Chill overnight before baking for a more chewy texture.

Spray cookie sheets, scoop by the tablespoon and lightly flatten dough before baking. Bake at 350˚F, 10-12 minutes until edges begin to brown. Let set for 1-2 minutes, cool on racks. 

Proats Recipe

(No Cook Oats)

1/4 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup milk of your choice (I use 1/4 c milk 1/4 c yogurt)
1/2 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 spoonful all natural peanut butter
3/4-1 scoop protein powder
1 squirt of honey to sweeten

Place all ingredients in a Mason jar or the like, shake and let sit overnight in the refrigerator.

Extra ingredients you might want to consider: 

*You will need to adjust the sweetness depending on the protein powder, some are sweeter than others.
*If you make alterations in the recipe with either liquid or dry ingredient you will need to adjust the other ingredients accordingly.
*Some options that I have made that has worked well.
*Replace the cocoa with vanilla.
*Replace the peanut butter with cherries or berries
*Add chia seeds for goodness and texture (but to me it does taste a little earthy)

Sara's Biscuit Recipe

Pho Ga (Chicken Soup)

Pho is the national dish of Vietnam, and growing up this was a staple in our home. A traditional breakfast throughout Asia soup was the perfect way to start our day. I have always loved how this dish made me feel whole again. For me, this is the epitome of comfort food.

The following recipe was taught to me as a young adult by my mother. I am pretty proud that over time, my father (the biggest critic of them all) said that my Pho was better than mother's. I hope you enjoy this recipy as we have in our family. 

The Broth:

1/2 - Whole chicken (I like roasting chickens) approximately 3 lbs
2tsp Salt
3tbsp Fish sauce 
1 small hand of ginger, roasted and washed
1 whole onion, roasted and washed
3t sp whole cloves (This may vary depending on how strong your cloves are.)
2-3 florettes of star anise
4-5 sticks of dried galangal OR licorice root (optional)
1 cinnamon stick (optional)

Garnish:
Cilantro
Green onion
White onion
Bean sprouts
Thai Basil
Lime wedges

Bring pot of water to a boil (5 quarts), add all ingredients including chicken. It is important to allow the water to come to a boil before adding any ingredients. Simmer 40minutes – 1 hour. Skim the scum as it forms about every 15minutes. (TIP: If you are too lazy for this step, wait until after your remove all of the ingredients and allow to cool in the refridgerator before skimming. This will allow the fat to solidify.) Remove all ingredients once the chicken is cooked. Skim any remaining fat and strain the broth through a cheese cloth or mesh strainer.

While the broth is cooking soak flat rice noodles in water until the noodles are soft at least an hour. If you are short on time, soak in warm water.

For the toppings

Coarsely chop a handful of cilantro. Chop green onions, chopping the white bulb thinner than the green leaves. Slice onions paper thin. When cool, separate chicken meat from bones and slice. 

Assemble your bowl

When ready to eat, bring a pot of water to a boil. Blanch the soft noodles 30 seconds to 1 minute until tender. Place cooked noodle on the bottom of your bowl, place sliced chicken on top of your noodle, garnish with cilantro, green onion and sliced white onions. Cover with boiling broth and serve.

Serve with, thai basil, bean sprouts and lime wedges. For a little spice, serve with Siracha.