Edamame Pate

Edamame Pate'(courtesy of Vegetarian Times*)

1 1/4 cups frozen shelled edamame, thawed (You can buy frozen, shelled edamame at any grocery store).
1/2 cup walnuts
1/3 cup mint leaves (packed)
1 green onion, chopped
1/4 tsp salt
3 Tbs. lemon juice
3 Tbs. water

Puree the first 5 ingredients in a food processor until finely chopped.

Add lemon juice and water then process until smooth.

I used pecans instead of walnuts, because I had them on hand and it was still so tasty. This makes a great dip for veggies or pita chips. Very light and refreshing. You can also spread on a whole wheat tortilla and stuff with fresh vegetable goodness.

Easy facial

I first saw this idea here. I blended up some oats when I made soap recently, had leftovers and decided to use them this way.

Step one: blend 1 C oats in a food processor or blender. Store in a glass jar or tuperware -like container.

Step two: Cover a small towel in hot water, wring out, then place on your face to open the pores.

Step three: Put a small amount of the ground oats in a small bowl. Add just enough plain yogurt to make a paste, then spread on your face.

Step four: Wait. 10 minutes should do it. Not longer than 15, or you can damage the skin.

Step five: wash off with warm water over the sink.

Step six: apply a toner. Mine is just a few drops of lavender essential oil in water.

Step seven: apply moisturizer. Mine is aloe vera gel (100%) mixed with a tiny bit of glycerine (which can be left out all together if your skin feels too sticky)

Ahhhhhh. It's very relaxing, yet not very time consuming, and my skin looks and feels great afterwards.

Homemade Laundry Detergent

I got this recipe from my neighbor. I'm not sure how toxic Fels-naptha laundry soap is, so I don't know it this counts as less-toxic. It is cheap, and made with stuff I generally have on hand these days. And it satisfies the part of me that loves doing things myself.

Here's the recipe:

Put four cups very hot tap-water into a large saucepan. Grate 1 bar fels-naptha soap into the water and heat on medium heat until the soap is fully dissolved.

Fill a 5-gal bucket approx. 1/2 full with very hot tap-water. Add 1/2 C borax and 1 C washing soda. Stir to mix.

Pour melted soap mixture into the bucket, stir until combined. Fill the bucket almost to the top with more very hot tap-water. Stir again, cover with a lid, and let sit overnight.

Fill a container (like an old liquid laundry soap container, or a water container with a spigot) 1/2 full with water. Fill the rest of the way with the detergent concentrate from the bucket.

For top loaders, use 5/8 C per load (I use 1/2 C for simplicity. Close enough, right?)

For front loaders, use 1/4 C per load. I imagine that less should be used with soft water, no matter the type of machine you have.

Homemade Vanilla Extract

Shelly had the idea to try to make vanilla extract, and since she found a great deal on a big shipment of vanilla beans, she invited me to try it out with her. I used a blend of Tahitian and Madagascar vanilla beans. We bought the cheapest vodka we could find at the liquor store, and it worked just fine. I used this recipe, Shelly tried a different variation.

The results: smell test--this extract smells better than the store bought real vanilla extract (more like vanilla, less like alcohol). It contains about the same quantity of alcohol (35%), but it smells much better.

Taste test--I made cookies using homemade vanilla extract and they tasted great. I should probably try out something where the vanilla has a more prominent flavor, but haven't had the need yet.