DIY Almond Milk

I went from amazed, to disappointed, to thrilled with my first almond milk attempt.  I followed directions from another blog that said the taste of plain almond milk was great.  So despite the overnight almond soak, I was super impressed with how quick and easy it was to make.  Then I tasted it.  Almonds soaked in water and blended tastes like almond water.  I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t that, and I knew my picky two-year-old, who still talks about “cow milk” to this day, would not stand for this attempt.  Since I’d read about honey, vanilla, dates, etc., I started flavoring by adding a teaspoon of honey. Then I tried adding a splash of vanilla.  Neither ingredient was very helpful.  Hours later, after talking to a friend, I checked my remaining carton of almond milk to see what magical ingredient I was missing.  I prayed I was not craving some preservative or chemical.  Low and behold: SALT!  I threw a dash into my pitcher and stirred.  I can’t believe salt is the answer, but it is!  Fortunately, not much is required. 

Immediately I began soaking almonds for the next test batch because my honey-vanilla, lightly salted quart of almond milk is almost gone!

Why make almond milk yourself? 

• The added vitamins in store brand almond milk are synthetic.  Our bodies don’t always absorb them, and they can lead to many health problems.  http://theprimalparent.com/2012/05/16/additives-almond-milk-how-to-make/
• An article I read by an almond farmer said that he could tell the difference between ages of almonds by looking at them.  Pasteurization allows older almonds to be considered “healthy” and used in all kinds of products. 
• Raw almonds are essentially illegal to sell right now due to past salmonella outbreaks.  Almonds can be pasteurized in a few different ways, but even “raw” almonds have, at the very least, been steamed.  At worst, they are treated with a toxic chemical called propylene oxide.  (According to one source, Almond Breeze almonds are steam pasteurized.  Sigh of relief!)  If you buy your own, you can check your source…Trader Joe’s almonds are steam treated.  http://foodidentitytheft.com/trying-to-avoid-almonds-that-are-gassed-heres-a-little-guide/  (for more information) 

Forgive me for getting political…  The government has done some great things for us, like mandating that food labels have ingredient lists and nutrition facts.  On the other hand, they are prone to legislating things like pasteurization that seem to solve one problem while creating tons of others!  Frankly, real, natural food has become so expensive that most families have no choice but to accept the chemicals in processed food.  This leads us to have more and more health problems that make us more dependent on increasingly expensive health care that the practically bankrupt government feels the need to pick up the tab for.  And with the government getting their fingers into our healthcare, can we expect improvement, or just more cheap and quick solutions that end up causing problems?  End sermon.  Thank you in advance for not biting my head off if you disagree.

After a few trial batches, here is my tested and toddler-approved almond milk recipe!

Almond Milk (with Almond Meal and/or Almond Flour)

1 Cup of almonds, soaked overnight

4 cups of water

A dash of salt

1 tsp Vanilla (pure tastes way better than imitation)

1 Tbsp Honey

Cinnamon and other spices as desired (chocolate?)

Blender, some kind of filter, pitcher or jar

1. Soak almonds in filtered water for about 24 hours.  (Soaking makes a HUGE difference.  The longer you can afford to soak, the better, though you can theoretically soak for an hour or not at all.)

2. Strain off soaking water.  Put almonds in a really good blender with one cup of filtered water.  (Just one if you don’t want water to start leaking out the top!  Maybe that was just my problem.)  Blend until almonds are in pretty tiny pieces. 

3. Add three more cups of water and pulse to combine.

4. Using cheese cloth or a nut milk bag, strain the almond pulp into a pitcher, squeezing out the remaining water.

5. Stir in salt, vanilla, honey, and other spices.  Milk should keep in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.  Makes about a quart.

Don’t stop now!  You can…

• Add your almond pulp right into smoothies for texture and any left over protein.  Supposedly it will freeze well.
• Dehydrate by spreading on a cookie sheet and baking for about an hour at 170 degrees F.  This “almond meal” would be very useful for making almond crusted fish or chicken.  Or you can 
• put the almond meal back into the (dry) blender for a few more seconds to turn into almond flour.

Can I just throw it away?  NO.  Almond flour sells for around $10/lb.  Remember, we’re trying to be healthy and save money.

DIY Non-Toxic Laundry Detergent (powder)

I used to think making household products would be a ridiculous waste of time.  Seriously.  I watched the 17/18/19 Kids and Counting episode where they made their own detergent, and I thought, that would be great--if I had four teenage girls to help me!   When I started my quest for toxin-free (ahem…reduced) living, I knew laundry detergent would be high on my list even if it took all afternoon to make.  I am already committed to cloth diapering, which requires a little extra detergent knowledge, so I was aware of the benefits of making my own. 

I was prepared for a significant time commitment yesterday when I discovered I couldn’t find the cheese grater.  That’s right.  The cheese grater.  I was going to grate a bar of castile soap by hand.  I don’t even grate cheese.  (Perhaps that’s why it was missing?)  I called my husband who sometimes reorganizes the kitchen when I’m not looking.  He didn’t know where it went either, and he wasn’t about to come home from work just to help me find it.  (I know, right?)

The missing grater turned out to be a huge blessing as it took my prep time down to 5 MINUTES.  I dropped the brick of soap into my cheap ninja blender ($30ish normally, paid $7 on Black Friday two years ago) and hoped for the best.  After the ninja took half a second to ponder its task, it whipped that soap into flakes in a few seconds.  I LOVE MY NINJA!  I can’t believe I almost put it back that day at the store.  From there, it was so simple to mix in the borax, washing soda, and a few drops of tea tree oil for scent.  I was so excited that I ran right upstairs to grab a load of laundry!

Now, for as much time and money as I saved, any diligent powder detergent user can tell you that it works best if you dissolve your detergent in warm water before pouring it in.  This does add time to your life.  But really.  In the grand scheme of things, this is not a big deal.  I’ve been a liquid user from birth, so it is an extra step for me. 

Results: I was highly impressed with my clean, lightly scented laundry.  I can’t wait to run out of my last bottle of liquid detergent so I can use my own full time!  I’m not going to calculate the cost on this one, but one of my sources said that it costs about $.07 a load, which is about a third of typical costs.  Also, I used Dr. Bonner’s baby mild soap, but they have a tea tree scent, which would save even adding the essential oil.

Note: I’ve heard that borax and washing soda are not great for cloth diapers, so I’ll be working on a recipe sometime after #2 makes his/her appearance.  But probably not soon since newborns are exhausting, and I have lots of CD-friendly detergent left over from #1. 

Detergent Recipe

1 cup borax

1 cup washing soda

1 bar Dr. Bonner’s Castile soap (a few other brands of soap work, but if you are going for non-toxic, this is one of the most trusted)

A few drops of essential oil if desired (I used tea tree because it is naturally anti-bacterial)

NINJA Method:  If you have a good blender (or food processer) blend up the soap bar.  Add the borax and washing soda to the blender to mix.  Add essential oil last and blend again.  Transfer to a container.  Remember to dissolve in warm water before adding to your washing machine.

Grating method: Put the soap in the freezer for an hour, then grate with a cheese grater as finely as possible.  Mix with dry ingredients.  Add essential oil last.

DIY Non-Toxic Lotion and Other News

Things have been going great with using my own products.  I've spent the week researching and collecting ingredients.  I can't wait to run out of products so I can try making my own.  We had an encouraging Trader Joe's run on Thursday.  I say encouraging because I found almost everything on my list for less (often half) of what I could get it for online, and I didn't have to buy large amounts of ingredients I've never tried before.  I'm compiling a chart of prices and locations that I'll probably post sometime.  To read my updates, see my posts on deodorant and toothpaste.

Unfortunately, the first product I ran out of was one that I'm not super excited about making myself--foundation.  My research led me to Bare Minerals, and I got some of their products to experiment with.  Definitely not the cheapest make up you can find, but cheap = toxic in a lot of cases.  I will write a longer post when I've been using them for a while.  

I was eager to try something new this morning, so I used apple cider vinegar in place of conditioner.  It’s hard to work with by itself since it is the consistency of water, but my hair feels and looks healthier already.  I can’t wait to run out of conditioner so I can make my own!

I started fermenting citrus enzyme cleaner, a household cleaning-product base, a few days ago, and it should be done in about 12 days!  Since I took it straight from this blog, I’ll just post the link:  http://www.ecokaren.com/2012/05/citrus-enzyme-cleaner-recipe/

Other news aside, here is the main event!

...WAIT.  Don't try this one.  I'm not sure I like it yet, so give me some time to evaluate and change the recipe.  It could be months.  It made A LOT, and a little goes a long way.

Lotion Recipe

½ cup Olive Oil

¼ cup Coconut Oil

¼ cup Beeswax

2 TBSP Shea Butter

1 tsp Vitamin E Oil

Essential Oils optional (I am not using them)

Combine all ingredients in a glass bowl or jar.  Put a few inches of water in a pan and place over medium heat.  Put the glass jar or bowl in the water and let the ingredients melt, stirring or turning the jar as needed. Pour into storage containers. (If you are using plastic, I suggest cooling completely and then scooping lotion in.)

Makes approx. 10oz.  (1 ½ cups)

Time: about 30 min (5 prep, 20+ melting)

The melting takes a while (20 min?) since the beeswax melting temperature is about twice that of coconut oil.  My research says that beeswax and Shea butter are edible (not recommending it!), so I don’t see any reason you couldn’t use this lotion as lip balm as well!  My lip balm recipe calls for almost the same ingredient list, so I think I’ll just use this until I’m ready to make some.

Cost breakdown:

Shea butter $1.20

Coconut oil $1.00

Beeswax $1.75

Olive oil $0.72

Vitamin E oil $0.16

Total cost $4.83

DIY Non-Toxic Deodorant

Deodorant is made with almost the same ingredients as toothpaste.  That is why I was eager to make them both on the same day.  My biggest concern about commercial deodorant is that the active ingredient comes from aluminum.  From my understanding, aluminum is easily absorbed into the body, and can cause breast cancer and Alzheimer’s, both of which are in my family history. 

Most of the blog recipes I’ve found are very similar, but this post about results really inspired to me that not only would this work, but it has a real chance of helping with both odor and sweat: http://www.crunchybetty.com/all-roads-lead-to-the-pits-the-homemade-deodorant-conclusion . We shall see!

DIY Non-Toxic Deodorant

¼ cup Baking Soda (aluminum free!)

¼ cup Arrowroot Powder

5-8 TBSP Coconut Oil (depends partly on the temperature)

Drops of essential oil as desired

Mix baking soda and arrowroot powder.  Add coconut oil by the tablespoon and mix with a fork or emersion blender.  You are looking for a soft solid similar to commercial deodorant texture.  (My oil was warmish, so I think it will harden more as it sits.)  Add essential oils as desired. 

I used tea tree and lavender EO.  Tea tree has some natural anti-bacterial properties, and the scent is pretty neutral, so my husband and I can both use this.  To apply, you can use your fingers to rub it on like lotion.  As with all my experiments, I will post an update when I have some results!

Cost Breakdown:

¼ cup Baking soda $.64

¼ cup Arrowroot $.64

(I can’t find a the quantity on the arrowroot powder, just the weight, and since my kitchen scale is broken…it’s less than 64 cents, since 1lb of arrowroot is larger in volume than 1lb of baking soda…I do not like all this math, FYI!)

5 TBSP Coconut oil $2.50

10ish drops EO $.16

Estimated cost: $3.94 for about a cup of deodorant

I think I paid a similar amount for a stick of deodorant.  I’d call that pretty reasonable for a non-toxic alternative.  It took less than 10 minutes to make.  Blogging takes about six times as long! 

Please use caution with essential oils and homemade recipes.  Do your own research to make sure that you feel comfortable with the benefits and risks of any ingredients you are using.

4/13/13 Deodorant Update—1 Week Later: 

She gives it a thumbs up; he gives it thumbs down.

Pros—it seems to keep smelling fresh all day, it goes on easily, and I sweat about the same amount as I did with store-bought products, which is an acceptable amount for me. (Sweat is normal, right?)  We will see what happens in the summer heat!  I have had no noticeable staining on my clothing, but I am careful.

Cons—I notice a very mild burning(ish) when I apply, but it is not bothersome, and I haven’t had a skin reaction yet.   My husband has gone back to his old deodorant.  The scent works for him, but the anti-perspirant factor is not as strong as he would like.  I intend to do more research to see if I can win him over with a different formula!

There is a learning curve.  If you try to rub your fingers together, the oil will melt!  I was not sure about applying with my fingertips instead of a stick, but it hasn’t been bad at all.  I have only applied after showering so far.  I don’t know how reapplying would be if I had to do that, but since I rinse or wash my hands after, I don’t think I would mind it.  The powder ingredients rinse away easily and the coconut oil stays on my fingertips unless I use soap.  Since coconut oil is great for skin, I often just rub any extra into my hands.