Deodorant

  

  

As many of you know, I have had a long running struggle with antiperspirants and deodorant. I am allergic to every kind of antiperspirant and the deodorants I have tried just don't work. I have tried the liquid rock and the crystal rock, Toms natural deodorant and many other brands from the organic food store, and I've made my own with a variety of ingredients. Really, nothing works. I have even gone so far as to keeping baby wipes next to me in the car during the summer so I could freshen up before going somewhere. I start sweating as soon as I am out of the shower most of the time and even sweat when it's very cold somewhere. Gross, I know.
     I saw something the other day on facebook about making deodorant with strong alcohol and tea tree oil.  I had to try it. I went to the liquor store and bought a tiny bottle of vodka for $1.25. I got a small spray bottle from the beauty supply store and poured the vodka in.  I added a few drops of tea tree oil and a few drops of Patchouli oil for scent (I love the smell of patchouli). I spritzed a few sprays into my pits yesterday afternoon right after I made it.  I spent most of my day going from place to place in the heat and even spent quite a bit of time in a hot gymnasium playing some music.  I went to bed without a shower and woke up this morning with still fresh smelling pits. It's amazing. 
     So, why does it work? It's not actually your sweat that stinks. It's the bacteria that clings to your sweat that stinks. It's healthy to sweat. Sweating is your body's way to release toxins. If you wear an antiperspirant, you are blocking your body's way of releasing those toxins and you will absorb them back into your system. That can cause a variety of issues for you that you may not find out about for a long time, then you will be sorry. The alcohol and tea tree oil kill the bad bacteria that causes you to smell bad. The tea tree oil also inhibits the growth of more bad bacteria. The patchouli oil smells good. ;)
       Give it a try and let me know if it worked for you.

FERMENTING

     I have recently become obsessed with fermenting vegetables.  I started by making Kimchi.  That stuff was the bomb!  I may post my recipe at some point.  Richard and i went through gallons of the stuff in a few months.  I had never had Kimchi until I made my own.  The next thing I made was Sauerkraut.  It was also delicious; better than any sauerkraut that I have ever had before.  I also started making Kombucha and we drink it regularly.  I have a 2 1/2 gallon jar that I keep loaded up with kombucha so we have it all the time.  I have made several kinds of pickles from spicy to mild with cucumbers, green beans, okra,       and all sorts of other vegetables.

     So, today I got the itch to go into the kitchen and make something.  I had some radishes that someone gave me straight from her garden, so I chopped those up. One jar has radishes, carrots, cauliflower, and garlic in a salt water brine.  I used a cabbage leaf to push the veggies under the level of the brine and covered it with a cheesecloth and a rubber band.  The other, smaller jar, has radishes, 1 jalapeno, and some garlic with salt water brine, pushed down with a cabbage leaf and covered with a cheese cloth.
     Also, I have a gallon of sauerkraut that is fermenting in my kitchen that I plan on taking to my family reunion next weekend.  I will post my "recipe" because it is literally the best sauerkraut I have ever tasted and it is so easy.
     First, I chop up 3 heads of cabbage (save the outer leaves).  After each head of cabbage is chopped, i sprinkle on a generous tablespoon or 2 of Pink Himalayan sea salt (amount of salt just depends on how big the cabbage is and I use my own discretion on that one).  Once all the cabbage is chopped and salted and in my huge fish shaped bowl, I mix it up and let it sit for several hours so that the salt has a chance to pull some juice out of the cabbage.  It has a bit of a coleslaw consistency at this point.  I sprinkle on a generous amount of mustard seed and celery seed and mix that up, then put it in my big jar and pound it down with a big wooden mallet (a rolling pin with only one handle would work great). After pounding it down, there will be quite a bit of liquid on the top.  I use a plastic tupperware lid to keep the veggies below the level of this liquid so that they won't spoil and put a jar of water on top of that to weigh it down.  They make special equipment for this, but I just work with what I have.  Cover it with a cheese cloth and let it sit out.
     There is no point at which this stuff is not edible, but I wait at least a week before tasting it.  I have found that it is best at about 10 days.  Everything I have fermented, with the exception of one batch of Kimchi that grew a bunch of KAHM yeast, has been great.  The benefits of fermented vegetables are immense and the flavor profiles intense.  Let me know if you have questions about getting started and let me know if you try any of my recipes.

It's been a long time

So much has gone on since the last time I posted anything on my personal blog.  I have taken up new hobbies, had another kid, learned to cook so many new recipes and make many many new crafts.  I need to share these things with the world, but I wouldn't know where to begin, so I'm going to leave this here and start with today on a new post.  Each time I start something or finish something that I think is going to be awesome, I'll try to post here.