homemade: greek yogurt

this is my favorite homemade project yet! i posted here about my favorite way to eat greek yogurt, and i continue to eat it almost every day. several of you have mentioned concerns about the price, and i couldn't agree more. it runs between $1-2 for a single serving, so i was sucking it up and buying it, but really not liking spending that much on just yogurt. anyway, i found a way to make it myself and it's really, really easy. you start with plain yogurt. i buy plain fat free organic, but any type will do. hang a small colander over a large bowl but make sure the bottom of the colander is not touching the bowl so the yogurt has room to drip. line the colander with a coffee filter (cheesecloth would probably be best, but i don't have one and don't really know where to get it. i've also used a dish towel and it worked fine. remember though that i wash my clothes in detergent that i could eat :), so if you use conventional detergent, it may not be the best idea). anyway, pour your yogurt (i do 32 oz at a time) onto the filter/towel/cheesecloth, cover tightly with saran wrap, and put it in the refrigerator overnight. when you take it out the next morning, you have greek yogurt!! i like mine really thick, but if it is too thick for you, you can take a tablespoon or so of the whey that has dripped off and add it back in. so as not to waste a good thing, remember to store your whey in a mason jar to use for soaking grains in your baked goods. it's full of healthy bacteria and acts as a digestive aid, so you can even drink it straight (sounds gross to me, but i've heard it's a good homemade tonic for stomach bugs). if you've never soaked your grains for baking before, here's the benefit according to lindsay at passionate homemaking:

"Unfortunately, whole grains contain phytic acid in the bran of the grain which combines with key minerals, especially calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, and zinc and prevents their absorption in the intestinal tract. This makes it more difficult to digest properly. Soaking, fermenting, or sprouting the grain before cooking or baking will neutralize the phytic acid, releasing these nutrients for absorption.

This process allows enzymes, lactobacilli and other helpful organisms to not only neutralize the phytic acid, but also to break down complex starches, irritating tannins and difficult-to-digest proteins, including gluten. For many, this may lessen their sensitivity or allergic reactions to particular grains. Everyone will benefit, nevertheless, from the release of nutrients and greater ease of digestion."

i store my whey in the fridge in a mason jar, and it should keep for 6 months or so. i use it to soak my whole wheat flour before i make bread, muffins, tortillas, anything. i think you could probably also mix a couple of tablespoons with milk to make a substitute for buttermilk in recipes. you can also use it to make ricotta cheese, but i haven't gotten that adventurous yet. also, if you want to go a step further with the greek yogurt, i think if you let the whey separate even longer, you can make cream cheese, but i haven't done that yet either. i think i may need to use yogurt with fat in it to get it to the right consistency for that. so much experimenting with this stuff...let me know if you come up with anything good!

homemade: deodorant

i stopped wearing deodorant about 6 months ago. brett hasn't complained too much so i think it's ok. i just always assumed that if something was available to the public for purchase, it couldn't be that bad for you. what i didn't realize is that marketing and money are strong powers in our world, and i can't always rely on the brains behind the 2 to make decisions concerning what i put in or on my body. 99% of the ingredients in personal-care products sold in the U.S. have never been tested for safety, yet research has indicated long-term health risks associated with many of the ingredients used. i used to think that i needed to focus more on what my family ate, but something i read recently made a good point in saying that our liver is designed to filter toxins from what we eat; whatever we put on our skin, which is our body's largest organ, is absorbed through our pores and allowed to proceed directly to our circulatory system, then make it's way to our other organs. really it seems that we would be better off eating the things we're putting on our skin; atleast then they would be filtered or make us sick enough to puke them up :). the products most all of us have used our entire lives contain hormone disrupting chemicals....maybe not a coincidence that you seem to meet a new person every day who has issues with infertility or hormonal imbalance? the average U.S. woman uses 12 personal-care products each day, a combined total of 168 chemicals. again, i'm no doctor but the more i study this stuff, the more it makes sense.

i'm not trying to go granola on you. i love beauty products as much as anyone i know. there are some things i absolutely cannot bring myself to give up. i'm sure they're poisoning me and probably part of the reason my hormones make me crazy sometimes...all for vanity ;). i'm tanorexic but am scared of skin cancer, so i don't go in the sun. my hair is so dark that i think i look like an oreo when i stay pale, so i can't bring myself to give up self-tanner, but it's probably the worst thing in the world i can put on myself. i mean, it dies my skin. how healthy can THAT be? maybe my 2011 goal will be to make pale trendy, but until then, i will either continue to put lord knows what in my body or try to find an organic option. i know they're out there, but i've looked them up on cosmetics safety database, a website dedicated to educating consumers on the hazard level of cosmetics, and they still have moderate hazard levels. also, i just found out that the pressed powder i love and have worn every day since college has a high hazard rating. it's hard to not feel like it's too late and keep piling the products on, but now that i'm educated, i'm trying to cut back where i can, which is where my homemade body care products will come in. i've picked a few products to keep using that i just love, but everything else i have tried or am trying to replace with a natural alternative. ultimately, i want everything i put on my body to be something i could eat (obviously not stuff that i necessarily would eat, but stuff that is safe enough). i'll list my deodorant below and try to get my shampoo/body wash recipe up soon, but the other stuff is a work in progress. i'm trying to create a face serum and moisturizer for dry, sensitive skin, so if anyone has a suggestion, i'd love to hear it. also, if any of you are already using low hazard products and have some you love (homemade or not), i'd love to hear that too. natural products are expensive (which is why i'm trying to make so many of my own), so i hate to buy them then not like them. something like deodorant is easy for me to switch on, and there has been specific research indicating it's risk: a 2004 british study found intact parabens, found in deodorants and anti-perspirants, in biopsies of malignant breast tumors, leading scientists to believe that many breast cancer cases have developed from use of these products. i know there seems to be something wrong with everything: if the sun's not giving you cancer, the chemicals in sunscreen are making you sick or staying indoors is giving you a vitamin d deficiency and making you depressed. when it comes down to it, we live in a broken world and things will never be right this side of heaven. i just want to feel the best i can while i'm here.

homemade deodorant:
combine oil and baking soda until it forms a paste and a consistency you like. store it in a jar and apply like you would a lotion. the one i'm using right now is made with coconut oil, but it's a little hard to use because coconut oil hardens in cool temperatures (i think it only melts when it's over 76 degrees or something like that). if your house is warm enough, it will soften and end up sortof like the consistency of deodorant. i've also used olive oil before, which worked just as well; it just stayed a more liquidy consistency. i still sweat using it, but i work out every day and really don't sweat anymore than i did with regular deodorant. it definitely works better than organic deodorant. also, a lot of people have had concerns that the oil would make them break out, but i haven't had that problem, so it's worth a shot.

hope it works for you!

the case for homemade

since i've been gradually making the switch to natural, organic, and homemade products, i often get the question "isn't it as cheap to buy the stuff after you've bought all of the ingredients to make your own?". the answer is yes and no.

to start with, i'm not making the switch to be cool. maybe it's becoming the thing to do in this economy, and maybe organic is what celebrities do and that makes it trendy, but honestly it's just what works for our family right now. as i've studied the affects of chemicals, pesticides, artificial elements we put in our bodies, etc., and compared that to the crazy rate of infertility, cancer, and other ailments our country is stricken with, i'm led to believe that all of this could have to do with what we are exposed to/put in our bodies. i'm not saying all this to say you should do it too, or that if you have an ailment it's because of any of these reasons. i'm not a doctor or scientist, and i don't know enough about any of this to be a credible source. this is simply my opinion, and again, what works for our family right now. i have free time since k and b are in school 2 mornings a week, and we are still on a budget. basically, i have more time than money right now. as most of you know, brett started his company a little over 2 years ago. as happens when you start a company, we went to no income and decided to live strictly on our savings to avoid having to take out a business loan. i've grown up pretty frugally, but this was a whole new (honestly fun) challenge. i got into the whole art of couponing and loved to see what i could get free at the grocery store each week (it was a game that i drove myself crazy with...and a lot of you as i talked about my deals :)). i was able to get tons of free and/or cheap stuff, but the thing i realized over time was that most of it was processed, packaged food, or conventional cleaning products. over the past year, i've tried to transition slowly to organic, but my goal continues to be sticking to my current food budget. i was already buying organic dairy, and some organic fruits and vegetables, but with the ridiculous price of organic meats, i stuck to conventional (and the oh-so-cheap tyson plant). this year, i am trying to transition to organic meats as well as more organic fruits and vegetables, thus my decision to go homemade with a lot of other things. pretty much everything i find myself making homemade has the same basic ingredients, so i'm able to buy organic ingredients in bulk, along with adding in organic meats, and stick with our budget. so the basic answer to what's cheaper is if you use coupons and buy conventional, there's a chance it's cheaper that way, but if you want to take your family to a more natural plan, it's most definitely cheaper to make your own stuff than buy natural/organic. not to mention, there's such a sense of satisfaction in the hard work you have to put into it. i feel like a 50's housewife and i kinda like it ;)

all that to say, i am a stay-at-home mom. since i bring no income in, i see it as part of my job to take care of our family and home while saving us money anyway i can. if i worked full time there's no way in the world i would be able to do all of this. and i still haven't found a way to do it perfectly. so if you read my blog and roll your eyes, remember that if there's a day i've made my family's bread, shampoo, deodorant, and laundry detergent, there's a good chance i've ignored my kids. give my family preservatives, spend $1000 a month on food, or ignore my kids. not really a good option there, huh? it's all about balance, and i'm still trying to figure it all out. if you read my blog long enough, you'll see that i get on kicks. i've always got a project or interest. if you listen to sandra mccracken's song i posted yesterday, you can think of me, because often these are just the kingdoms i'm building on earth, and i'm ever thankful to have a savior to offer me redemption when i turn things that should be good into idols. it might look like i'm doing good for my family, but sometimes it becomes something to fill my time or make me feel worthy of who knows what.

anyway, i'm really not trying to turn my blog into a food and health blog, even though that's the direction it seems to be going. i'm just trying to document the things i'm doing this year to work towards my goals, and this goes along with it (plus it's what i do for fun, so i naturally like to talk about it in hopes that other people like it too. you're thinking i need to find a hobby if i think this is fun, right?). if any of you tune in to hear stories and see pictures of k and b, i'll try to keep those coming too. have a good weekend!