Category Archives: Tutorials

How to Make an Ice Cube Doll

Having a large family creates a lot of opportunities for service to others and creative ways of getting the job done.  Just the other day, the 2 year old took a nose dive into the ottoman and a whole horde of children rushed to his side.  I scooped him up and asked the 6 year old to grab a boo bunny.

{I love these things!}

In true toddler style, he did not want to put the boo bunny on his head, so my 6 year old got creative and on the fly came up with something she calls an ice cube doll.  For some reason her creation appealed to him and he was quick to let us put it on his head.  It was so cute and creative, I let her do a video how-to.  So, sit back and relax and prepare to be instructed!
Click here if you cannot see the video.

How to Make Homemade Peanut Butter

A couple of years ago, I discovered store-bought peanut butter contained sugar.  We began buying all-natural peanut butter, but that really adds up.  So, we began making our own peanut butter whenever we could.

I used a recipe I found in a book I picked up in a bookstore in Colorado entitled: Make Your Own Convenience Foods.  It was full of all sorts of recipes, including the recipe I used for spreadable butter for years.  The peanut butter recipe called for peanuts and oil, put in a blender and blended until smooth.  However, like the spreadable butter, I discovered a simpler way to make this recipe.  And simpler is almost always better in my world!

So, thanks to the advice from a friend, I started making peanut butter in this fashion…

 

roasted peanuts

  • Spread 1 container of peanuts onto a baking sheet.
  • Roast in oven set to 250 or 300° for about 15 minutes to pull oil from peanuts.  {You’ll be able to tell the natural peanut oil is coming out by turning on your oven light and looking for a shininess on the peanuts.  Be careful not to burn the peanuts!}
  • Remove from oven and place in blender {I use my VitaMix}.
  • Blend until smooth and creamy or chunky, depending on your preference.  You’ll need to scrape down the sides and blade several times so as not to clog up your machine.
  • Pour into a container {I use glass because this stuff is HOT when it comes out of the blender and will melt weaker plastic containers.}
  • Store in container in the refrigerator for several weeks…if you can get it to last that long!

Yummy, all-natural peanut butter!

works for me wednesday at we are that family

Making Butter From Raw Milk

It’s been a while since we’ve been able to get our hands on some quality raw milk with the cream on.  It was so fun to get back into the swing of making butter and I wanted to show all of you just how easy it is to do.

I bought 1/2 gallon wide-mouthed canning jars to get our milk in.  They are easy to handle and make creaming them easy as well.

I only take off the cream as I open a new jar, and I always leave a little on to mix in with the milk. (Just shake the jar good before pouring any out).  The milk “keeps” better if the cream is on it.

To scoop the cream out, I use a serving spoon with a bent handle and scoop it directly into a pint canning jar.

The cream jar stays in the refrigerator until it is full, which for this particular cow, is after about 2 gallons.

I didn't have a lid handy, thus the reason for the plastic over top.

On Butter-Making Day, I pull the cream out and let it get to room temperature.

I pour the cream into my Bosch mixer with the whisk attachment on it. {some people use a blender and that works just as well, but I hate cleaning blenders!}

I run the mixer on medium for several minutes.  You’ll hear two “sound” changes in your mixing.

The first time you hear the mixer sound different, it is when your cream turns to whipped cream. If you want, you can stop here, add a bit of vanilla and sugar to taste and have homemade whipped cream for your strawberry shortcake!  However, this is a butter tutorial, so carry on…

The second sound change will be butter.  You’ll also be able to tell you’ve hit butter because the buttermilk will splash all over the mixer/blender.

Butter!

I get the butter off the whisks and scrap down the bowl and pour off the buttermilk into another pint jar.

I REALLY need to find some jar lids!

This buttermilk can be used in recipes during the upcoming week.

Next, I transfer the butter from the mixer to a glass bowl.  Glass is just a preference of mine.  I also really like using a wooden spoon in this next step, but the last of my wooden spoons split in two the other day, so I had to use a new plastic paddle-type spoon I picked up the other day at the bulk food store.

Now, here’s the important step…
Take your butter bowl and pour cold water over it {not warm because your butter will be hard to handle if it’s all melted ;) }  Smoosh your butter around in the water (it will look murky), use your spoon to hold the butter in place, and pour off the water.  Repeat AT LEAST 4 times–water should be relatively clear by the time you are finished.

Why do you do this step?  Because if you don’t, you will have cow-y tasting butter.  I like cows and all, but not in my butter.

Finally, I transfer the butter to whatever I am using as a butter dish, cover and refrigerate.  You can leave it out for a time, but I tend to just keep it in the refrigerator to be on the safe side.

The finished product!

Oh, and if you like salted butter, just add in a bit to taste (I honestly don’t know how much because I don’t make salted butter).

And there you have your own incredibly easy, incredibly tasty homemade butter!  Yay for you!

Homemade Dishwasher Detergent

I’ve wanted to tell you about this dishwasher detergent I threw together about 3 weeks ago, but I wanted to test drive it first. Once again, it’s a variation of another recipe found at Peace Creek on the Prairie.  I took something she said in the post and ran with it.  (I’ll explain what that something is in just a bit…)

Before I give you the recipe, I wanted to give you a brief history of dishwashing at my house.  Dishes have always been the bane of my existence.  When I finally went back to using the dishwasher, I used an old homemade recipe I’d been using with very little luck.  (Someone want to tell me WHY I continue to use things that don’t work???)

Because I refuse to be a martyr to my frugality and natural products mentality, I broke down and bought dishwasher detergent from the store so I could actually have CLEAN dishes.  However, I never quite gave up the quest to find a homemade alternative.  When I saw the post on Peace Creek, I jumped on it.  I had everything for it except the citric acid, so I bought the LemiShine she mentions instead and used it, since essentially IT is citric acid.  Maybe someday I’ll get around to purchasing the citric acid, but until this bottle of LemiShine runs out, I’m good with things this way.

And the verdict?

My dishes are oh so clean!  SCORE!

Here’s the recipe:

1/2 c LemiShine (in place of the 1/2 c citric acid)
1/2 c non-iodized salt (as you can see I used pickling salt because that’s what I had!)
1 c borax
1 c washing soda

Add all ingredients into a container (this small plastic one did just fine).  Mix well and declump.  I use approximately 3 TBSP per load.  {I’ve also realized you really need to add 1/4 c. vinegar to your rinse cycle via the JetDry slot!}

The finished product

Try it and see what you think! I, for one, am thoroughly impressed!

This post is linked to:

Homemade Laundry Detergent

Note to reader:  I have changed how I make my detergent.  That post can be seen here with detailed instructions and a cost breakdown: Homemade Liquid Laundry Detergent Gets and Upgrade

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I pretty much love all things homemade!  I love the feeling of industry and resourcefulness that comes from making something myself for cheaper than I could have bought it at the store.

Many years ago, my mom bought me the Reader’s Digest Homemade book (mine is the older version of the one in the link).  That’s where my homemade hand soap recipe came from.  There is a laundry detergent recipe in there as well, but it tells you to use 1/2 a cup per load which just doesn’t seem economical to me.

After searching for a more economical laundry soap, I came across a recipe from TheFamilyHomestead.com. (she has an excellent cost breakdown on there too!) For years this was the recipe I used:
1/3 bar of pure soap
1/2 c. washing soda
1/2 c. borax
(& sometimes I added a few drops of essential oil as well)
1.5 – 2 gallon container with lid (I used a plastic tub)

Grate the soap. (I use my Bosch Slicer/Shredder and do the entire bar or more on a fine shred.)

Put 1/3 of a bar into a saucepan.  Add 6 c. of water and heat on low until soap melts.

Add washing soda & borax.  Stir until dissolved.  Remove from heat.

Add your essential oil here if you like.

Pour 4 c. hot water into the 2 gallon container, add soap mixture, and stir.  Now add 1 gallon + 6 cups (22 cups) of water and stir.

Let sit for 24 hours to gel.  Can be poured into an old liquid detergent container and used the same way you would your usual liquid detergent.

**However, there are some drawbacks to this recipe**

1. It’s not ready right away.
2. It can get messy because it is liquid.
3. I often didn’t feel like my clothes were really getting clean. (not that they weren’t, but I often felt like the soap had too much water in it.)

So, recently via Twitter, I came across the Dugger family’s recipe for powder laundry detergent and decided to give that a go.  So far, I am quite pleased!  Here’s that recipe:

1 bar pure soap (Fels-Naptha, castille, etc)
1 c. washing soda
1/2 c. borax
medium-sized container with lid

Grate soap (as shown in previous recipe).

Place soap in container.  Add washing soda & borax.  Mix well.

Use 1 Tbsp per load or 2 Tbsp per load for heavily soiled clothing.

**Things I like about this recipe**

1. No wait time.  I ran out of soap this morning.  I made some up and could use it right away.
2. No mess.
3. Psychologically, *I* feel as though my clothes are really getting clean. ;)

Looking for more laundry detergent recipes?  Head over to MamasLaundryTalk.com (she’s hosting a link up on Friday…don’t miss it!)

Enjoyed this tutorial?  Perhaps you’d like to make your own Baby Wipes Solution?  Or maybe some Playdough for the kiddos?  Or maybe you just want to know more about Laundry in a larger-than-average family!  Whatever you’re looking for, enjoy your visit!

Make Your Own Liquid Hand Soap

For many years I made our own liquid hand soap from just a few simple ingredients.  I’m not as diligent with it as I once was, but I still enjoy how quick and easy this recipe is.

These are the ingredients I use:

Glycerin (tall bottle–I only use this if I’m using homemade soap…more on this later)

Essential oil (small bottle–I prefer peppermint or tea tree)

Bar of Soap (purple bar–this is homemade castille)

A little bit about each ingredient and how you can change it up a bit:

I purchased the glycerin from Hobby Lobby for under $4 and it lasts me at least a year.  I only use this when I am making soap with homemade castille soap.  Otherwise, you will end up with a very thick product that will not pump very well.
The essential oil I prefer to use is peppermint oil and/or tea tree, but this is really up to you and what fragrances or healing properties you like.  I purchase my essential oils from a local Frontier coop.

The soap shown here is a castille soap our family made during a soap-making party.  You can use any soap, but I recommend something natural like Fels Naptha, castille, or even Ivory. (although, this is a great way to use up all those old hotel soaps you’ve accumulated over the years!)
Now, you need to grate your soap:

I use my Bosch Slicer/Shredder that I purchased from MarmeeDear.com.  I originally purchased the slicer/shredder in order to shred the bulk cheese we were getting wholesale.  It proved to be fantastic for this job as well.  However, if you don’t own something like this, use an old fashioned grater and use the fine side so your soap will melt faster in the next step.

Put 1 cup of soap flakes in a pot.

You can choose to only grate 1 cup of soap at a time or you can grate the entire bar and save the rest for your next batch (that’s what I do).

Cover the soap with 4 cups of water.  Add 1 Tbsp of glycerin and about 5 drops of essential oil.  Warm the pot on the stove until the soap flakes melt, stirring regularly.

And you’re finished!
From here, all I do is fill all my old soap dispensers with the warm soap (a funnel comes in quite handy here!)
You may need to experiment with the glycerin amounts depending on the bar soap you use (a castille will possibly need more, a regular bar of soap may not need any at all!)
Try it out and come back and let me know how it turned out!