Tag Archives: homemade

Absolutely Delicious Homemade Salsa

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One Christmas, our pastor’s wife gave us a jar of homemade salsa and it was absolutely delicious. So as soon as I had finished the jar I needed to find a recipe to make some more. So I did, and thanks to Two Peas and Their Pod Blog the deliciousness continued…

Here’s what you need: 

Ingredients:

1 can whole tomatoes with juice
1 can diced tomatoes with chilies and herbs (or something similar)
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 whole jalapeño, sliced thin (more if you like it hot hot hot!!!)
1/4 teaspoon sugar (omit this if eating paleo)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup fresh coriander (or more to taste – I LOVE coriander)
1/2 whole lime, juiced (I usually add more lime, since I LOVE lime)

Directions:

In a large food processor or blender, combine whole tomatoes, tomatoes with chilies, onion, jalapeño, garlic, sugar, salt, cumin, lime juice, and coriander. Pulse until you get the salsa to the consistency you’d like. Taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary.

Refrigerate salsa for at least an hour.

You can eat this with tortilla style chips, or throw it over some nachos. We recently added it to delicious Mexican tortillas – with homemade spiced mince, tomatoes, lettuce, guacamole, cheese, sour cream and coriander. Yummmmm!!! You can add it to your burger or on your homemade pizza or on some crackers with cheese. It’s also a great Christmas gift if you’re doing the homemade Christmas gift thing.

restaurant-style-salsa3

Yum. It is also paleo approved (if using no sugar). I can eat this with a spoon, it’s that good.

Enjoy!

Homemade Deodorant

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It gives me great joy to see in our shower currently: honest shampoo and conditioner, pure castile body soap, a homemade face scrub, a coconut body scrub and a natural face wash. I’m slowly but surely swapping out the old and bringing in happy, honest and more natural replacements – slowly, one at a time, in a sustainable manner. Let’s.not.get.crazy.

Something I’ve been meaning to try my hand at for a while is homemade deodorant, but it’s never been at the top of my priority list. Maybe that’s because I’m a mum and I’m more concern about cloth diapering and making the gazillionth batch of homemade wipes, and buying cherry tomatoes by the bucket load (are your kids also popping cherry tomatoes like sweets?)… and and and.

Our underarms (and what we smear on them) are frighteningly close to our breasts. My mom has had breast cancer, and I have previously found lumps (which turned out to be cysts), and it’s scary. You don’t need to be a scientist to see how much awful stuff makes up your sweet watermelon smelling roll on (which, I’ll be honest, at one time I was a little obsessed with). Most deodorants and anti-perspirants contain aluminum, parabens and propylene glycol. WAIT! There is ALUMINIUM in your deo?!? Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat???

I was inspired when a friend said she’d made a batch and was super impressed with it, so I grabbed a quick moment once the kids were in bed (and after my delicious SOiL shea butter order had arrived) and I got to it. I’d looked at a number of recipes and Homemaker Chic‘s deo sounded seriously convincing. It’s easy as, and quick! Tricky and tedious don’t work for me.

We all sweat, and it can smell. It’s normal. But I’ve noticed, when I’m breastfeeding, I perspire like Federer playing Djokovic and it STINKS. So, this deo needed to be right up there with the best of the best. And it is. Oh man. This is the truth peeps. I absolutely CANNOT smell my underarms, no matter how far into my pits I can get my nose.

Taking Homemaker Chic‘s recipe as my foundation, I made a couple changes, and this is what it came out with…

Ingredients: 

  • 1/4 cup bicarb of soda
  • 1/4 cup arrowroot powder
  • 3 Tbsp (organic) coconut oil
  • 1 Tbsp icing sugar
  • 1 Tbsp (organic) shea butter
  • 10-15 drops tea tree essential oil (or any other EE you’d prefer)
  • Small jar or empty deodorant tube stick

Method:

In a double boiler (or in a glass jug placed in a pot of boiling water), melt the shea butter.

Once the shea butter is melted, add your coconut oil, and your essential oil of choice. You can really use any scent you like – do your research on the properties of certain oils. Some people like to use tea tree oil in their recipes for its anti-fungal properties. Get creative and go wild!

Once your oils are blended add in the icing sugar. The purpose of the icing sugar is that when the sugar combines with your natural body sweat it creates a sort of osmotic substance that then becomes a natural antiperspirant! Madness. I mean what’s not to love about sugar (besides the obvious). I do find that I still sweat a bit, but not excessively. Dissolve the sugar using a small whisk.

Keeping the mixture over the heat, begin stirring in the bicarb of soda, and arrowroot powder, adding it slowly. You will see it start to thicken.

Once everything is well incorporated, you can pour the mix into either the jar or a deodorant stick (I haven’t tried a deo stick – but I think I will try one as I get more daring). Allow it to set up at room temperature for a couple hours. I poured my deodorant into a small mason jar. With the jar you just have to spread about half a fingertip amount of the deodorant on your underarms. It might seem a little firm at first, so you might want to soften it between your fingers before applying but mine sort-of melts onto my skin. Voila!

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And there you have it! Happy, honest, homemade deo. Who would have thought! Let me know if you’ve tried something similar and how it worked out for you…

x

Homemade Fruit (Ice Cream-ish) Dip

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Since the fudge post was such a hit (almost toooo much of a hit for a greeny blog like this one), obviously you’re all a little sugar crazy and so I thought I’d turn up the heat (or cool) and bring forth an even more decadent recipe… Homemade Fruit (Ice Cream-ish) Dip.

I’ve been waiting for Paleo with Me August to end (and wowzers, I had to wait a while) before throwing myself into the pit of suggary coma-ness, but I simply HAD to try this recipe (in small spoonfuls).

The idea of a fruit dip was a new one to me, but when a friend introduced me to it overseas I was SOLD. Picture the sweet, styling, trendy older sister version of crudite’s with a ranch type dip.

TRUTH BE TOLD this started out as a trial ice cream recipe I heard on the radio (which promised to be the most delicious thing you’ve ever tasted) and while it was knock-it-out-the-park delicious, it didn’t really turn into ice cream as such. It was thick, and VERY rich, so I turned it into a fruit dip – and voia al! Amaze.

Recipe:

1 x 250ml double thick cream

1 x tin full cream condensed milk

150g custard (this can be homemade or store bought)

Optional: 2 (or 3) grated crunchies

Method:

Beat the double thick cream (barely, it’s so thick already! It will thicken FAST so watch it carefully), and then add the condensed milk and the custard. If you’re wanting some decadence then go ahead and chuck in the grated crunchie bars and freeze. Pop it in the freezer so it thickens.

ice cream body

Heyyyooooo! To the stranger on Cape Talk who called in with this recipe – I owe you my utmost thanks. Let’s be friends so I can dig into your recipe books for more delicious secrets…

Picture credit: www.chelseasmessyapron.com

Tam’s Natural Homemade Face Scrub

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Roll up your sleeves, we’re getting our DIY on.

Recently a friend of mine in Durbs sent me this recipe for a homemade face scrub she was making for her boyfriend who had really sensitive skin. Every now and then we send each other a quick message about what essential oils to buy or where to get witch hazel – you know… those kinds of things.

This scrub includes old used coffee grinds (from the bottom of the Bodum) and so in a moment of inspiration as I was washing out the plunger (preparing to make myself another cuppa), I grabbed an empty jar and threw it all together.

Now, I have heard horror stories about scrubs and while I’ve made my own body scrub before, the delicate skin on your face is a different ball game. So I spoke to my Beauty Blogger friend Emmy at Rouge Beauty, and she gave me some really insightful info into the benefits and dangers of exfoliating.

Baaaaasically, (let me summarize), using a scrub is important for the health of your skin (face), but OVER exfoliating can scratch and cause damage to your dermis. So don’t be getting all over-excited, and make the scrub and then go nuts like there’s no tomorrow. Exfoliating gets rid of  old and dead skin, which has often collected pollutants and general nonsense in the air. It is recommended that you gently exfoliate (or use a scrub) about once a week, and less frequently as you get older. Also, she emphasized, to use a sunscreen (always), but especially the day following. Got it? Good!

Here is what you need:

– 2 T old coffee grinds (yes, the stuff at the bottom of your plunger!)

– 2 T of honey (you can use sugar or molasses, but I prefer honey)

– 2 T olive oil

– 1 T almond oil

– 15 drops of an essential oil (Tam recommends tea tree oil). Essential oils are always optional as they can cause sensitivity. Since my skin is not super sensitive, I added in lemon tea tree. Ohhhhh fresh! 

And then in her words: ‘I added two squirts of my dermalogic face wash to make it a bit more “face washy” for him’. Ha ha ha. You could use castille soap, but I left this out.

I have LOVED using this scrub. I keep my jar in the shower and as prescribed, scrub gently once a week. I also love the natural oil-on-oil method of cleaning and have found my skin to feel really soft, clear and healthy after. Yay.

Thanks Tam!

DIY Reusable Rice Heat Pack

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It’s winter and we have Eskom running the show. So, I’m loathed to spend any more money on electricity and at times my human hot water bottle (who, every night I’m thankful for) is not enough. I’ve never loved rubbery hot water bottles and (call me crazy) I’m a little nervous of electric blankets. Also, well I’m just not 100% stoked with electric current under my body (ESP since I’m sure I’ll forget to turn it off and then will worry and and and).

If you’re new to the greenish world, this is the PERFECT project for you. It’s easy, cheap, and pretty darn satisfying. Making a reusable rice heat pack is a total win.

You can use heat packs in so many ways:

They keep you warm on a cold night, they’re helpful during labour, they help relieve sore muscles and even help you sleep. You can also pop this bag in the freezer to make a cold pack.

The only downside to is that you need a microwave to heat it (which I don’t looove, and isn’t very green), but hey, 2-4min in the micro is better than boiling water on repeat or hours of pumping heat into your electric blanket.

All you need:

– Scraps of cotton fabric (we used old 1000 count percale sheets that had ripped – they feel heavenly) and cotton thread.

– Rice (I bought the biggest, cheapest bag I could find since we were not eating it).

– Essential oils (optional) if you want to add a scent to your bag. Recommended scents are mint, eucalyptus, cloves or lavender (I’d suggest lavender to help encourage relaxation and sleep).

Errrr… That’s it. Easy huh?

Sew the fabric together (in a square or rectangle) leaving a gap for you to fill it with rice. Fill it around 2/3rds full, leaving enough empty space whereby you can move the rice around within the bag to form shapes and where it can hug the body. Add a couple drops of essential oils into your bag (optional) and sew it up.

Pop it in the micro for 2-4 min and throw it in your bed as you wrap up your late night TV series binge watching. If you want to go extra fancy, you can design your own fabric, add lace or make different shapes. We made mini ones for the kids that won’t maintain too much heat so they can’t burn them.

Voila! Now, get to it.

Photo credit: Fellow Fellow Blog 

The Yummiest Paleo Recipes EVER

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We have only one more day to go friends, and so I’ve rounded up my favorite Paleo recipes of all time. I find myself coming back to these again and again, even when intentionally eating Paleo is far from my mind…

Most of these recipes can be found on my Paleo Board on Pinterest. Pinterest is an amazing resource for Paleo recipes and inspiration. Included in this blog post are just a handful of the gazillions of recipes that are all amazingly delicious and easily found online. So make friends with Google and enter a world of deliciousness. I’m currently also re-reading Pete Evans‘ book Family Food.

Please try to make as MUCH of this as you can at home. Homemade is BEST. Cooking, baking and almond milk making gets your creative food juices going and is so healthy for the soul.

Michael Pollan says something along the lines of, ‘take as much time to prepare your food, as you do to eat it’. I like that quote. And I think he’s right.

RECIPES:

BREAKFAST: (I usually have fruit and nuts on weekdays and save the bacon and eggy kinda brekkie for the weekend).

– My all time fave is Paleo Granola. Basically 1 cup of each of the following: almonds, cashews, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, and coconut flakes. You can throw some linseed and sesame seed in if you like (maybe half a cup of each). Mix all the nuts/seeds in a large bowl (except coconut flakes) and mix in about 1/4 cup melted coconut oil. If you want, you can squeeze in the juice of an orange for a touch of sweetness. Spread it out over a baking dish (or two) and bake at a low temp (110 degrees) for about an hour, mixing once in-between. Toast the coconut flakes separately as they burn quickly! Add the coconut flakes to the rest of the granola and store in airtight container.

This is best served over cut up fruit (apples, oranges, pears, strawberries etc). Since this is oat-free and nut HEAVY, you really only need a couple tablespoons of granola over your fruit. This amount of nuts might seem expensive initially but it will last you a fair while since you don’t need that much – not nearly the amount you would usually use when eating granola (museli). Also, if you find the nuts too big, you can chop them roughly in the very beginning. 

– Classic bacon and eggs, with balsamic grilled cherry tomatoes, garlic fried mushrooms, creamy avo and sweet potato hash. YUM.

sweet pot hash

– Spinach Beef Frittata. (I sometimes make these in cupcake pans so you have portion sizes that are just right!) Make up your own combinations too.

SNACKS:

– Banana chips (homemade)
– Apple chips with cinnamon (homemade)
– Cherry tomatoes
– Cut up apple and almond butter
– Beet dip and cucumber and carrot sticks
– Boiled eggs with paleo mayo
– Yam fries and aioli (paleo mayo, garlic and lemon juice)
– Kale chips. I know it is not everyone’s cup of tea but I love them.
– Spice-free biltong
– aaaaaaaaaaaand… Lara Balls (throw 1 cup almonds, 1 cup pitted dates, 3 tablespoons melted coconut oil into a food processor and blend to smitherines. Grab handfulls and squish into balls. Keep them in the fridge and nibble as you need. You can add a tablespoon or so of organic cacao powder or ground coffee beans if you’re wanting to add extra flavour). Lara Balls were essential in both my previous Whole30’s.

sweet pot friesbeet humus

LUNCHES & DINNERS (I find these quite interchangeable):

Your alternatives to a carby base: cauliflower rice, sweet pot/ yam hash or mash, zucchini ribbons and broccoli and cauliflower florets. You can also make spaghetti squash – but I can’t find spaghetti squash in South Africa. Hmmph.

You absolutely have to make cauliflower rice and sweet potato hash/mash as your hearty meal bases (where you would have used noodles/rice/bread etc.) Omit the lime and coriander from the cauliflower rice recipe if you don’t like those flavours – but I find them super scrumptious. Also, zucchini ribbons (peeling a zucchini like you would a carrot) and broccoli florets or roasted cauliflower are very versatile as bases for a spaghetti type mince or juicy vegetable something-or-other.

cauliflower rice

Soups: (while you’re at it – make double and freeze extra portions so you have spare for the following week, or for an unpredictably busy day). 

– I cannot get enough of this Roasted Butternut Soup. I can now make it with my eyes closed.
– Curried Cauliflower Soup (I buy cauliflower like its nobody’s business).
– Sweet Potato and Bacon Soup (with Ras el Hanout – take the time to make this – it’s easy and so worth it).
– Basil and Tomato Soup (with basil from your garden, obviously).

roasted butternut soup

Salads: (Rule of thumb for salads in general: include 1 green, 1 fruit or vegetable and 1 nut. Usually I would say add 1 cheese, but not while on Whole30).

– Chicken, Avo, Mango, Cilantro, Lime, Mint, & Toasted Cashew Salad. Oh my wooord – one of my all time best.
– Bacon, Lime and Sweet Pot Salad
– Grilled Chicken Citrus Salad

mango salad

Meaty Options:

– My BEST EVERRRR: Chipotle Chicken Sweet Pot Skins. Your friends will love you forever. Leave off the cheese. It’s a touch high maintenance, but so, so worth it.

chip chicken skins

– 2nd BEST: Homemade Burgers in Lettuce Wraps. Make it up as you wish. Add whatever tickles your fancy – but keep it dairy free. The crispy lettuce crunch with the warm homemade patty with juicy tomatoes and creamy avo. Stop it. It is so good.

fish tacos

Patty: Throw together minced beef, diced onion, salt, pepper, one egg, a handful of almond flour (leftover from your almond milk), coconut aminos (optional), herbs from the garden, balsamic vinegar, and crushed garlic. Shape into patties, pop in fridge for a while to let the flavours set in and fry in EVOO/Coconut oil on stove. Make extras as snacks. 

– 3rd BEST:  Fish Tacos. I have now started ordering fish tacos in (reputable seafood) restaurants I love them so so much. I adapt this recipe. I leave out the sugar, dairy and carb component and replace it with homemade paleo mayo and crispy lettuce as the wrap. Make this with a mango salsa. A taste sensation.

paleo mayo

Fish & Chips: If you don’t feel like making tacos you can just cook the fish and serve it with yam fries. Yum.

– 4th BEST: Moroccan Meatballs. Yum. Over and Over (on cauli rice). This is another recipe I have continued to make again and again long after our Whole30’s ended.

moroccan meatballs

– 5th BEST: Warm Veggie Salad. The hub is not a huge fan of this one, but I love it. I adapt this recipe (swap the potato for sweet potato or yam). I serve it on baby spinach and mix a couple more flavours into the sauce such as red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper and chilli flakes.

When you’re lost for ideas, a frittata is always a safe bet (with whatever you have left in your pantry). Also, how about a delicious roast chicken with roasted veggies? So easy. Use the chicken carcass to make homemade chicken stock (in your Wonderbag) for your soups. So versatile huh?

roast chicken

BEVERAGES: 

– Water, drink it with lemon, or not. Just drink LOTS of it.
– Coffee and Tea with Almond Milk or Coconut Milk. These milks are SO easy to make and have no hidden sugars, preservatives etc. unlike store bought. Also roast the left over coconut and almond flours. They’ll come in handy.
– Soda Water with Lemon (my evening drink of choice)
– Naturally Flavoured Water
– Smoothies (so easy to make)
– Juices in your juicer – such as my fave: Beet, Apple & Ginger
– I’m allowing Kombucha since there is no hard and fast rule if it is allowed. I love it for its probiotic and gut health benefits and so feel it’s a great addition. It’s also a good thing to drink when you feel like a glass of wine.

Beet juice

NEW RECIPES I can’t wait to try:

– Healthy Taco Salad in a mason jar with this deeeelicious salsa.
– Roasted Sweet Pot Salad
– Thai Coconut Soup (I love Thai flavours, and ginger is so good for you)
– Coconut Crusted Chicken Patties (how have we not had these before?)

salsa

Pheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeewwwww. That’s a lot of info to take in. I did so much research on my first Whole30, I put this PDF together with a shopping list, meal plan for my 4 weeks and it really helped me when I was feeling inspiration-less. Print it out and pin it up in your kitchen for when you’re needing ideas: Whole 30 – Schedule (Week 1,2,3,4).

Now it’s your turn! Please share your winning recipes, and your total failures (so we know to, errrmmm, give them a skip). Be inspired to do your own research and create your own meals.

Good luck and enjoy!!

xxx

Fudge

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I had a bad day today. My whole family woke up grumpy. From our screaming have-to-be-held-by-mother-at-every-moment-she-is-in-my-sight 1 year old, a tantrummy and completely irrational toddler, and then your general ‘the gold is at an all time low since 2009’, Nkandla robbery, stabbing on the N2, to the threat of more load shedding, and and and – it just happened to be one of those days. I’m usually a bright shining light of optimism, but not today.

As it turns out, my colleagues were having a pretty crap day themselves and so, since misery loves company, we took ourselves out for lunch to cheer ourselves up. A carb-filled lunch. Mine had strawberry chutney on it. Oh. Yum.


But amidst my moaning, I am eternally thankful. As I type my beautiful family is healthy, happy, safe and snuggled up warm in bed, listening to Kindermusik bedtime songs on repeat.

Regardless, just before we head into a month of Paleo, I figured I needed to splurge on making some old school fudge (mainly also to use up the last tin of condensed milk in the cupboard to avoid it’s tempting glare).

And so here’s my mom’s all time best fudge recipe. It’s cooked old school style – on the stove. There is absolutely nothing green about this. Nothing. That’s why this blog is called Our GreenISH Life. For days such as this. Don’t get all judgy on me.

I’m calling it Granny B’s Fudge: (since at home we just call it, well, ‘fudge’)

Ingredients:

3 cups sugar
1/4 (500g) block of butter
1/2 cup milk
1 can condensed milk

(pre-grease a square pan with very ungreen spray ‘n cook)

Method:

Melt the butter, sugar and milk on a medium heat. When it boils add the tin of condensed milk and stir your arm off. Literally.

Mom always stirs it for about 30min but I like my fudge a bit softer and crumblier and so I stir it for about 20min or until I like the shade of the fudge. This is a labour of love. And, trust me, your family will LOVE YOU. AND, if you think about it, stirring vigorously for almost half an hour must burn off so many calories before you’ve thrown anything in your mouth that you’re in the red on the calorie count before you’ve even begun. So mathematically, you have to eat some fudge post-cooking to break even. No brainer.

NB: You have to keeeeeep stiiiirring. Don’t stop. Not for anything. And even with a perfectly committed and undisturbed stirring discipline you may see a couple dark (ermmm… burnt) spots rise to the top – but don’t fear. You won’t see them at the end. It happens to the best of us.

Pour into the greased dish and cut it before it cools/hardens.

Pack it away before the kids get up in the morning so they’re none the wiser.

You’re welcome.

The BEST homemade salad dressing

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We’ve been making our own salad dressing for yeeeears. I honestly couldn’t even tell you the last bottle of salad dressing we bought. Making your own salad dressing is so easy (and healthy!), you probably have all the ingredients you need in your kitchen right now.

This dressing comes from Regent College‘s ‘Food Course‘ and is also known as the (Loren and Mary-Ruth) Wilkinson salad dressing… or maybe I just call it that – who knows.

The best thing about it (besides it being heaps healthier and very delicious, obviously) is that you don’t need to measure a thing; you can guess it all using ratios. We like things rustic and a bit goosed loosey.

Wilkinson Salad Dressing:

  • 4 parts extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 parts balsamic vinegar
  • 1 part soy sauce (you can use reduced sodium soy sauce if you prefer)
  • 1 part maple syrup (which is easily accessible if you live in Canada, so a good substitute is honey)

We usually grab a mason jar and half full it with olive oil, pour in enough balsamic vinegar to take it to 3/4’s full and top it up with equal portions of soy sauce and maple syrup/honey. And it’s easy to remember: 4:2:1:1.


Shake that baby up and pour it over anything! Really. Anything. It’s sweet, it’s salty; it’s good for salads, on a boiled egg over avo, to liven up some sweet potato mash, or to dunk some crudités into.

Yeeeeeum.

*Some people like to add extra things such as lemon juice, Dijon mustard and/or black pepper. If you like that idea, go ahead, but I’ve always found the original recipe so easy and tasty I don’t bother with anything else. You know – keep it simple.

The Wonderbag Review

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It all began back in 2008 during the regular power outages. Sarah had the idea of creating the Wonderbag to ‘ease the impact of health, socioeconomic and environmental problems facing Africa and developing countries’. Growing up in rural Africa, she was passionate about empowering women living below the poverty line.

The Wonderbag has a powerful story. We love these kinds of stories.

So, I’d been staring at the Wonderbag innocently sitting in the office for weeks – it had been flirting with me for a while – and in a moment of pure impulsiveness (these happen rather frequently), I bought it and took it home with recipes running through my head. Firstly, yoghurt. We loved making our own yoghurt in Vancouver with an electric yoghurt maker (which was on for 15hrs at a time), but now with Eskom pushing us off the grid, we’ve gotta get smart about these things.

I ripped open the box, smiled adoringly at my new purchase, and then headed into the kitchen to get going on the yoghurt. Following the recipe exactly (with my hardcore candy thermometer nogal), I placed my pot of yoghurt goodness – at exactly 110 degrees Fahrenheit – carefully into my Wonderbag. I showed hubby ever so proudly when he got home from work and we went to sleep, eager to get up in the morning and see the result.


The next morning I called the family together (no, really, I thought it a teachable moment) and I presented my first attempt at power-free cooking (you can picture the superwoman emblem beaming under my jarmies), and…  it was a watery curdled mess. No no, this was not okay.

Here’s what I learned:

– Read the instructions before use, (duuuuuuuuuuh, every superwoman should know this)
– Don’t use a pot with a long handle that sticks out the bag. A cast iron pot like this is ideal:

– The Wonderbag does not produce heat – it retains heat (this had nothing to do with my failed yoghurt attempt, but is a good reminder).

As it turns out, I’d missed a vital part of how to get started. You need to open your (previously vacuum-packed) bag completely, give it a good shake to get all the chips moving and happy, to then close it tight, allow it to regain its shape and then get cooking. Errr. Oops.

So you could call it a rough introduction to my new purchase, but one that I’m happy to report has been beautifully redeemed.

I have since made a PERFECT batch of yoghurt, and mouth-wateringly delicious curry with the most tender chicken I might have ever tasted. I most recently made chicken stock which I’m thrilled I can make in the Wonderbag since we ALWAYS forget it on the stove and I way prefer it to store bought stock. After resting in the Wonderbag overnight, my stock measured in at an impressive 140 degrees F. That’s hot!

I find myself wanting to use it for everything I cook now. ‘Let’s make a soup, or another curry, steel cut oats, or risotto? Huh huh huh?’ The recipe booklet it comes with is another WIN. You’d be surprised what you can do with this seemingly simple bag.

My conclusion: You feel like you need a goodie badge for owning this little gem. It cooks food tenderly, is Eskom-free and a very, very practical accessory (errmm, dare I say essential?) for your kitchen. But for me, knowing it began as a community initiative supporting underprivileged women in rural townships in Africa; that makes my heart sing.

You can buy your very own Wonderbag online here. Do it!

Trash is for Tossers’ Toothpaste

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I’ve gently broken into the world of natural, homemade products and have recently been (profoundly) inspired by Lauren Singer, a blogger who writes the blog called ‘Trash is for Tossers‘. Too funny.

So, besides being ULTRA incredible, she makes her own toothpaste. And my fave blogger (you all know by now, Wellness Mama), well she makes her own too. So I compared recipes and read a bunch of reviews and did a teeny bit of research and have decided to give it a go. Disclaimer: I’m not busy writing medical journals or my biochemistry PhD thesis so I have no rock solid scientific backing behind any of this. Just bear that in mind.

I’ve used natural toothpaste before and from the outset – you need to expect it to be different from the usual foamy, beautifully flavoured and freakishly-perfectly-striped Aquafresh or Colgate experience. And while we’re on that – the magic that makes your toothpaste all flavoursome, foamy and beautiful-to-look-at, is not the stuff you really want in your mouth, or your body, or your home. Ever thought about that? I recently tried Earthsap’s toothpaste and it was great. It wasn’t nearly as textually satisfying as the usual bubbly, spearminty, smack-your-lips toothpaste from a regular grocery store, but going green means changing the way you think. You can’t expect to change your ways and use different products and have your experiences stay the same… If they do, something must be wrong…

We use toothpaste every day, and most of the toothpastes we use contain sulfites, sulfates and/or flouride (apparently more toxic than we’d like to know – a controversial topic…). Ermmm.

We now have more than enough reasons to rethink this one. Shall we?

Lauren’s recipe is ridiculously simple:

Zero Waste Toothpaste Recipe:
3 tablespoons coconut oil
1 1/2 tablespoons baking soda
25-30 drops Organic food grade peppermint essential oil (totally depends on how flavoursome you want it – that seemed like a LOT of essential oil to me, so we used less)

Mix all three ingredients in a glass dish (I use a mason jar).

To use, scoop out a little bit with a spoon and put it onto your toothbrush. Add more or less peppermint or coconut oil depending on your textural preference. Voila!

Photo cred: Lauren Singer from Trash is for Tossers

The outcome: Great! Besides it being preeetty salty (which our new bestie Lauren does warn you about), it works well! My friend Marcelle (who I made this with while we fed our children hot chocolate and marshmallows) liked it too. It is definitely an adjustment to regular toothpaste, but remember change is good.

Wellness Mama’s recipe includes stevia powder, which, while it might be a nice addition, if it is not necessary I’m going to keep this one simple and avoid going to the shops for another hard-to-find item. If you’d like to view Lauren’s YouTube toothpaste demo (where you can see she’s beautiful, normal and not a weirded out hippie creature), you can view that here.

IMPORTANT: Pregnant or nursing mums should avoid using peppermint essential oil, as well as babies and children. Also, if your teeth start getting super sensitive then maybe just calm down and get your pearly whites checked – we don’t want enamel issues. With the kids, I’ll stick to Pure Beginnings’ Baby Berry Toothpaste (Clayden can eat this like ice cream, which is okay, because he now loves brushing his teeth and it’s not full of junk) and Pure Beginnings’ Kids Vanilla Toothpaste.

If you’re not keen to go all Suzy Homemaker on us and want to make a change but don’t have the time, energy or inclination to don the old apron and get your hands messy, well fair enough. Why not try Earthsap’s range or Pure Beginnings’ Fresh Mint Toothpaste?