soap making essentials

CONTENTS

POTATO SOUP

CHESSY STUFF CHICKEN

BAKED SALMON FILLETTS

PASTA SALAD

PIZZA POTATOES

BAKED APPLE WEDGES

GROUND BEEF STEW

LIGHTSIDE

FOOD INFORMATION

CLEANING TIPS

NON-ALOHOLIC DRINKS

BAR MIXES

POTATO SOUP

½ cup chopped onion

 
½ cup chopped celery

6 diced potatoes

 
2 Tablespoons margarine

 
½ teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 cup non-fat dry milk

3 cups water

2 Tablespoons flour

Peel and chop the onion.

Chop the celery.

Peel the potatoes, and cut them into small cubes.

Melt the margarine in a large saucepan on low heat.

Add the onion and celery. Cook for a few minutes.

Add the potatoes, salt, pepper and 1½ cups water.

Cook for 15 minutes until the potatoes are tender.

In a small bowl, stir together the dry milk and flour.

Add 1½ cups water slowly, stirring as you add it.

Add the milk mix to the potatoes.

Cook until the soup is heated and slightly thickened.

Adjust the seasonings.  YIELD: 6-1 cup servings.

CHEESY STUFF CHICKEN

2 tablespoon butter or margarine

2 medium zucchini, shredded (about 2 cups)

1 medium onion, chopped

1 pkg. (6 0z.) Stove Top Stuffing Mix for Chicken

1 cup Kraft Finely Shredded Italian Style Five Cheese Blend

2 pkg.(about 1-2 lb.each) Chicken quarters

¾ cup Kraft Honey Barbecue Sauce

PREHEAT oven to 400 degrees F. Melt butter in medium saucepan on medium heat. Add zucchini and onion; cook and stir 2 min. or until well blended.

CAREFULLY insert fingers between the meat and skin of each chicken quarter to form a pocket. Fill pockets evenly with stuffing mixture. Place, skin sides up, in large roasting pan.

BAKE 45 min. or until chicken is cooked through. Brush with barbecue sauce. Bake an additional 5 to 10 min.or until heated though.   YIELDS: 8 servings

BAKED SALMON

4- 6 OZ. SALMON FILLETS

1 LEMON

1 TABLESPOON OAT BRAN

1 ½ teaspoon dill weed

½ teaspoon thyme leaves

 
½ teaspoon onion powder

 
1 lemon

 
1 teaspoon paprika 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine oat bran, dill weed, thyme leaves, onion powder, and paprika. Sprinkle over salmon fillets. Bake at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.

YIELD: 6

Pasta Salad

8 oz. Pasta

½  small red onion, chopped

¼  cup low-fat salad dressing

Choose 3 of the following vegetables:

1  medium tomato, chopped

1  small zucchini, sliced

¼  cup celery, chopped

¼  cup carrots, sliced

1  medium pepper, chopped

¼  cup green beans

½  cup broccoli, chopped

Prepare pasta according to package directions. Add chopped onion and fresh vegetables. (If preferred, steam or stir-fry vegetables for 3-5 minutes before adding to pasta). Add salad dressing. Mix well.  Serves 4.

Pizza Potatoes

½  cup broccoli, chopped

½  onion, chopped

¼  cup carrots, chopped fine

1  small tomato, sliced

2  baked potatoes

½  tablespoon margarine

½  tablespoon flour

½  cup skim milk

¼  cup cheese, shredded

Cook broccoli, onions, and carrots in a small amount of water until tender and set aside. In a saucepan, melt margarine and stir in flour. Add milk slowly while stirring. Cook until sauce thickens, stirring occasionally. Add cheese and stir until melted. Add vegetables to cheese sauce and stir. Split open potatoes. Pour equal amounts of vegetable cheese mixture over each potato. Top with sliced tomatoes.

Baked Apple Wedges

2-3 baking apples (Rome, Cortland, Golden Delicious) 1/2 teaspoon margarine

½  tablespoon sugar OR brown sugar

ground cinnamon to taste

1/8  cup orange juice (optional)

Peel, core, and cut apples into quarters or wedges, depending on the size of the apple. Place apples in 1 quart baking dish. Dot apples with margarine. Sprinkle apples lightly with sugar and cinnamon. Orange juice may be added if desired. Bake at 375 degrees until tender, about 30 minutes.  Serves 2.

GROUND BEEF STEW

½   pound ground beef, or ground turkey, or venison

1/8 teaspoon salt (optional)

1/8 teaspoon pepper (optional)

1 – 10 ¾  ounce can ounce tomato soup, condensed

water, one soup can full

6 medium diced or sliced carrots

2 medium diced or sliced potatoes

1 cup diced onion

Brown meat. Drain fat, if any. Season lightly with salt and pepper (optional).

Add soup and 1 can of water to fry pan. Add vegetables.

Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, about 25 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat, cover for last 10 minutes to thicken.

LIGHTSIDE

A hillbilly and his son were visiting a mall for the first time.  They were amazed by two walls that could move apart and then slide shut again.

The boy asks his father what it was.  (Never having seen a elevator before) The father replies, “Sorry I have never seen anything like this before”.

Just then an oversized lady came and pressed a button on the wall. The walls opened and the lady stepped into a small room.  The walls closed and the boy and his father watched the small numbers above the walls light sequentially. They watched as it reached the last number and then the numbers began to light in the reverse order.  When the walls opened again a attractive slim 24-year lady stepped out. The father, not taking his eyes off the lady said to his son, “Go get your mother”

FOOD INFORMATION, TIPS

Thanksgiving was just a few days ago, and with the Christmas holidays coming, here are a few things to keep in mind.

AFTER MEALS

Put food away right after the meal.  Discard any turkey, stuffing, gravy left at room temperature longer than two hours.

Refrigerated turkey and stuffing use within three to four days.

Gravy within one to two days.

If you freeze leftovers, use within two to six months.

HOW SAVE IS OUR BOTTLE DRINKING WATER.

Do Federal or local authorizes Check in Canada or the USA?

I just read a report by Shan Phelan Investigative Correspondent for the Irish Independent, showing shocking levels of contamination in bottle waters sold there are exposed in a confidential report by the States food safety watchdog.

The draft report seen by the Irish Independent reveals that harmful bacteria, including E coli, have been found in bottle water on sale throughout the country.  Health officers found 7.2 pc of bottle water they sampled for the report were in breach of either legal or EU guidelines. For a complete report go to;

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/bottled-water-scare-as-dangerous-germs-found-1541957.html

FOOD INSPECTIONS

GOOD NEWS FOR OUR HEALTH FROM FAST FOOD

Fast-food outlets including McDonald’s and KFC have pledged to make their food more healthy as part of a campaign to cut heart disease and obesity. Burger King, Wimpy, Nando’s and Subway promised to cut salt and fat levels. The Food Safety Authority will monitor the commitments with the aim of making the food eaten by more than three million Britons a day healthier.

The baking, grilling or frying of starchy foods can create a harmful substance called acryl amide.  Acryl amide is a chemical that forms in some foods during cooking at high temperatures. The natural sugars and the amino acid asparagines found in some plant foods combine naturally to produce acryl amide when subjected to high heat. Common food sources of the chemical include potatoes, grain products and coffee.

Very low levels of acryl amide are present in drinking water compared to the much larger amounts of the chemical found in cigarette smoke and certain foods.

At present, the World Health Organization classifies acryl amide as “probably carcinogenic to humans” on the basis of the evidence from animal studies.

At the heart of problem is the way we prepare potatoes and grain products. Some of the largest sources of acryl amine in the diet include french fries, potato chips, ready-to-eat cereals, cookies, graham crackers, pastries, coffee and toast. All of these products are processed or prepared at high temperatures.

Large amounts of acryl amide form during high-temperature cooking techniques such as frying, grilling, broiling, roasting or baking. Foods that are cooked to a dark brown color contain higher amounts of the chemical than those that are stopped at a golden yellow.

Little or no acryl amide is produced during lower-temperature methods such as boiling, steaming, poaching, braising, blanching and microwaving.

Acryl amide is usually not present in raw plant foods. It’s typically not associated with meat, dairy products or seafood.

The higher the temperatures and the longer the times that plant foods are cooked, the greater the amounts of acryl amides that are formed.

Cook at recommended temperatures to destroy germs while preserving the maximum flavour and nutritional value of your food.

NEXT HEALTH CRISIS?

The past decade witnessed the massive off shoring of jobs to low-cost countries, decimating the U.S.A. and Canada manufacturing base. Cheap food may bring the next health crisis.

Ice cream. Yogurt. Crackers and biscuits. Egg and products containing powdered eggs. Cake. Powdered and condensed milk, pet food, pie, cereal plus other food products.

You probably consumed some of these products.  Did you know where they came from?  You may have thought these products were produced in the USA or Canada.  You would not know that some of these products came from china, and yes, China imports them into Canada and the USA.

These foods of Chinese origin have been found by authorities in the United States, Canada, Australia, to contain an industrial chemical called melamine that is used to make plastic.  In recent weeks, the Chinese government has admitted that adding melamine to food – which raises protein levels, making poor-quality products look more nutritious – is common practice in China.  Melamine can cause kidney stones and kidney failure when eaten. It has already sent about 54,000 Chinese consumers to the hospital and caused the deaths of at least four infants.

Mark Schlosberg is the California director and Elanor Starmer is a research analyst with Food & Water Watch, a national non-profit firm working to ensure clean water and safe food. For more information, visit www.foodandwaterwatch.org.

USA OPENS FDA OFFICE IN CHINA

Worries about the quality of Chinese exports to the U.S. have become a major feature of bilateral trade ties, with substandard Chinese food and toys covered in lead paint among the recurring product safety scares.

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt, speaking on the eve of opening of an FDA office in Beijing, said a new strategy was needed because the United States imported $2 trillion worth of goods a year, equal to four times the size of the Brazilian economy.

The FDA Office will be the first outside the US and will be followed by two more in China this month and one in India next month.

BEWARE FDA SCAM

As part of a fraudulent scheme to extort money from consumers, callers have falsely identified themselves as officials from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Consumers should know that FDA officials never contact consumers by phone to demand money or any other form of payment. “Impersonating an FDA official is a violation of federal law,” says Michael Chappell, FDA’s acting associate commissioner for regulatory affairs.

Offers of Discounted Prescription Drugs

 

Several instances have been reported to FDA of calls enticing consumers to purchase discounted prescription drugs by wiring funds to one of several locations in the Dominican Republic. No medications are ever delivered.

 

A subsequent call is received from a fraudulent “FDA special agent” informing the consumer that a fine of several thousand dollars is required to be sent to an address in the Dominican Republic to prevent incarceration or other legal action.

Report complaints or information regarding this scheme to FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations at (800) 521-5783.

RECALL NOTICE

Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Fiesta recalls 47,000 Blue Ember grills

 

Fiesta has recalled 47,000 of its Blue Ember gas grills because improper assembly of the grill poses a fire hazard. Fiesta has received 14 reports of grill fires although no reports of injuries.

CLEANING TIPS

Commercial cleaning supplies can aggravate your allergies and have long terms effects on your health. You can save on your house-cleaning bill with very good results using less toxic substances. Before washing, it is essential that all stains be removed. Sometimes Soap or hot water will set a stain and make its removal impossible.

RESPONSIBLE DRINKING

 

If you have teenagers, or in fact any adult, impress on them the
risks of driving while intoxicated. Statistics demonstrate drunk
drivers cause many fatal road accidents.

 

It should be known that like any other drug, addiction is a
potential hazard.  Excess of alcohol will affect organs such as the brain, heart, and liver.

BAR MIXES

SHANGHAI COCKTAIL

¼ juice of lemon

1-teaspoon anisette

1 ½ ounce Jamaica rum

½ teaspoon grenadine

Shake with ice cubes.

Strain into cocktail glass.

MARTINI (sweet)

1-ounce gin

½ ounce Italian vermouth

1dash orange bitters

Stir with ice cubes.

Strain into chilled cocktail glass

NON- ALCOHOLIC DRINKS

ICED COFFEE

There are just as many ways of making coffee, as there are different brands. Here are some general rules.

For good results measure water and coffee.

2 tablespoons coffee to each 1 cup

Make coffee just before serving

Make coffee double strength and pour the hot coffee over ice in a tall glass.  As the ice melts, it will dilute the coffee. Top the glass with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

HOT DRINKS FOR CHILDREN

½ cup cocoa

1 cup sugar

2 cups water

1/8 teaspoon salt

¼ spoon vanilla.

Combine cocoa, sugar and salt

Add water and stir until well blended.

Cook for 5 minutes.  Cool and bottle

Makes 3 cups syrup

Add 2 tablespoons of syrup to each cup of scaled milk.

Disclaimer: The Author of this article is not responsible for accuracy or completeness nor shall he be held liable for any damage or loss arising out of or in any way related to the information or utilization of it.

Bruce Chambers
http://www.articlesbase.com/food-and-beverage-articles/grandma-hystads-recipes-bar-mixes-food-informatiom-669948.html

That is due to the high glycerine content. They appear to be sweating but the moisture is coming from the air, not the soap. Glycerine is a good moisturizer because it attracts moisture. In some environments it will attract moisture from the air to the soap. Wrapping your soaps in plastic cling wrap until you need them will prevent this.

i also want to know which sells best, and is best on your hands. If i decide to buy it because of you, you get the points.

here are they types:
aloe vera
cocoa butter
goats milk
5% honey base
oatmeal base
20% olive oil base
shea butter

out of all of those types, which sells best, or which do you like best
thanks for the feedback =D

either honey or olive oil. The rest have too much "smell" on their own to make good scented soaps. However, the best is probably glycerin

Does it make it harder? And if it does what is the advantage of this? Is it worth using? If so, any suggestions to using it?

no

Goat milk, unlike any other type of milk, has great medicinal and therapeutic characteristics and has been known to aid/cure skin problems, assist respiratory and digestive processes in infants and promote all around good nutrition in humans.

The Differences between Goat Milk to Cow Milk

Goat milk as a food source is naturally homogenized unlike cow milk, due to its smooth texture, which makes it easy to absorb in the body and digest. Goat milk contains more vitamins A and B than cow milk although both types of milk have the same levels of vitamins C, D, Iron, Protein and Fat. Goat milk contains less lactose than cow milk.

Digestive, Respiratory and other Medicinal Properties

The molecular structure in the fatty acid and protein in goat milk is shorter, unlike cow milk globules, which are big and separate on the surface rendering them hard to digest. Goat milk molecules break down faster and are easier on the human digestive system. This is extremely beneficial to infants who have symptoms of diarrhea, constipation, vomiting and even colic. Goat milk has been known to treat allergies in both infants and adults. In some cases, goat milk has also been found aiding respiratory difficulties in infants with Cystic Fibrosis and children with epilepsy. Goat milk can help in minimizing cholesterol deposits in the arteries as well as improve mineralization of the skeleton, balancing mineral and hemoglobin levels in the blood and increase blood serum vitamins.

Skin

Goat milk is probably most well known for its therapeutic qualities to the skin. It moisturizes and balances the skin PH. This is because goat milk has the same level of acidity as our skin; hence, it prevents harmful bacteria from forming. Goat milk can greatly aid in healing cases of acne, eczema and dermatitis.

Summary

By regularly using goat milk in our soap, we assist our skin in retaining health and vitality. As the PH level is balanced, the skin is continually nourished and moisturized.

Goat milk is applied to the soap making process by adding fresh goat milk or goat milk in powder-form during the cold process, or a goat milk glycerin base during the melt and pour process. Goat milk has remarkable qualities, which we can all benefit from.

Iris Fuchs
http://www.articlesbase.com/crafts-articles/the-magic-in-goat-milk-725310.html

or something cheap and easy to find…

chia
coffee tea
orange zest,lemon zest
dried rose petals
saffron
icing coloring kits(gel dyes)

hear is a web site with soap formulas

http://www.snowdriftfarm.com/soapcalculator.htm

Have you ever thought, boy I sure would like to make a luxurious bar of soap but thought all that measuring and mixing was too much aggravation. Well here is the smart, short and easy version that anyone can do with easy to find everyday ingredients. This is a “no weigh” recipe, so you don’t even need a scale to make a fantastic bar of soap

First, purchase one can of lye, it will come in a 12 ounce container from your local hardware store. Call around to make sure they have one in stock that is 100% lye. Add your can of lye to; two and three quarter cups of distilled water in a Pyrex measuring cup. Please wear long sleeves and goggles for this part as the lye will heat up the water to almost two hundred degrees. Make sure your workspace is well ventilated. Stir until the lye has completely dissolved into the water. Set this cup aside. We need this to cool down as we mix our oils.

Next take 14 fluid ounces of coconut oil, now available at most superstores or your neighborhood health food store. If your coconut oil is solid it will melt easily in the microwave for measuring purposes. Some jars of coconut come in the 14 ounce size, this would be perfect for our recipe. Put this in a large stainless steel pot and then add two 3 lb cans of vegetable shortening. This must be melted over a very low flame and taken off the flame before completely melting. It will continue to melt as it sits. Use a wisk to stir the cooling pot until all on the chunks have been dissolved. Now add one cup of olive oil. I usually put the olive oil in the fridge over night so as I add it to the melted oil mix it cools down the other oils quickly. The trick here is to get the oils as cool as you can so you don’t have use a thermometer. If you can put your finger into the oil and it feels luke warm you can add the water and lye mix even if it is still hot as the oils will compensate and cool down the whole mix. If it is still too warm ,you must wait for it to cool down. Luke warm to your fingers touch is the guide. If you have a thermometer anywhere less than one hundred degrees will work.

Pour the water and lye solution into the melted oils and begin stirring. When the mix gets to the consistency of applesauce add 3 tablespoons of your favorite essential oil for fragrance. Now you are ready to pour your soap into a mold. Have ready a sturdy cardboard box that you have lined with a plastic garbage bag. Pour your soap mix into the box and let it sit for a half an hour. Then cover it with old towels to help it retain heat as it starts the saponification process. After 48 hours take it out of the mold and cut to desired size. These bars need three weeks to finish curing. You will then have beautiful handmade luxurious bars of soap for personal use or to give as gifts or even to sell. And you have made these with everyday ingredients most of us have readily available to us.

Jeffrey Dorrian
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/anyone-can-make-a-premium-handmade-bar-of-soap-11744.html

I am looking into starting to do melt and pour soap making, but I don’t have a microwave. Can you melt your soap base in a pot or pan on the stove? I don’t have a double boiler. Does anyone have any other tips about melt and pour soap making?
Thanks sooo much!

Hi You don’t have to use a microwave. You can two pans: take the biggest and pour some water (just a little), than put a smaller pan inside it. You will melt the glycerin in the smaller pan. That’s it, very simple.

There are some videos with step-by-step instructions on this site, take a look:

http://www.soaprecipes101.com/melt-and-pour-soap-videos/

I am looking into starting to do melt and pour soap making, but I don’t have a microwave. Can you melt your soap base in a pot or pan on the stove? I don’t have a double boiler. Does anyone have any other tips about melt and pour soap making?
Thanks sooo much!

Hi You don’t have to use a microwave. You can two pans: take the biggest and pour some water (just a little), than put a smaller pan inside it. You will melt the glycerin in the smaller pan. That’s it, very simple.

There are some videos with step-by-step instructions on this site, take a look:

http://www.soaprecipes101.com/melt-and-pour-soap-videos/