My Hubby and I brew our own beer and mead (honey wine). We absolutely lurve this incredibly economical hobby! Right now, I've got an elderflower, yarrow and cranberry mead fermenting, and I can hardly wait until October to try it! Immature mead, of course, tastes nasty like sweet vomit when you sample it at racking time (racking = siphoning it into a wine jug, or secondary fermenter) because it requires a much longer aging time than beer, which is sometimes finished in a matter of weeks. But when mead is finished....mmmmmmmmm. My first batch of mead turned out so dry, so mildly sweet (in fact, you could even say it wasn't sweet at all), so amazingly smooth that I knew this simple brewing method would be my thang. I cannot wait to try this second batch infused with herbs and fruit! I've decided to wait to experiment with anything super-fruity because they are a little more...unpredictable. I want some serious success (i.e. plenty of available bottles) under my belt before I suffer through any mead explosions or disappointments. Some things I'd like to try are dandelion, elderberry, rose, chamomile, nettle, red clover, lemon balm, burdock, catnip, mallow, and a lavender, borage & violet flower blend to make a blue colored wine, an idea from Joyce Wardwell's 'The Herbal Home Remedy Book'.
Our latest beer experiment was a Surly Furious kit from our brewing supplier (from the AMAZING beer crafters at Surly Brewing), and oh man, that is some tasty, delicious hoppy goodness!! My Hubby loves his bitter, hoppy beers, and I enjoy them once in awhile, but I'm definitely a stout-drinkin' gal, I especially love oatmeal stouts. I love the smooth, low-bitter, dark and hearty beers like Left Hand Milk Stout, Summit Oatmeal Stout, and Guinness-which is the hoppiest of the three. It's like a meal in a glass! We're hoping to try our hand at oatmeal stouts come the cooler months, but the process is a bit more complicated, called partial-mash, and we've not tried it yet. My favorite ales are things with low-fizz like Boddington's, Newcastle, and the recently discovered wonder-beer from our local Harriet Brewing Company. I am a MEGA fan of The Libertine, which is a crafted beer of superior excellence from the conveniently located Fulton Brewery (just a few blocks away and quickly becoming a second home), and everything they make is delicious. I recently had The Worthy Adversary (and by their beer names, you can tell they are The Big Lebowski die-hards, like myself) and within a few sips of this powerpunch beer, you feel as if you truly are A Worthy Adversary! I LOVE ME SOME FULTON'S!
It's much easier to brew beer in the cooler months, but especially in the dead of winter because you can just plop the wort outside to bring the temperature down quickly. We're planning on trying a Juleøl beer for Yule time, which is a traditional Norwegian beer that is made for Yule/Christmas. We will probably just grab a pre-made beer kit from Northern Brewer, using a chocolatey stout and add our own spices and/or herbs. One thing we learned the hard way with the Furious experiment is this: ALWAYS use a muslin bag for infusing herbs. It's less mess, and if you've cleaned up beer wort before, you know just how nasty the clean-up can be!!
Happy Brew-Witching!
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Washing-Up
I had researched recipes for laundry soap not long ago, but had decided on supporting a local artisan who crafts some of the most beautiful smelling washing soap I've ever smelled, Mugwort Maggie's. She hand-crafts each batch, and you can tell. She cures the grated soap in front of a wood stove, then hand grinds it so fine it dissolves immediately in cold water. It creates very little suds (which I believe is good for HE machines), and cleans very well. After using it, I thought I didn't want to bother with making my own, and why should I when Mugwort Maggie's has such an awesome product available?
Well, I do love experimenting with recipes of any kind. I love to be able to enjoy the economy of making my own products for pennies. I started looking into it again, and I think I may try it. We just purchased another Mugwort Maggie's bag, so we'll use that up before I start another. I'm excited to give it a whirl!
One recipe I found, the gal said it cost her about $14 to make a dry mix that lasted her a whole year! That's enough reason for me when it costs more than that to buy one store bought brand. We're on a pretty tight budget, and we've saved big on switching to homemade versions of household items. Some things I've switched to making exclusively at home with ENORMOUS savings in both money and waste are: mouth rinses, shower spray, shaving cream, bath and body products, and of course, my cloth pads!
An update on my switch to cloth menstrual pads: I can't believe how much more comfortable and absorbent they are, and cleaning them could not be easier! I toss the soiled ones into a bucket of cold water, let it soak the day, then rinse and toss into the laundry basket to be run through the regular loads. I don't see the fuss about switching to cloth at all! I've been making a bunch more pads, using some nicer backing fabrics because I really like to have a lot available (and I acquired a shiteload of fabric swatches from my Mum that I have no other plans for). I've also discovered which kinds work best for the level of flow I'm having, so I'd like more of certain types. I do have some definite non-faves, which is a little disappointing seeing as I'd hoped they'd all work for me. The only drawback to cloth, in my opinion, is the convenience factor when out and about. I carry my red RagBag separately because I really just don't want dirty pads in my purse, even in a plastic baggie, and there's no room in there anyway. I'm one of those Mom-purse types, even though I'm not a mom. I carry EVERYTHING you could possibly need in my purse, so to have soiled pads just isn't an option, and I'm not sure I'd be ok with that anyway since I'm a slight germaphobe. I grew up with a nurse for a mother, need I say more? So to schlepp around two purses is kind of a drag, but it's only for a few days a month so whatever.
Happy Witching!
Well, I do love experimenting with recipes of any kind. I love to be able to enjoy the economy of making my own products for pennies. I started looking into it again, and I think I may try it. We just purchased another Mugwort Maggie's bag, so we'll use that up before I start another. I'm excited to give it a whirl!
One recipe I found, the gal said it cost her about $14 to make a dry mix that lasted her a whole year! That's enough reason for me when it costs more than that to buy one store bought brand. We're on a pretty tight budget, and we've saved big on switching to homemade versions of household items. Some things I've switched to making exclusively at home with ENORMOUS savings in both money and waste are: mouth rinses, shower spray, shaving cream, bath and body products, and of course, my cloth pads!
An update on my switch to cloth menstrual pads: I can't believe how much more comfortable and absorbent they are, and cleaning them could not be easier! I toss the soiled ones into a bucket of cold water, let it soak the day, then rinse and toss into the laundry basket to be run through the regular loads. I don't see the fuss about switching to cloth at all! I've been making a bunch more pads, using some nicer backing fabrics because I really like to have a lot available (and I acquired a shiteload of fabric swatches from my Mum that I have no other plans for). I've also discovered which kinds work best for the level of flow I'm having, so I'd like more of certain types. I do have some definite non-faves, which is a little disappointing seeing as I'd hoped they'd all work for me. The only drawback to cloth, in my opinion, is the convenience factor when out and about. I carry my red RagBag separately because I really just don't want dirty pads in my purse, even in a plastic baggie, and there's no room in there anyway. I'm one of those Mom-purse types, even though I'm not a mom. I carry EVERYTHING you could possibly need in my purse, so to have soiled pads just isn't an option, and I'm not sure I'd be ok with that anyway since I'm a slight germaphobe. I grew up with a nurse for a mother, need I say more? So to schlepp around two purses is kind of a drag, but it's only for a few days a month so whatever.
Happy Witching!
Latest Experiments Are A Success!
I wanted to make my DeBunk The Funk deodorant spray into a solid, yet spreadable, wax form because it lasts much longer than the liquid. My coconut oil deodorants are wonderful, but in the summer are completely liquified and I was getting annoyed with constantly putting them in and taking them out of the fridge. My waxy Debunk The Funk is awesome!! I've been using it for the past week or two, and it's pleasant, earthy and effective. Win! Win! Win!
I also wanted to make an itch salve that would double as a healing salve. I came up with a lovely combo that really helps my, er, personal itching issues, as well as being great for bug bites or general skin flare-ups. I've been trying to use it on the eczema I have on my scalp, but like even my prescription cream for that, it is very difficult to apply a cream to the scalp when you've got two tons of hair. The meds just stay in my hair mostly, yuk! However, I really want to avoid using anything steroidal, and with the amount of warnings they gave me with my prescription, I'd just as soon use a wild plantain & calendula based salve. After all, if you wouldn't put something in your mouth, you shouldn't put it on your skin. It all ends up inside you whether through ingestion or absorption.
I need to place another Mountain Rose Herbs order and do more experimenting!! I love witchin' in my kitchen!
I also wanted to make an itch salve that would double as a healing salve. I came up with a lovely combo that really helps my, er, personal itching issues, as well as being great for bug bites or general skin flare-ups. I've been trying to use it on the eczema I have on my scalp, but like even my prescription cream for that, it is very difficult to apply a cream to the scalp when you've got two tons of hair. The meds just stay in my hair mostly, yuk! However, I really want to avoid using anything steroidal, and with the amount of warnings they gave me with my prescription, I'd just as soon use a wild plantain & calendula based salve. After all, if you wouldn't put something in your mouth, you shouldn't put it on your skin. It all ends up inside you whether through ingestion or absorption.
I need to place another Mountain Rose Herbs order and do more experimenting!! I love witchin' in my kitchen!
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