 by April Anderson
Just Another Natural Nut What is Castile Soap? The true definition of Castile soap is....... a soap made with olive oil. No other oils, no other ingredients except for the hydroxide needed to saponify it. It is common within the industry to consider any soap made with vegetable oils and excluding all types of animal fats, to be a Castile soap but this is not correct. A European natural soap company has a great tutorial on the history and the story behind Castile soaps. Click here if you would like to learn more Does yours have just olive oil in it or is there other oils and ingredients? Whether or not yours is a true Castile or a liquid soap claiming to be isn't really important for what we are discussing today but I believe that we should always be aware of what we are purchasing so we can make the best choice for ourselves and our loved ones. Cleaning with Castile or Castile Like Products Castile or Castile like liquid soaps probably have the ability to be great for some cleaning jobs but it has a habit of leaving behind a slippery residue that you normally don't see until you walk on it or wipe it....then it becomes very noticeable in the smudged and streaked aftermath. Complaints I get from clients are the footprints on the floor left just hours after washing and the inability to remove the streaks and smudges from granite counter tops without major arm power from using products and creating recipes with olive based 'Castile' as an ingredient. When looking for a natural all-purpose cleaning product or DIY recipes choose ones that do not contain olive oil or 'Castile' soap.....Saponified Coconut (Cocos Nucifera) and Sunflower Oil is my preferred ingredient as you will find them easier to work with and you end up using less which in the end saves you more.
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 A therapeutic tisane to relieve runny noses, nasal congestion, phlegmy coughs and itchy throats. I just love the heat and the powerful taste.
8 to 10 slices of fresh, unpeeled ginger root 4 cups (1L) boiling water Optional Juice of ½ lime or ½ lemon 1 tsp. (5ml) honey or agave nectar Wash ginger root well and thinly slice into 8 to 10 pieces. Boil ginger in water for 10 to 20 minutes (the longer you boil, the stronger and tangier the taste). Add lime or lemon juice and natural sweetener, if desired. Strain and serve. Makes 4 cups (1L) by April Anderson Just Another Natural Nut Personally, I don't use the dryer so I never have an issue with static but if you do you should follow the chart below to help eliminate static   Step by step sprouting
Germination times included here are averaged. You may choose to harvest your sprouts either earlier when the sprout tail is small or once it has grown longer. Alfalfa Mild and grassy flavour Soaking time 5-10 hours Germination time 4-7 days Best eaten raw Fenugreek Bitter/pungent flavour (use sparingly or combined with alfalfa) Soaking time 8-12 hours Germination time 4-8 days Best eaten raw Radish Sharp/hot flavour (use sparingly or combined with alfalfa) Soaking time 8-12 hours 5-6 days Best eaten raw Clover (red) Similar to alfalfa but with sharper flavour Soaking time 4-8 hours Germination time 3-6 days Best eaten raw Mustard Hot flavour (use sparingly or combined with alfalfa) Soaking time 5-8 hours Germination time 4-6 days Best eaten raw Black mustard seeds are reputedly easier to sprout than other coloured seeds Mung Beans Mild, somewhat starchy flavour Soaking time 8-14 hours Germination time 2-5 days Best eaten cooked thoroughly Place tray or jar of mung beans in a dark spot for best results. Sunflower Seeds Nutty, sweet flavour Soaking time 6-10 hours Germination time 18-24 hours Best eaten raw Hulled: After soaking hulled sunflower seeds, skim off skins with your fingers before sprouting. If you don’t remove the skins, the seeds can quickly spoil. Shelled: Shelled sunflower seeds are for sprouting sunflower greens and these are best grown in soil. Lentils Slightly hot, peppery flavour Soaking time 10-12 hours Germination time 3-5 days Best eaten cooked; raw sparingly Sesame Seeds Slightly sweet flavour when eaten on first day Soaking time 6-10 hours Germination time 1-2 days Best eaten raw Use sesame seeds in the shell, which are darker than the white, hulled sesame seeds. After sprouting, eat quickly, since they turn bitter after 2 to 2 1/2 days. Note: hulled seeds are those that have the shell removed.  by April Anderson
Just Another Natural Nut After my Mom passed and Dad had to learn how to navigate a kitchen he was unfamiliar with, we worked together to give him a space that would not intimidate him but help him learn how to prepare meals for himself. What I realized through this process, my Mom collected many things including doubles, triples of most of her kitchen utensils. If you open up your drawers will you find the same thing? And if you really think about it you probably have many things taking space in your drawers you have never used but keep just in case. So how do you decide on what to keep and what to let go of. 1. Empty the Drawer 2. Place all your kitchen utensils in another drawer (yes, you do need to empty the counter container filled with utensils tools too). If you need another drawer use it but you are only to have one drawer to put your needed utensils in. 3. Set a time limit - 6 months to a year depending on how often you are in the kitchen cooking and baking (one year gets you through all the holidays) Over time, whenever you need a utensil, look in the newly empty drawer collecting the utensils you are using before opening the drawer that contains all of the utensils you have been collecting. At the end of your time period, you should have all the utensils you need in the new drawer, that started off empty and you can now empty the drawer that started full and donate .  by April Anderson Just Another Natural Nut Have you every taken off the knobs on your stove to clean behind them? All you need
 Easiest way to clean the knobs is to let them soak in the soapy water while you are cleaning the 'dashboard' of your stove. Soak one of your cloths in the soapy water, wring out and wipe all along the 'dashboard'. Grab your toothbrush and dip into soapy water and use on areas that are built-up and lightly scrub Re-soak your cloth in soapy water and wipe down again to remove all build-up If this does not remove any grease build-up this is where your baking soda come in (It should be stored in a large mouth jar for easy access). Dip your damp cloth into the baking soda, give it a little shake and then with a circular motion, use your the area of cloth with baking soda, to remove the grease build-up. If it is in an area where the cloth can't get at, dip your damp toothbrush into the baking soda, give a little shake and gently scrub the area. Repeat if necessary. Re-soak your cloth in soapy water, fully removing the baking soda and return to the 'dashboard' to wipe down and remove the baking soda residue. With your clean dry cloth, use your glass and hard surface cleaner or spray bottle of water to polish. When you stove 'dashboard' is clean and polished, reach in to your sink or bucket to retrieve your well-soaked knobs, one at at time and using your wet cloth, wipe away any debris or build-up, polish dry and put back into place on the 'dashboard'. Repeat with each knob.  by April Anderson
Just Another Natural Nut Yes, it is as a simple as making your bed every day to create that sense of being organized which in turn lessens your stress. How much time you put in to making your bed every day is up to you. I like taking it all off (except for the bottom sheet) and placing back on layer by layer. My reason for this is simple. I like walking in my home with bare feet (in nicer weather its bare feet all the time) and everything settles on floors which means it's going to find its way onto the bottom of my feet and possibly into my bed. By stripping down to the bottom sheet, I get the chance to remove the little thing that will drive me nuts when it is time to go to sleep. I also like smoothing everything out, not so much as to have something bounce back it me but more like giving myself time to focus on what is in front of me instead of what is ahead of me. My calming mechanism to just be in that moment.  by April Anderson
Just Another Natural Nut There is an area that generally gets missed when you have an undermount sink in the kitchen and bathroom. This is where your toothbrush and hot soapy water comes in. Dip your toothbrush into your small bucket of hot soapy water and scrub under the lip where the basin meets the counter. Wipe away with a clean damp cloth. Repeat if necessary.  by April Anderson
Just Another Natural Nut I am going to be honest with you, maintaining stainless appliances for aesthetic purposes is hard work. As a business who uses only natural products, maintaining stainless appliances for aesthetic purposes when clients use or have used a conventional product to 'shine it up' is frustratingly time consuming. Every time you use a conventional product dedicated to stainless, you are leaving a waxy residue that, overtime, builds-up. For companies who create these products this is awesome as the longer you use their products the more you have to use each time and the more you have to buy. I will let you in on a little secret....you don't need those expensive products to maintain the aesthetics of your stainless appliances (the above pic has only been cleaned and polished with Just Shine) The trick is to make sure you are using a product that does not have wax or silicone as an ingredient (most conventional glass cleaners and some 'green' ones do). Water alone can work as long as you don't have to deal with a lot of sticky smudges. You can check out my video on how to make your stainless shine if you have never used a conventional stainless polishing product here How do you know if you have a build-up on your stainless appliances...do the water test. Put tap water into a spray bottle, place the nozzle on spray, not stream and spray the front of your appliance. If the water starts to run down towards the floor, you have a build-up. If the water stays in one spot with no running vertically towards the floor you have no residue build-up (for this to work you have to spray on vertical surfaces) You will need
If you have been using a conventional polisher for your stainless you need to add another step. I use the Just Polish because the one of the ingredients work to remove all of the residue build-up over time but chances are, you have something in your home right now that will work with the product build-up already on there - olive oil. Click here to see my video using olive oil to polish your stainless You will need
by April Anderson Just Another Natural Nut Are you finding your vacuum isn't working like it should, leaving behind stuff on your carpet. Maybe it is time to check the roller brush.  When your roller brush has that much hair string and other things attached to it, it cannot function the way it needs to so go grab a pair of scissors and a bag to dispose of the debris (I put mine in a compost pile so I use a container). You will also need tweezers (you can use your fingers to pull) and patience  Just keep cutting a little at at time and pulling what you have cut. Keep repeating until your roller brush is cleared of all attached debris. Use your tweezers to get in the bristle to remove the tiny pieces of debris and wipe down with a damp cloth. If really dirty use soapy water to clean but make sure you wring out your cloth well before using  Once done, you should notice a big improvement on the performance of your vacuum.
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Simple Livinglong before it was cool to be a minimalist, live a sustainable life, become a zero waste warrior we just called it simple living or what some could not resist calling us....'those damn hippies....not much has changed in the years since except the wording...now some can not resist calling us.... 'those damn natural nuts'...hence the name Just Another Natural Nut! ArchivesCategories
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