Homemade Dish Soap

I recently ran out of dish soap for hand washing my dishes. Since I have been trying to use all natural cleaning products and have fallen in love with using essential oils, I figured it was time to make my own dish soap. I found the recipe here

1 3/4 cup boiling water
1 tbsp. borax (go to the website to see their research on the safety of using borax)
1 tbsp. grated bar soap (I have been using a natural bar that contains rosemary and lavender)
15-20 drops essential oils (I use around 10 drops of lemon essential oil as my soap already has rosemary and lavender in it. The lemon smells so nice and helps clean the dishes!)

Heat water to boiling.
Combine borax and grated bar soap in a medium bowl. Pour hot water over the mixture. Whisk until the grated soap is completely melted.
Allow mixture to cool on the countertop for 6-8 hours, stirring occasionally. Dish soap will gel upon standing. (Although mine doesn't really gel)
Transfer to a squirt bottle, and add essential oils (if using). Shake well to combine.
Now you’re ready to use your liquid dish soap just as you would use any commercial brand!

Homemade Dishwasher Detergent

After much researching and compiling of recipes I finally decided to try making my own dishwasher detergent. I have avoided this in the past since our water is very hard and we don't always remember to buy softener salt. However this stuff works and is super easy to make! A key step in using this is to have white vinegar in the rinse aid compartment of the machine. I have been using vinegar for a long time and my dishes are always clear if my vinegar doesn't run out!

1 cup washing soda (not baking soda!)
1/4 cup citric acid
Tea Tree essential oil (optional but I highly recommend essential oils for an extra clean and scent)

Combine the washing soda and citric acid in a bowl. These do clump together so I recommend making tablets out of this recipe. I have also read of people using silicon packets from a vitamin bottle in an air tight container to prevent clumping/turning rock hard. To make tablets put 1 tbsp. of the mix into each part of an ice cube tray. I then added 2-3 drops of essential oil to each tablet. I lightly pressed the powder down and then let it sit for 24-48 hours until I could gently pop each tablet out. I then stored the tablets in an air tight container. If you would rather not make tablets, just use 1 tbsp. mix in your machine.

Homemade Nutella

I love the nutty chocolaty combination of Nutella. However since trying to maintain a mostly whole food and refined sugar free diet, I cringe at the label on the store bought stuff. I have now managed to make my own version of Nutella. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

2 cups roasted hazelnuts with skins removed (put on a baking pan and roast at 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes until skins start to crack, then rub skins off when still warm)
2 tablespoons melted coconut oil
4 tablespoons cocoa
3 tablespoons coconut sugar
3 tablespoons maple syrup (this liquid helps improve the texture and helps the Nutella not to be too dry, and adds sweetness of course)
pinch of salt

Blend hazelnuts in a Vitamix or other strong blender/food processor until you have a nut butter. This makes about 1 1/2 cups of nut butter. Remove from blender and put into a mixing bowl. Add other ingredients and mix with a spoon until well blended. Store in an air tight container or jar. Makes about 2 cups.