Home made is my favourite way because the ingredients in anything should be recognisable or at the very least readable. And if I make something myself then I know for sure what I am eating or using. I just don’t trust store bought. Only some ingredients have to be on the label. Some origins and ingredients can be hidden or renamed or hidden in code. There is no logic to label reading anymore. 
So here is how I make home made laundry powder. In New Zealand we call this washing powder. In New Zealand we hang out the washing. In America we do a wash. Or put away the laundry. I love colloquialisms.
OK; home made washing powder.
- 1 cup borax
- 1 cup washing soda
- 1 cake grated laundry soap
Use one tablespoon per wash. So simple. During the period that I lived with the nuns and worked in their enormous laundry ( a story I have yet to tell) we melted left-over soap, those little slithers from the showers, in jugs of hot water and used this to wash our own clothes, so this is a pretty fancy recipe compared to that.
If you are uncomfortable using borax or can’t find it – you can omit it from the recipe.
Of course this laundry powder, as well as getting clothes lovely and clean, is cheap to make.
Peanut butter is consumed in massive amounts in this household (though not by me) and is often heaving with artificial sweeteners and msg and salts. John from Chicago left his big bag of peanuts in with my groceries the other day so I made a batch of clean pure peanut butter.
How to make Home Made Peanut Butter. 
- One tablespoon peanut oil
- One cup of peanuts
- A little salt if you prefer
Blend until the blade in your foodprocessor breaks and the whole thing dies. Oops.
- I was working on one side of the barn the other day and heard John say Oh Come on Kupa give me a break. Kupa had opened his train right behind John so that he had to part the curtain of feathers to get back out the door.
Kupa was as unrepentent as his wives were interested. But he is a startling bird. Did I tell you that if I take too long to milk in the morning he tiptoes into the milking parlour looking for his breakfast. His train is long now. It drags in everything. He has no idea how long it is and so I am constantly getting swiped with exotic feathery while I am working. I have even stood on his tail by mistake, setting off an appalled honking.
Speaking of exotic feathery.
Mama was having a family hug with her girls yesterday. 
Her udder is so large now that I pop her in her own pen at night, so I can check her easily. 
She has never had lambs this early before but you will remember that Hairy refused to wear his harness. Every morning I found it draped around a fence. So once again we cannot pinpoint when she is due. His first date with her was September 19 last year. Almost exactly 5 months ago. 
The gestation period for a sheep is 145 -150 days. So if she had been bred the night the ram walked through the gate, then she is due round about very soon.
I have everything ready just in case. I even have little coats for little lambies. I bought them to have a look and they are very easy to make so I am collecting old jumpers to turn into lamb jackets using my limited sewing skills.
Good morning.
It is windy with rain forecast for today. So we will see what happens. I might leave Mama in her pen – wind, rain and lambs do not mix. But at 3am this morning she was all perky and interested. I am really waiting for her to start lying round all day groaning as she gets up and down. This pregnancy she has been noticeably energetic, I suspect she is not carrying as many lambs, usually she has four as you know, less would be nice.
Have a lovely day.
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
95 responses to “Home Made Peanut Butter, Home Made Laundry Powder, a Home Made Life”
I’ve been making our soap for a couple of years now. That’s similar to the recipe I use but I make mine liquid and use soap I bought from ebay. One of these days I’m gonna make the soap! Momma definitely looks like she’s ready. Glad you had a good city visit. Have a great day, Celi.
I would LOVE to make soap, with cows milk.. let me know when you work out an easy way to make it.. i really should try harder..our last attempt was a disaster! c
I found a recipe that sounds very easy. Not a lot of ingredients either. I’ll let you know if I get around to making it. 😀 Michael says he’s going to get me one of those “round to its.”
oo I want a ’round to it’ too! c
That peanut butter looks great. I love laundry, and I am very keen to try your recipe. I just have to figure out what borax is called here… It must make your laundry feel cleaner to know just what it was washed with.
You can just use washing soda and soap .. Borax is made from boron which is mined out in california, and the laundry smells just lovely. For me it is all about the smell! c
Good luck with Mama – how’s Charlotte doing on her honeymoon?
I have not heard, i guess i should call and check on her but I don’t want to look like an anxious gran!! c
…and too much checking will put them off 😉
Glad to see you put those peanuts to good use so quickly! I should be heading back to Patel’s tomorrow. Love that you’re ready with outdoor wear for the lambkins. Had you mentioned it when you were here, we could have gone shopping at “Lambs “R” Us”. 🙂
Rain is on it’s way, if it hasn’t already made it to you. Have a great day and stay dry!
No rain yet, i am anxiously looking for it though, it will be very welcome. Morning john! c
you write such great posts ..always funny and they make me laugh. I think that you are so lucky to be able to live with such beautiful animals AND make peanut butter…Good luck with the lambie coats
I am lucky, i have always thought that I was a lucky kind of person.. c
Klaus, you should go look at lettermo.com or IUOMA. I send out mail with original this and that all the time, and always make my own postcards. I just don’t use postcrossing because I don’t send internationally (because of the cost) unless I’m sure I have some connection with the person because of our interests, art, etc.
So who else is a snail mail addict here? It makes sense, doesn’t it? We do things in a personal way when we can, and that means writing letters with a pen…
Thanks for the recommendation!
Unfortunately a postcard is all I can do right now.
Letters! I need time to finish my novel first. 🙂
I love letters! My mum used to say, address and put the stamp on the envelope first, it is always the hardest bit! c
How many times has Mama been pregnant?
This is her fifth pregnancy.. she is getting on a bit but has never had any trouble so lets hope she does alright this time too! c
I just started making my own laundry detergent using the same ingredients as you but I boil mine in water, let it sit overnight so it gets a little thick and used it that way in my He front loader. It is easy and cheap and I like knowing what is in it. I will have to give your peanut butter a go, except maybe try to avoid breaking the blade.
As always, I love the pictures and tales (and tails) of life on your farm.
Tails!! I forgot to say that i roasted the peanuts for a wee bit first, just to liven the flavour up.. c
I have this image of you running thru the fields with wee little lambs at your heels, an imaginary black pointy hat on your head and a home-made talisman shambles in your pocket. (I read too much Terry Pratchett) But then I’d be right beside you because I make everything home-made too. 🙂 Hope mama has the good sense to have her lambs at a reasonable hour.
Previously she has lambed in the day time, I am crossing my fingers that she stays with this trend. And I do hope she waits until the nights are not so cold.. c
I had to laugh when I saw the title of your post. I’m here in the office today and we spent the first hour talking about making our own laundry and cleaning detergents! And then here you go! I do make my own nut butters from time to time. I should commit, but I tend to eat so much more of it because it tastes so much better! LOL! Looking forward to the babies,Celi! Love the farmy in the spring. 🙂 And thanks for the push this morning. They are always gentle. 🙂
It is terribly easy to make, I don’t know how I went so long buying the stuff! c
I think if it can clean your work clothes, Celi, you are a good advertisement! 🙂 I’m inspired! ox
I once did a reportage job in a convent in Notting Hill Gate, back in the 70’s, I had to stay the night and I’m sure the crucifix had been removed from my room, or maybe they put me in a crucifixless room, which must be a rare thing in convent. I must have made a very bad impression.
Probably that hip flask you forgot to hide in a deep enough pocket! c
Celi, sweaters for the lambs, brilliant!! When we first moved to the country our next door neighbors raised lambs. They were away on Christmas Day and we were looking after the girls.. Before we sat down for Christmas dinner we went to the barns to do a last check. Our son and his wife were with us. While The Good Husband was busy feeding everyone our daughter-in-law was visiting with the wooly bundles. Then a call for help. One of the girls was giving birth. So we wrangled the rest of the sheep away from her. And after it was all over everyone helped to rub the little lamb down, move mom and baby into their own private stall, fluff up the bed of hay. We all said it was the best Christmas ever.
That really is a delightful Christmas story. When you finally sat down for dinner I bet you were all grinning from ear to ear. c
Brillant C.! I’m off to figure out how to make peanut butter with the meager tools I have around here…oh and the laundry mix too…I always use the green ones but I too hate the containers but we do recycle them! I always pour a few glugs of white vinegar in the rinse cycle of the wash, so no need for fabric softener, cuts any soap residue, and no vinegar after smell on your laundry, at all! I use white vinegar for everything, so wish I could make that too! 🙂
Kupa is looking stunning these days!! Have you seen any um, er, romantic activity amongst the peas? and i don’t mean the green ones in the garden! :))
No, I have searched the barn in case someone is laying, but no strange eggs, I have two broody hens too , and pigeon eggs falling out of the roof so I hope they are thinking about laying soon!
Here is a very old recipe I used way back in the days we had milk cows –
How to make soap with milk:
Get the milk icy cold before adding lye. When the lye is added to the milk, the chemical reaction with the sugars in the milk will burn the milk if it’s not very cold. Measure out your milk in a container. Place it in the freezer before making soap. The milk is ready to use when it’s icy-slushy.
Now the HUGE SECRET is ADD LYE TO MILK. NEVER ADD MILK TO LYE.
The lye will heat up the milk and melt that icy-slush very quickly. The mixture will turn a golden color and have a slightly curdled look to it. That’s normal. If the mixture to turns brown and smella scorched your product is ruined.
To prevent scorching the milk, always make sure your milk is icy-slushy cold before using!
Add the milk/lye mixture to the fats in your pot and continue on following all the usual soaping procedures.
Soap with milk takes longer to come to trace, and it also takes longer to cook in hot process. It can take up to 15 minutes to trace.
It’s been a long time, but maybe this will help. Then again you probably already know all this.
Linda
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I know none of this at all, these are great tips,Thank you, I shall write these down so i remember next time i try.. I have never even seen soap made so I am running blind as usual! c
Cecilia, We share so many viewpoints and concerns. Our Ladies Homestead Gathering (ladies only) here in Statham, Ga. meets once a month and we share our tips and company. This week we’re having a food swap and those participating bring enough of food they grow or make to give everyone some. I’m bringing Jerusalem Artichokes. I like what you are doing and I commend your thrift and spirit. Best, D