No Poo Continues :)

No Poo (shampoo) continues, but I have a confession:

I chopped 12+ inches off of my hair and donated it to locks of love. When I got my hair cut, the stylist lathered my hair in shampoo. It was the ultimate guilty pleasure. But again my hair became super dependent on the sulfates. So, I'm back to no 'poo, but I've changed the recipe.

I mix 3 tablespoons of baking soda with a splash of water to create a paste.

Wash & Rinse. To create that shampoo scent add any type of essential oils. I really like mint in mine because it makes me feel clean.

If you have wavy, curly, or hair that knots easily, rinse it with 1 cup vinegar/1 cup water mixture. My hair is still getting used to it because I have thick hair. But if you don't have ridiculous Greek genes like me, your hair should be up to par by a week. It's a win-win: no harsh chemicals in your body and no feeding the shampoo companies money.

On another very exciting beauty related note, I started making my own lotion. I have suffered with dry skin every season change. It makes me a little nervous to be putting something that is filled with toxins onto the largest organ, my skin. Here's all you need:

1 1/4 Cup Hot Water

1/4 cup emulsified wax (you can buy this online or at some craft stores)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

24-36 drops of any essential oil you wish. I used lavender for stress relief.

In a mason jar, I combined the wax and olive oil. Then, I popped it into the microwave for about a minute (the temperature should be around 155 degrees).

While the wax and olive oil sat in the microwave, I filled another mason jar with the water. Once the olive oil and wax mixture was done, I put the water in the microwave for a minute. The temperature on this should read roughly 120 degrees.

The final steps are adding the drops to your olive oil mixture. Then, pour the water in the mixture; it should turn into a milky white color.

To finish this off, I pour the mixture into the now empty mason jar and let it cool down.

I must admit, I approached this project with some apprehension. I know how to cook, but I don't know how to cook up lotion - or so I thought.

Anyway, back onto what I do best - cooking up FOOD

More soup, more soup, I say..

As I mentioned in my previous post, I've been a soup making addict. I'm trying to come up with healthy version of each soup, so the recipe making is taking some time. I have mastered, thanks to Rachael Ray in part, a very light Cherry Tomato Ravioli Recipe:

Ingredients:

2 tablespoon EVOO

2 Pints Cherry Tomatoes

2 Cloves Garlic

4 Cups Chicken Stock (use veggie Chicken Stock to make this Vegetarian)

1 LB Fresh Ravioli (I used store bought frozen, but you can use whatever is in your house)

2 Scallions

1 Cup Torn Basil Leaves

1. In a large, deep skillet with a tight-fitting lid, or a Dutch oven, heat the EVOO, 2 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. Stir in the cherry tomatoes and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cover the pan and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until the tomatoes burst and a thick sauce forms, 15 minutes. Feel free to mash the tomatoes up with a potato masher.

2. Add the chicken stock and 2 cups water and bring to a boil. Cook for a couple of minutes, then add the ravioli and cook until tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the basil and scallions to wilt. The fun part about this is you can add whatever pasta you want. If you're a vegan and you don't want to have the dairy, add in plain pasta and thicken the broth up with a little bit of corn starch.