Tallow Lotion

I love this lotion! Though it's a bit greasier than conventional lotions, the benefits are many. Great information on tallow lotion can be found on The Weston A. Price website.

What you need:
 1  11 ounce jar of Epic Beef Tallow (from Thrive)
 1 to 2 ounces extra virgin olive oil
 Your choice of essential oils (I have used geranium with lavender and also lemon and orange)

 Equipment:
 2 cup glass Pyrex measuring cup
 Shallow pan

What you do:
 In a glass Pyrex 2 cup measuring cup, scoop out all of tallow
 Place in a pan filled with about 1 inch of water
 Heat on medium until tallow is melted
 Let tallow cool
 Add 1 to 2 ounces of olive oil and desired amount of essential oils
 Mix thoroughly (I use my electric hand mixer) and store in glass containers (an empty Organic Valley ghee jar is perfect)
 Place in refrigerator to harden a bit, but not too much
 Enjoy!

Caution: Be prepared for dogs to lick your legs. ;-) They love this stuff!

The BEST Deodorant

For about the last five years, we have been switching out our store bought personal care products for homemade, non-toxic ones. This deodorant was the first thing we made. It's easy to make...and it works!

What you need:

 3/4 cup coconut oil (for this, I use the TJs brand)

 1/2 cup Shea butter (from Thrive)

 1/2 cup arrowroot powder (from Thrive)

 1/2 cup baking soda (Bob's from Thrive)

What you do:

 Place a Pyrex glass measuring cup in a sauce pan containing about an inch of water

 Heat the coconut oil and the Shea butter in the measuring cup on medium heat until melted

 Remove from heat and place melted oil and Shea butter in bowl

 Add arrowroot powder and baking soda and stir to combine

 Place in 3 separate 4 ounce Mason jars 

 Cover and place in refrigerator to harden a bit, but not too much

 To use scoop out deodorant (about the size of a shelled peanut), rub together in hands

 and rub under arms

If you develop a rash under your arms, try cutting back on the amount of baking soda. We had problems with rashes more often when we were not using Shea butter. No problems since adding it!

Also, this deodorant melts in warm weather. We haven't noticed any change in its effectiveness. 

Seared Ahi Salad

Delicious! Simple! This salad makes a great dinner.

What you need:
 Wild caught Ahi tuna steak
 Salt
 Pepper
 Garlic powder
 Butter or ghee
 Arugula and mixed greens
 Cucumber, thinly sliced
 Avocado, diced
 Goat cheese, crumbled
 Zest and juice from one lemon
 Avocado oil to taste
 Sprouted pumpkin or sunflower seeds

What you do:
 Place big chunk of butter or ghee in pan, heated on medium high
 Sprinkle salt, pepper and garlic powder on one side of Ahi steak
 Place steak, seasoned side down in pan
 Cook for 3 minutes
 While cooking, sprinkle salt, pepper and garlic powder on other side
 Flip steak and cook 2 to 3 minutes, then remove from heat
 Coarsely chop arugula and mixed greens and place in large bowl
 Add cucumber, avocado and goat cheese
 Zest lemon and add juice from one lemon to salad
 Drizzle avocado oil to taste
 Arrange salad on two plates
 Slice cooked Ahi and add to salad
 Top with sprouted pumpkin or sunflower seeds
 Enjoy!

Bacon Brussels Sprouts

What you need:
 1 package organic Brussels sprouts (TJs)
 1/4 lb. bacon, sliced
 Ghee
 Garlic powder or finely chopped fresh garlic
 Celtic sea salt
 Pepper

What you do:
 Preheat oven to º400
 Line a baking sheet with parchment paper
 While oven is preheating, spoon out a big blob of ghee onto baking sheet
 Place in oven to melt ghee
 Clean Brussels sprouts, slice off ends, and cut in half lengthwise
 Toss Brussels sprouts in melted ghee
 Add salt, pepper, garlic powder and toss some more
 Add sliced bacon
 Bake for 10 minutes, then toss
 Continue to bake until Brussels sprouts have browned, about 10 to 15 more minutes
 Enjoy!

Fritatta

My sweet baby sister, Debbi, is an amazing cook! We were heading to a dear friend's daughter's wedding, and Debbi wanted to bring a frittata for the family. We didn't head to the store. We just combined what we already had. One bridesmaid commented that it was the best frittata she had ever tasted!

What you need:
 3 sweet potatoes or russet potatoes, cleaned and thinly sliced
 Butter
 1 pound bacon, chopped
 1 diced onion
 8 ounces chopped mushrooms
 8 ounces chopped spinach
 4 finely chopped garlic cloves
 8 ounces grated cheese
 12 pastured eggs
 1/2 cup whipping cream
 Salt and pepper to taste

What you do:
 Heat oven to 350º
 While oven is heating, place large slab of butter in 9" X 13" baking glass and melt in oven
 Once butter is melted, remove baking dish and layer potatoes on bottom of dish
 Put baking dish back in oven and bake until potatoes are tender to touch with fork, about 10-15 mins.
 While potatoes are cooking, put bacon in large pot and cook on medium heat
 Once bacon is almost cooked crisply, add onions and mushrooms
 When onions and mushrooms are tender, add spinach and garlic
 In large bowl beat the eggs and add cream, salt (about 2 tsp.) and pepper
 Spoon out bacon/spinach/mushrooms over the potatoes
 Sprinkle grated cheese on top
 Pour egg/cream mixture over everything
 Place in pre-heated oven and check at 30 minutes
 Cool, slice and serve with a dollop of creme fraiche (sour cream), sliced avocado and a scoop of salsa
 Enjoy hot or cold!

I wrap leftovers in parchment paper (individual servings), then in plastic bags and store in the freezer. Then I heat up just what we need for a meal in our toaster oven. Quick, nutrient-rich, yummy meal!

Whey & Yogurt Cheese

This is so simple, I wasn't sure it needed its own post. 

I use whey for fermenting veggies, condiments and salsa, for making beet kavass and for soaking almond flour.

And, I add a little raw honey to the yogurt cheese to make a delicious honey yogurt spread. Fabulous on banana bread!

What you need:

 1 quart organic plain yogurt

 Sieve

 Light dish towel

 Bowl

What you do:

 Place sieve over bowl

 Place dish towel in sieve

 Pour yogurt into the towel lined sieve 

 Lightly fold corners of dish towel over yogurt 

 Let sit for 12 hours or more

 Store the whey in a glass jar and the yogurt cheese in a glass storage containers

 (The liquid in the bowl is whey

 The solid in the sieve is the yogurt cheese)

 Both the whey and the yogurt cheese stay fresh in the refrigerator for several weeks

Banana Bread

My husband, Greg, found this recipe from Dr. Axe. Wow! Good job, my love!

What you need:
 5" X 9" glass baking dish
 4 eggs
 3 medium very ripe bananas
 1/4 cup honey
 1/4 cup coconut milk
 1 tsp. vanilla
 2 tsp. baking soda
 2 1/4 cup almond flour
 1/2 tsp. sea salt
 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

What you do:
 Preheat oven to 350º (While oven is heating, place a good amount of butter in baking dish and place     in oven to melt, but be careful to not burn)
 Mash bananas in bowl, then add eggs, honey, coconut milk and vanilla
 In separate bowl, combine remaining ingredients
 Combine both mixtures and stir until well incorporated
 Place in baking dish and bake for 35 to 50 minutes
 Serve with LOTS of butter from grass fed cows or honey/yogurt cheese
 Enjoy!