Boxing Day Special

I hope you are all enjoying great holidays!
For the rest of the week, here is the special for my etsy shop:
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Boxing Day Etsy Special: save 20% on all items in my Etsy shop with the coupon code "BOXING" on Dec. 26-31
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Each sale over $25 will receive a small free gift.

For Local London, ON Customers

LOCAL LONDON, ON CUSTOMERS:
Local customers are always welcome to pick up their order at my location. By appointment only. Please email/convo me for further details.
Complimentary gift-wrapping available.
Free delivery within London, ON with every purchase of $ 25.00 and more.
I take orders until Dec. 23, 2012 and then from Dec. 26.

Stay tuned for the Boxing day coupon code :)

Black Friday and Cyber Monday

This weekend is the weekend of wild shopping for Christmas gifts!
If you want to get wild, too, here's my offer :)

Black Friday and Cyber Monday Etsy Special: save 20% off with the coupon code "BLACKCYBER" between Friday Nov. 23 and Monday Nov. 26
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Each sale over $25 will receive a small free gift.
Valid for online purchases only.

Christmas Bazaar in London, Ontario

Yay, it's my birthday that day!

Green smoothie with wild greens

Here is a simple smoothie made with a handful of wild greens that I pictured in the previous post (dandilion, lambs`quarters, purslane and plantain).

Greens with bananas and apples and ...

...some blueberries

Great Greens You Don't Have To Buy

Here is a list of edible and nutritious wild greens that I don't buy but get from my own lawn, flower beds and small vegetable patch behind our house. 

In the near future I plan to write more  about each of these plants, but right now I just add the pictures.

Plantain (Plantago major) (Skorocel)

Lambs' quarters (Chenopodium album) (Merlík biely)

Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)  (Púpava)

Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) (Portulaka zeleninová)

        

Green Smoothie with Parsley

Today we had a simple blend of leftover romaine lettuce and parsley leaves and banana. With too much water it came out quite runny. It was easier to feed it to my 10 month-old baby in the bottle than with a spoon. Even though he is breasfed and never had a bottle before, he had no problems with drinking from a bottle. 
{I was experimenting with the camera and the pictures are not the best. Some are too dark, some too bright :( But the smoothie tasted delicious.}

When the smoothie comes out froothy and starts to separate, more bananas or a mango will make it creamier.

Green Smoothie with Purslane

Sometimes during summer I have learn about Purslane (Portulaca oleracea).  I haven't noticed this small groundcover weed before. But as I read and searched more on the internet I was happy it's growing in my small vegetable garden patch. 
Purslane is super-nutritious. It has the highest content of omega-3 fatty acids of all green leafy vegetables and is rich in various minerals, vitamins and fiber. 

I used the fresh succulent leaves and stems in a smoothie. It tasted a bit sour but an extra banana will make it more palatable for children. My kids both love green smoothies and they don't mind the extra "green" taste.

Purslane from my flower patch (Portulaka zeleninová)

Purslane from my neighbour Eva

I was lucky to have a chat with my neighbour Eva about plants when she mentioned this weed sprouting all over her front flower bed. We discovered it was purslane. She let me help myself and pick some of it for my smoothies. When my own garden supply got low, I went over and my toddler (He knows several edible wild plants/weeds now and every time we go for a walk, he picks the fresh leaves and says "It's for the smoothie, mom.") gathered a handfull for next days breakfast.

And in go some soaked chia seeds, bunch of purslane, some blueberries, one apple and two bananas

Yummy breakfast is ready.

I hope this tasty-looking smoothie has inspired you to try it, too. But before you go out and pick your lawn, do some research of your own and make sure you know very well which plant to pick. There are some similar weeds that can grow near purslane that are not edible and might be harmful. (Purslane is succulent with meaty leaves and has round stems with clear juice.)

Here is the nutrition chart:

Purslane (Portulaca oleracea), raw, fresh, Nutritive value per 100 g. (Source: USDA National Nutrient data base) Principle Nutrient Value Percentage of RDA Energy 16 Kcal 1.5% Carbohydrates 3.4 g 3% Protein 1.30 g 2% Total Fat 0.1 g 0.5% Cholesterol 0 mg 0% Vitamins Folates 12 µg 3% Niacin 0.480 mg 3% Pantothenic acid 0.036 mg 1% Pyridoxine 0.073 mg 5.5% Riboflavin 0.112 mg 8.5% Thiamin 0.047 mg 4% Vitamin A 1320 IU 44% Vitamin C 21 mg 35% Electrolytes Sodium 45 mg 3% Potassium 494 mg 10.5% Minerals Calcium 65 mg 6.5% Copper 0.113 mg 12.5% Iron 1.99 mg 25% Magnesium 68 mg 17% Manganese 0.303 mg 13% Phosphorus 44 mg 6% Selenium 0.9 µg 2% Zinc 0.17 mg 1.5% Dry chia seeds (Salvia hispanica) are tiny but packed with nutrients. To get the most out of them they need to be soaked in water and blended. They form clear gel in contact with liquids.

Cherry Pudding for Kiddies

Today I made my kiddies a deliscious afternnom snack. They gulped it down :)

1 or 2 ripe bananas and a handfull of fresh pitted cherries...

...blend well..

...yummy, yummy, yummy!

Strawberry Season

We are in the middle of strawberry season and I am totally enjoying it. The other day we went to pick up strawberries to a local farm just outside the city. I try to freeze as much as my freezer drawer will hold so we can have these great berries in breakfast smoothies till spring.
We had this lovely combination in the morning:

Lots of strawberries, lots of fresh baby spinach, 1 banana and water

Banana will make it sweet and creamy

Blend well...

... and enjoy!

 

I always put in 1 or 2 bananas. They blend into a lovely smooth, sweet and creamy drink. 

The base is always:

banana + fresh leafy greens + water

then add various fruits you have on hand or are in season such as

+ mango, peaches, plums, apples, pears, cherries (pitted, of course), blueberries ...  

Use fresh fruit. If unavailable, frozen fruit is the next best choice.
Also always use (room temperature) water as liquid. Fresh coconut water is a great choice, too.


My kids love all smoothies I make them. They both have a cup and don`t mind if the colour is really green. If you introduce green foods right from the beginning, they WILL LIKE green vegetables and eat them without objections.
And if they see you eat greens, they will follow you and like what you like to eat. Kids are copy cats. 


Leafy greens that I love in smoothies are spinach (for its fantastic green colour - if combined with banana only - and for its neutral taste), romaine lettuce, mixed baby greens, parsley (for its amazing FRESH taste), dandelion (for its availability and healing effect). 3 - 4 leaves of lemon balm add a nice lemony kick to it. Nettles also taste nice. 

Today just shortly. I will write more on greens and smoothies in the future. Till then --> give it a try!!!

Milk - new ingredient

Milk Soap
Gentle unscented bar carefully made with fresh, organic, full fat, non-homogenized milk from local pastured cows

I always wanted to try to make soap with fresh milk but never dared to actually do it. It is said to be a tricky process that frequently ends in failure. So without any planning one day I got my hands on some lovely fresh organic milk directly from a local farm. I had enough for a nice batch. I had to act fast (within 3 days) before the milk could spoil.

In the evening I recalculated one of my recipes, measured ingredients and prepared everything. As soon as the kids were in bed the fun started. "Keep it cool and do it slowly" that's the advise I was given. It worked. The milk had to be cooled and lye had to be mixed in in small amounts in order to avoid fast heat up and scorching the milk.

Everything worked out nicely and in several weeks I had these cute bars. Milk (whether cow's or goat's) has been used for centuries in beauty treatments and bathing for its conditioning and moisturizing effect on skin so the soap is very gentle and perfect for sensitive skin. It is unscented and smooth with creamy lather.

Glad I gave it a try :)))

Coffee Addict

Cofee Addict All Natural Hand Milled Soap

This beautiful exfoliating bar will be on sale from Monday in my Etsy shop. It's fragrant with Coffea Arabica oil and freshly ground beans.

Poseidon is out!

Introductory price $6.00 a bar between February 27 and March 4, 2012

About the new soap:

With cedarwood and eucalyptus essential oils - this is the first bar in my new line of hand milled soaps. Formulated with extra virgin olive oil, coconut and palm butters for the base that was hand milled after curing and drying period. Then I added seaweed in three forms, clay, essential oils and sea salt. The scent of cedarwood oil promotes spirituality, balance and calmness. Eucalyptus helps clear congested respiratory passages. Kelp and dulse seaweeds are rich in minerals and vitamins.

Hand milled soap is hard and long lasting. You will be surprised that you still have it in your soap dish after weeks of daily use. It takes twice as long to make hand milled soap but the extra process is worth it. The result: a pretty, very mild, compact bar with unique texture and smoother, richer lather.

Green smoothie

This green smoothie is a great breakfast for mom, baby and everybody else

You need: ripe mango, 1-2 bananas, 1-2 handfuls of fresh baby spinach, water. Blend well and enjoy. It`s sweet, smooth, creamy and DELICIOUS!

Banana & Spinach Green Smoothie

Welcome!

My dear readers, hello and welcome! 

My name is Slavka and I behind this blog. Besides other things I am a passionate soapmaker and a registered holistic nutritionist. I am going to share with you my adventures with making soap, natural skin care and throw in some thoughts on nutrition, tasty recipes for great skin (and overall great health) and everything in between. 

I will also regularly post exclusive coupon codes for my Etsy shop and unveil new addition to my line of natural handmade soaps and skin care.