Calendula - Son may have Tourette's

[calendula]

You put vinegar in yogurt? Wouldn't that give you a variety of farmer's cheese instead?

I bought loofa seeds but didn't get them planted this year, dang it. That carved birdhouse gourd is wonderful! I have 4 big gourds hanging out in the shop, waiting for time and inspiration.

No, I didn't put any vinegar in it, so that's why I can't figure out why it seperated. It's a mystery...

 

[Marianne]

So sorry, I had to back up a few pages and read posts a little slooower this time! I am the Queen of Failed Yogurt. Honest. So I have had many batches of yo-cheese. Most of the time I end up with whey on the top that I pour off (freeze it in ice cube trays, you can use it for baking, etc). But I haven't had one that completely separated like curds and whey..yet. I have only had a couple batches that were the way that I wanted it. I really don't like it to have so much twang that it almost puts hair on my chest, ya know? But I like it really thick.

Here's a link that states what the Balm of Gilead does: http://www.doctornutritionist.com/resource/cottonwood-balm-gilead.html
Since it's just cottonwood buds and olive oil, I'd have a hard time consuming it, but it can also be used as a salve or sore muscle rub - they say. I have not used my batch yet.

I'm waiting to see what you do with the beeswax, too. I have a small chunk in a jar of honey that I keep looking at. I don't even know how to get the honey out of it. I thought I'd make some lip balm or something. I dunno.

 

[keljonma]

I have seen beeswax combined with carnauba wax before for cosmetic use, calendula, but am not sure that is in your blend.

 

[keljonma]

I have a small chunk in a jar of honey that I keep looking at. I don't even know how to get the honey out of it. I thought I'd make some lip balm or something. I dunno.

Marianne, you can remove the honeycomb from your chunk honey. [Chunk honey is a piece of honeycomb in a jar filled with liquid honey.] The method I will describe is called the "crush and strain method" for obvious reasons.

Place the honeycomb in a zip-style plastic bag, remove the air, and squeeze the honeycomb. This will release the honey in the comb. When it looks like you've got it broken up and crushed fairly well, you can transfer the entire sticky mess into a sieve to let the honey drain from the comb and bag into a bowl. Once the honey has drained from the comb, you can place the honey in a jar for future use.

Now place the honeycomb into a bowl of cool water. Swish the comb around in the water. Drain it into a cheesecloth-lined sieve and let it drain. Repeat this until the comb is completely free of honey; it will take a number of rinsings. (I use this water on my outdoor gardens or compost pile.) After the final rinse. let the honeycomb dry completely in the cheesecloth. It may take a day. This is beeswax ready to be melted for crafting. Have fun!

 

[calendula]

So sorry, I had to back up a few pages and read posts a little slooower this time! I am the Queen of Failed Yogurt. Honest. So I have had many batches of yo-cheese. Most of the time I end up with whey on the top that I pour off (freeze it in ice cube trays, you can use it for baking, etc). But I haven't had one that completely separated like curds and whey..yet. I have only had a couple batches that were the way that I wanted it. I really don't like it to have so much twang that it almost puts hair on my chest, ya know? But I like it really thick.

Here's a link that states what the Balm of Gilead does: http://www.doctornutritionist.com/resource/cottonwood-balm-gilead.html
Since it's just cottonwood buds and olive oil, I'd have a hard time consuming it, but it can also be used as a salve or sore muscle rub - they say. I have not used my batch yet.

I'm waiting to see what you do with the beeswax, too. I have a small chunk in a jar of honey that I keep looking at. I don't even know how to get the honey out of it. I thought I'd make some lip balm or something. I dunno.

No problem Marianne. This is the first batch I've had go wrong on me. I left it sit longer than I usually do, hoping for it to get thicker, so I'm wondering if that had anything to do with it? But I feel better knowing that someone else has ended up with "yo-cheese" too.

Oh, and thanx for the link!

keljonma, they were selling chunk honey at our Farmer's Market, but I didn't buy it cuz I wasn't sure what to do with it. Thanks for explaining.

 

[keljonma]

keljonma, they were selling chunk honey at our Farmer's Market, but I didn't buy it cuz I wasn't sure what to do with it. Thanks for explaining.

Some people like liquid honey, some prefer comb honey. The chunk honey gives you both for 1 price. It is yummy. The honeycomb is edible.

 

[Farmfresh]

There was a little store in a small town near us that sold honey, wax and other bee products for years. (It is closed now ) The store owners made most of their money from renting out their hives to fruit growers in our area. One of the draws for the little store, besides a large collection of local Indian artifacts, was a see through hive inside of the store with a tube leading the bees to the outside! Since there were also several orchards in the area, we used to regularly take the kids to get fruit and then stopped in to buy our honey as well.

The kids always wanted a container of the chunk honey as their treat. We would take it to the car and cut it into chunks slightly bigger than a big gumball. Each kid would get a chunk. They would pop them into their mouths and chew the honey out of the wax, then chew the wax most of the rest of the day.

 

[calendula]

That see-through hive sounds so cool, Farmfresh! I'm definately going to pick up some chunk honey the next time I see it.

We had a storm roll through last night. The high winds knocked over one of our trellises, and two of the roma tomato plants got smashed by it. We have a couple dozen tomato plants, so I suppose it's not the end of the world, but those tomatoes were our babies. I remember the day we started the seeds in the greenhouse, and how we watched them grow all spring and summer. Okay, maybe I'm being a little to sentimental.

It's been hot, hot, hot! We're under a heat advisory until Thursday night. We're supposed to have highs in the 90s, with humidity bumping the heat index up to 110. This is probably normal forsome of those living down south, but for us wimpy northerners, it's pretty darn hot. Our biggest worry is keeping the chickens cool. Yesterday they were panting all day. We put some boards over the coop for shade and have some fans circulating the air for them. It's so darn muggy, and there is no wind; just stagnant, hot, wet air.

I made a giant batch of milk, honey, and oats soap yesterday. This is the first time I have added milk to my soaps, so I was a little surprised when the milk turned a bright orange color after I added the lye! Wasn't expecting that. I also used my immersion blender for the first time when making soap, and wow!, did it ever trace fast! I had to hurry to get it in the molds before it got too thick! I can't wait to see how this batch turns out.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

 

[valmom]

I haven't had the nerve to try milk soap yet with all the stories I have heard about it "burning" the milk if it isn't done right. And the immersion blender is a wonderful thing! I have had to glop a few batches from the pan into molds because it tries to set up in the pan

 

[calendula]

I partially froze the milk first, so that it was slushy, and it seemed to do okay.