Soap

Reason No 90

Soap!  Beautiful bars of soap made from all the left over milk!

 

I've been making a few bars of soap from scratch for many years. I have a skin sensitivity and so many soaps on the market contain carcinogens and palm oil or whatever oil. How is one to know? SO - I started making my own with just 4-5 ingredients. It's easy but time consuming. IF I had a farm, I would make 100's of bars at a time. Great for gifts, selling and a wonderful way to use up excess milk.

A cow produces 4-6 gallons of milk a day. What am I going to do with all that milk? Well... Milk soap for one. Can't wait!

In the meantime, I make small batches on my balcony. It's a pretty messy operation so out doors is the best. See an easy recipe I created years ago that makes about 6 bars.

WARNING - LYE IS DANGEROUS - research before you start. It burns like a mother if you get it on your skin.

Milk Caramel Soap  - May 2011

1 1/4 Cup Cold Milk
1/4 Cup Lye - make sure it's 100% lye and doesn't contain anything else

Oils
1/2 Cup Lard - I use bacon grease rendered down and cleaned. You could use any hard fat.
1/2 Cup Coconut Oil
1 Cup Olive Oil

Make sure you have gloves, long sleeve shirt, glasses and a thick apron on. I use a stick blender and it sometimes splatters. 

Highly recommend doing this outside. It takes time so plan at least 40 minutes in total.

In a large mixable bowl, pour the cold milk into the lye. DON'T sprinkle the Lye over the milk. EVER. It bubbles and can burn your skin. Stir gently and leave until it reaches 110 degrees. It will curdle but do not worry. This is just the lye breaking apart the milk solids. It will all come together later. It looks like caramel.

Warm the oils in a sauce pan. They must reach 110 degree. Do this on a really low temp as the next thing you know, it's over 120 degree and you then must cool it down to 110 which takes time.

This is very important. Your milk/lye mix and the oils must both be at the same temperature or it will not work.

When both the milk/lye mix and the oils are 110 degrees, slowly pour the oil into the milk/lye mix and stir. Slowly until it's incorporated then use the stick blender to mix. Caution as it does splatter.

This is were it becomes time consuming. Anywhere from 20-40 minutes.

You have to mix it continuously until you reach whats called Trace. I recommend looking up in a you tube video on what it should look like. Think of pancake batter or pudding. As soon as the mix coats a spoon and is thickish, pour it into your mold. I use a silicone bread form that is easy to release and can take the heat from the soap mix. It's hot so again, prepare yourself. No short sleeves.

Place a clean towel over your soap mix in the silicone form. Let it sit for 24 to 48 hours. It's working it's magic so just leave it alone.

Then - with gloves on, NEVER touch it with bare hands, un-mold and cut into bars. These bars must cure for 6 weeks before you use them. 6 WEEKS - not a day sooner. I place them on a cookie rack and lay a towel over them until they are ready.

You can add smelly oils like lavender but read up on when to add into the soap mix and how much. I found it became too expensive as you need a lot of oil and I liked the clean smell of this caramel milk soap just how it is. 

Reason 90 - making soap with my excess milk. Can't wait!