Frugal Recipes-Chocolate Sauce, Orange Smoothie, Laundry Detergent

Chocolate Syrup

Add to milk, ice cream, or anything that needs a good dose of chocolate.

½ cup unsweetened cocoa

1 cup water

2 cups sugar

1/8 tsp. salt (a couple dashes)

½ tsp. vanilla

In a medium saucepan*, whisk together the cocoa and water.  Heat over medium heat.  Add sugar and continue to stir until sugar dissolves.  Bring mixture to a full rolling boil.  Reduce heat to medium low and boil for a full 3 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Add salt and vanilla.  Pour into a Mason jar and store in fridge.

*Make sure the pan is big enough or else it will boil over.

Easy Orange Smoothie

4 oranges, peeled

½ cup milk

2 tsp. vanilla

Ice (less=thinner, more=thicker)

Put all ingredients into blender and blend well.  Can add sweetener if desired (sugar, agave, or whatever you prefer). Great for a snack or breakfast.

 

Homemade Liquid Laundry Soap (From www.thefamilyhomestead.com)

1/3 bar Fels Naptha or other type of soap, as listed above

½ cup washing soda

½ cup borax powder 

~You will also need a small bucket, about 2 gallon size~

Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan.  Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts.  Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved.  Remove from heat.  Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket.   Now add your soap mixture and stir.  Now add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir.  Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel.  You use ½ cup per load.

**A few things to note about the soap** 

~The finished soap will not be a solid gel.  It will be more of a watery gel that has been accurately described as an "egg noodle soup" look.

 ~The soap is a low sudsing soap.  So if you don’t see suds, that is ok.  Suds are not what does the cleaning, it is the ingredients in the soap.

Powdered Laundry Detergent - Top load machine (From the Duggar Family website, www.duggarfamily.com)

1   Fels-Naptha soap bar
1  Cup - Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda*
½  Cup Borax

-Grate soap or break into pieces and process in a food processor until powdered. Mix all ingredients. For light load, use 1 Tablespoon. For heavy or heavily soiled load, use 2 Tablespoons. Yields: 3 Cups detergent. (Approx. 40 loads)

*Arm & Hammer "Super Washing Soda" - in some stores or may be purchased online here (at Meijer.com). Baking Soda will not work, nor will Arm & Hammer Detergent - It must be sodium carbonate!!

TIPS FOR LAUNDRY SOAP: We use Fels-Naptha  bar soap in the homemade soap recipes, but you can use Ivory, Sunlight, Kirk's Hardwater Castile or Zote bars. Don't use heavily perfumed soaps. We buy Fels-Naptha by the case from our local grocer or online. Washing Soda and Borax can often be found on the laundry or cleaning aisle. Recipe cost approx. $2 per batch= .05 per load!

Inexpensive Fabric Softener Recipes

Recipe #1
1  Cup White Vinegar
Add vinegar to rinse cycle. Works great. Removes residue and odors. Also helps to keep washing machine and hoses fresh and clean too.

Recipe #2

1  Container of Name Brand Fabric Softener
4  Inexpensive sponges, cut in half

Pour entire container of softener into a 5 gallon bucket. Fill empty softener container with water twice. (2 parts water to 1 part softener) Add sponges to softener/water mixture. When ready to use wring out extra mixture from one sponge and add to the dryer as you would a dryer sheet.