Hi Goshen, Here are some homemade salve recipes (I have not personally tried any of them) First one from http://www.bushka.cz/archiv/mastEN.html Ingredients: White or yellow (non-refined - better for allergies) Vaseline, leaves and lower buds of cannabis, optionally a pinch of mint crystals or 0,1 l of hempseed oil. Proportions: For 1 kg of Vaseline it is necessary to use 100 g of dried leaves and 50 g of lower buds Preparation: 1. melt one half of the Vaseline in a larger pot 2. add roughly crushed leaves and let them slowly fry during 20 minutes 3. after cooling the mixture pour into the pot 4 liters of water 4. bring to the boiling point and slowly cook during 90 - 120 minutes 5. let it cool and put it into the fridge overnight 6. take out the fatty cake and press it in order to eliminate the rests of water 7. spread the cake into a wider recipient, cover it and let it ferment during 3 weeks in a dark place at room temperature 8. again put the mixture into a larger pot, add the other half of Vaseline and melt it 9. slowly cook the mixture until the disagreeable smell of fermentation disappears 10. drain it through a strainer and pour the resulting light-green colored liquid into a recipient immersed in a water bath 11. add finely crushed lower buds and cook in the water bath during one hour until a light skim forms on the surface (dont forget to stir frequently) 12. let it cool and store it for 1 week in a dark and cold place 13. repeat the cooking in water bath and put the recipient into a cold place again for another week 14. melt and cook the mixture as in the precedent point, drain it first through a kitchen strainer and after through a fine canvas (do not throw the canvas with the drained buds, store it into a freezer - it can be very efficiently used as a warm compress in case of asthmatic problems, bronchitis or joint pains) 15. the salve is now ready to be poured into small cups if you want to use it pure - otherwise you can improve it with a pinch of mint crystals (for muscular and joint pains) or with 0,1 liter of virgin hempseed oil (for dermatologic problems) Pure or mint salve may be stored in a cold place, but they do not deteriorate for at least 6 months even at the room temperature. In the contrary, the salve with the addition of hempseed oil needs to be stored in a cold place and should be used within 6 weeks. And here's another one from http://www.natural-skin-care-info.com/herbal-healing-salve.html Basic Recipe: 1 cup herbally infused oil 1 - 2 oz. Beeswax 10 capsules Vitamin E Oil ½ tsp. each tea tree and lavender essential oils In a small pan, gently heat the herbally infused oil and beeswax until barely melted. Cut or poke the vitamin E capsules open, and squeeze the vitamin E oil into the beeswax/oil mixture. Remove from heat, and add the essential oils. Pour a tiny amount of the salve mixture onto waxed paper or into a container to cool. Test it for thickness - if you'd like it to be harder, add more beeswax. If you'd like it to have a thinner balm, add more oils. When you're satisfied with the consistency, pour the balm into clean, sanitized jars and let cool. This all-purpose salve can be used for cuts, scrapes, splinters, diaper rash, burns, rashes, or for dry skin. To make a herbally infused oil: In a saucepan, combine dry herbs and a vegetable oil (we like extra virgin olive oil, but just about any kind will do). Specific proportions are not important - use a few generous handfuls of herbs and use enough oil to cover them. Heat over lowest possible heat for several hours - three minimum, we usually try for 12 or 15. Alternatively, use a crock-pot on the "low" setting. Strain out the herbs and use your herbally infused oil to make balms, or as a massage oil, bath oil, or as a great winter moisturizer. Some Herbs to try: chamomile, comfrey, sheep sorrell, turkish rhubarb, St. John's Wort, calendula. And one more from http://natural-homemade-skin-care.blogspot.com/2008/02/coconut-and-neem-oil-salve.html Use this salve topically for chronic skin conditions such as acne, eczema and psoriasis. Coconut oil and oregon grape root can also be taken orally for added efficacy. You will need: 78g coconut oil (solid) 20g neem oil 3 x oregon grape root capsules 1ml cedarwood essential oil Method: Melt the coconut and neem oils in a double boiler. Take off the heat when melted, and stir in the contents (herb powder) of the oregon grape root capsules. Add the cedarwood essential oil. Stir until cool and set, and put into a clean, dark glass jar. Keep refrigerated as the oils have a low melt point.

Shauna, thanks for mentioning the "Gardener's Clean" waterless hand scrub. I'll have to keep an eye for it. What I use for a hand lotion is Herbacin Kamille. I find it works really at replenishing the moisture loss. Then to help heal cuts I use Aloe Vera gel, it helps speed up how long it takes for cuts and nicks to heal. For bug spray I usually use whatever has a high concentration of deet. I did find that Watkins sells a bug repellant that is a lotion and it works well. I usually use that one on my face as it smell like body lotion. A nicer than the stench of bug spray. Oh I also have a bottle called Marigold Horse Spray made by EQyss grooming products. There is no deet or chemicals in it so I can use it on the dogs. It smells nice too and seems to last fairly long. Syreeta

Here are a few recipes that I make using Buttermilk. As mentioned above, if you don't have buttermilk just add a little fresh squeezed lemon juice to your milk. Let it sit for a minute or two to thicken. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Almond Cake From Albufeira, Portugal ==================================== Bon Appetit, November 1977 1 cup all purpose flour 3/4 cup granulated sugar 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 egg 1/2 cup buttermilk 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/3 cup melted butter cooled to room Temperature 2/3 cup sliced almonds Hot Almond Syrup (recipe follows) Hot Almond Syrup 3/4 cup granulated sugar 6 tablespoons water 1/2 teaspoon almond extract . Preheat oven to 350* F. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside. Beat egg, buttermilk and vanilla extract together until smooth. Stir in melted butter. Add flour mixture and mix with spoon until nearly smooth. Turn into a buttered 9" springform pan. Bake until center of cake springs back when lightly touched, about 35 minutes. Remove from oven. While is hot, cover top with sliced almonds. Slowly pour Hot Almond Syrup even over, letting syrup soak into cake. Broil about 6" from heat until almonds are lightly toasted. Cool on rack 15 minutes. Using knife or spatula, loosen sides between pan and cake, then cool completely before releasing springform pan. Almond Syrup In 1-qt saucepan combine sugar and water. Boil until mixture reaches 220* F on candy thermometer*. Remove from heat and stir I almond extract. Edited: January 22nd, 2006 Be careful not to over cook the syrup or it will harden on top of the almonds rather than get absorbed into the cake. I don't use the thermometer. I just bring the syrup to a boil and cook for about one minute. There is so little syrup that it doesn't take long. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Oatmeal Pancakes ================ Http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/001893dees_oat meal_pancakes.php Do you love oatmeal? Do you love pancakes? You should try them when they are one and the same. Seriously. Dee Johnston whipped up her favorite family recipe for a recent gathering of friends and this is now my new favorite pancake. Great smothered with butter and maple syrup (of course) and also leftover strawberries from strawberry shortcake. A little advanced planning is necessary as the oats must soak in buttermilk overnight. Yummmmm.... 2 cups oats (the regular kind - Old Fashioned or Quick, not steel-cut and not instant) 3 cups buttermilk 3 eggs, well beaten 1/2 cup flour 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder Dash salt 1 tablespoon peanut oil Butter or extra vegetable oil for the griddle Optional A basket of strawberries - stems removed, sliced, and macerated with 2 Tbsp of sugar for an hour, then slightly mashed Maple syrup Butter 1 Put oats into a large bowl, add the buttermilk. Let the oats soak in the buttermilk overnight. 2 Mix in the eggs, flour, baking powder, salt, and peanut oil. Oatmeal-pancakes-1.jpg oatmeal-pancakes-2.jpg Oatmeal-pancakes-3.jpg 3 Then proceed as with any pancake recipe. Heat a flat iron surface - griddle or large pan - to medium high heat. Oil the pan with either a Tbsp of butter or vegetable oil. Ladle the pancake batter onto the griddle to the desired size, usually about 5 or 6 inches wide. When air bubbles start to bubble up to the surface at the center of the pancakes (about 2-3 minutes), use a flat spatula to flip them over. After a minute, peak under one for doneness. When golden or darker golden brown, they are done. Note that cooking the second side takes only about half as long as the first side. And the second side doesn't brown as evenly as the first side. Serve immediately or keep warm in the oven until ready to serve. Serves 4-6. Serve with butter, maple syrup, and macerated strawberries. Country Biscuits ================ 2 cups of flour 1 Tablespoon of baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup shortening, lard, Crisco or butter (I use butter) 1 cup of milk (cream) or buttermilk if using buttermilk add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda) Optional. Add a little sugar if you prefer sweet rather than savory. Mix the flour with the baking powder, and salt. Cut in butter/shortening until it resembles coarse meal. Stir milk or cream in to flour mixture. Mix quickly with fork until dough comes together. Using hands gently pat the ingredients together. Fold over once or twice or even three times if necessary. Do not over-handle. Pat out to about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick on a lightly floured board. Cut with biscuit cutters and place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake for approximately 12 to 15 minutes at 450°F. TIP: Using your finger push a little dent into the middle of the biscuit. This helps the biscuit rise straight and prevents it from tipping over as it rises. If making cheese biscuits add the mustard and cayenne to the dry ingredients and add the cheese after the shortening has been cut into the flour. Tip: An easy way to cut the butter into the flour is to use a box grater. The large side of the grater makes the perfect size pieces of butter. Options: You can use any favourite cheese. Gorgonzola and other blue cheeses are wonderful with the addition of black pepper. Cheddar cheese is good with chives or green onions. Sometimes I add dry mustard and cayenne pepper. Or bacon or ham.

I agree with using a FoodSaver instead of oxygen absorbing packets for long-term storage (more than a year). I've stored hundreds of pounds of grains/seeds/beans using a FoodSaver for over 20-years - since I got my first FoodSaver. For pantry use, you don't need anything other than and air-tight container if you plan on using them within the year. Oxygen-free storage is always a plus, since oxygen degrades all foods over time. Be sure to keep them out of heat, light, and humid conditions. jessyf - I've gone from using the plastic canisters to using the FoodSaver Universal Lids (they come in 2 sizes 4" and 5") - which are less expensive than the canisters. They work on any container that has a smooth edge and I use a lot of 1/2-gallon canning jars for food storage. I vacuum seal a canning lid on the jars, but when I transfer the jar from storage to pantry use, I'll put a Universal Lid on the jar. They are easy to open and reseal. -Grainlady