Sunday, July 17, 2011

Healthy Homemaking Series: The Wonders of Vinegar

After a few people asking, I decided to make a Facebook page for the blog.  You can get updates right in your Facebook news feed if you "like" The Wife Life page.  Check it out here.  Now, on to the series...

Baby Step 2: The Wonders of Vinegar

Challenge: Discover and add a few uses of vinegar to your collection.

Why: Vinegar is a simple, non toxic product that can be used for cleaning or a multitude of varied purposes.

How: After perusing Stephanie's list in the book and her online references, there were literally hundreds of possibilities.  We chose 3 new uses.

1. Prevent Cracks When Making Boiled Eggs - I have always had issues with my eggs cracking while boiling them, so this one jumped out at me right away.  I added a "splash" (probably about 1 tbsp) of white vinegar to the water before boiling.  Unfortunately, I dropped one of the eggs while placing it in the pot which cracked it right off the bat.  I thought I had ruined the experiment, but that was not the case.  The other 3 eggs never cracked, and even though I had cracked the other egg shell, no egg came out!  I was so impressed.

Yum, yum!

2. Fabric Softener and Static Cling Reducer - I have wanted to find a way to eliminate the wasteful, chemical-filled fabric softener sheets that I use, so this was another exciting opportunity.  I added 1/2 cup of white vinegar into the fabric softener section of the washing machine and continued to do my laundry as usual.  I used Norwex's dryer balls only in the drying machine, and our clothes came out soft and cling-free!  I will be doing this every load from now on.

Fill to the max line.

3. Relieve a Sore Throat - Yesterday I spent the evening outdoors in the rain exerting myself.  Not surprisingly, I came home with a sore throat.  Turned out to be a good chance to try out another vinegar use.  I added 1 tbsp of vinegar to a full glass of warm water.  Then I attempted to gargle and swallow 2 mouthfuls.  This was no easy feat (and that is coming from an avid oil of oregano user.)  I managed to choke my way through the process, and the relief was instant.  I went to bed and am still pain-free this morning.

I had no idea what was coming.

Bonus:  These were all white vinegar uses.  Here are 2 tried and true ideas for two other types.

Balsamic Vinegar - We use this on its own for a tasty and much healthier salad dressing.
Apple Cider Vinegar - Sun burn relief!  I have been doing this for years, and it is effective.  You can check it out here.
How do you use vinegar around your house?

4 comments:

  1. for a cold with a very sore throat i warm water then add some apple cider vinegar, raw honey, and lemon. it is a life saver. =) also i eat raw cloves of garlic like they r going out of style when im sick. works wonders!

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  2. How are you boiling your eggs? The best way is to start the eggs in the water and allow it all to come up to a boil, and then immediately shut it off, cover the pan, and remove it from the burner. This is what is suggested in Russ Parson's "How to Pick a Peach" about food science. It also helps prevent green yolks. My mother has been doing it this way for years as well.

    Really, there are very few foods you'd ever want to boil. This was an important point made when I was in culinary school. Pasta is to be boiled, but not much else.

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  3. Awesome! Thanks for the tips, SuperSarah and Amanda on Maui. Good info to know.

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  4. Thanks for the sweet comment about my bath redo. Btw, Wow! You've got so much creativity and I'm admiring them all. Can you please share your creative posts at the Creative Bloggers' Party & Hop? Hope to see you there at the party :)

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