Homemade marigold (calendula officinalis) cream

Hi there!

I always had very delicate skin, it's extremely dry and sensitive, so finding the perfect cream can sometimes be tricky, when I recently went to visit my mum, she suggested that we could prepare this very simple cream using only 3 ingredients.

My mum had some dried marigolds ready to be used :)
we're also very lucky because our neighbour is a bee keeper, so he very kindly gave us for free some bees wax, together with a pot of yummy organic honey,
the only ingredient we had to buy was almond oil (they sell it most pharmacies)

I use this cream every morning after the shower, and every night, not only for the face, but also my legs and arms are looking much better since I started using it.


Ingredients:

1/2 litre sweet almond oil or virgin extra olive oil
(almond oil seems to penetrate better the skin than olive oil)
50 grs of bees wax
150 grs fresh  common marigold flowers or 50 grs of dried flowers
Cheese cloth or similar (very thin cotton)

How to prepare it:

Cook (infuse) the flowers in the oil for an hour, at a very low temperature so they don't fry.
Drain the flowers and leave them to cool down, meanwhile, put the bees wax in the pot with the oil and once it's dissolved completely squeeze the juice of the cooled flowers with the cloth back into the oil mixture, blend well and filter,
put the mixture into little pots (you have to be quick , as the cream will start to settle down as soon as it's out of the heat)
I suggest you label the pots with the date, they can be stored in a dark cool place up to two years

Properties:

as well as keeping my skin hydrated, it antiseptic, fungicide and has a anti-inflammatory action

enjoy! x

Homemade hummus

Hi,

I've been home for a couple of weeks, and made this yummy-licious recipe with my mum,
 I remember when I was a kid we use to eat it quite often
I must say, this hummus is not like the ones you find in the supermarket, it's less runny and much more compact, perfect to eat it as a side with vegetables, rice, or as a spread on toast,
to have it as a dipping sauce, you will need to add some of the liquid from the cans.


Ingredients
400 grms canned chickpeas (already cooked)
juice of half a lemon
3 cloves of garlic
sesame seeds (toasted in a pan until golden brown)
5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt
paprika (decoration)


Rinse the chickpeas in cold water and tip into the food processor, add the lemon juice, garlic, toasted
sesame seeds, olive oil & salt (if you want to make it as a dipping sauce, add some of the reserved liquid from the cans).
when the mixture is well combined and smooth, pour it into a bowl , sprinkle with paprika and drizzle with olive oil.
Leave it in the fridge for a couple of hours before serving. Enjoy!

night night x