The Crunchy Urbanite

Adventures in sustainable living from a fourth-floor walk-up.

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The Homegrown Cigar

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Let me preface this by saying I don’t smoke. (Militantly so.) But I do have to understand how everything is made. So when I learned that the flowering tobacco I had […]

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I’ve been making soap as a staple the last several years but never really concerned myself with the aesthetics until recently. Now I’m in love with using edible pigments like spirulina, turmeric, or moringa leaf to add more character to my otherwise functional bars. 🧼🍃 (These are 50/50 olive-coconut oil bars with peppermint essential oil. The smell as they cure is AMAZING. The green here is moringa in cold-process soap, the yellow marble effect is a dusting of turmeric between layers of hot-process soap.) . . . . . . . . #soapmaking #castilesoap #homemadesoap #cpsoap #cpsoapmaking #hpsoap #hpsoapmaking #naturalpigments #ediblepigments #spirulina #moringa #turmeric #peppermintessentialoil #homesteading #sustainability #zerowaste

Maybe one of my favorite parts of apple season is turning the odds and ends into next year’s apple cider vinegar. 🍎 Take a large jar, fill it 3/4 full with apple scraps, add about a cup of sugar dissolved in hot water, and fill to just under the neck of the jar. Once it’s not too hot, add a splash of raw apple cider vinegar to inoculate everything. 🍎 Cover with a paper towel or upside-down coffee filter and secure with a rubber band or canning jar band with the lid removed. Store someplace cool and dark and forget about it anywhere from 3 months to a year. (6 months is about right.) In a few months, you’ll notice an opaque scum on top - don’t worry, this is your mother! 🍎 A simple taste will let you know when it’s ready, but I recommend you freeze the filtered vinegar in plastic bottles. The water will stay frozen while the acetic acid melts first. The first 30-50% is your prime apple cider vinegar. 🍎 And voilà: you’ve got yourself delicious homemade, raw, unpasteurized apple cider vinegar that’s just as good or better than the store-bought stuff. :) 🍎 (And of course, you can find these instructions and more, complete with step-by-step photos, on the blog.) #applecidervinegar #acv #homemadevinegar #homesteading #appleseason #applescraps

Every year I grow Thai basil convinced I’ll do something with it and every year I’m annoyed with myself for not. Not this year. Behold! Thai basil ice cream. A sort of anise / green tea flavor. Followed the NYT recipe and substituted coconut milk for dairy. It’s fantastic. . . . . . . #homemadeicecream #basilicecream #thaibasil #nytrecipes

Baby’s first succus—or preserved juice. This is cleavers, AKA goosegrass (gallium asparine): one of the first plants of spring. For years I’ve been reading about cleavers’ alterative effect on the lymph system (an herb that restores proper function and increases health). This is 3 parts filtered, cold-pressed juice to 1 part vodka. For people whose bodies feel logey and blah after a long winter, cleavers is like opening the window and getting some fresh air again. Been too late to harvest for years, but not THIS year! Very excited.

“And the loofahs were hung by the chimney with care..” 🥒 Just made a permanent Story highlight to show the steps, if anyone’s curious. Every year I fall more in love with these amazing squashes. Mature, they make sponges — like, I scour pots and pans with them no different than synthetic sponges! — and young and tender, they cook just like zucchini. If ever you were curious (and preferably live someplace warmer than New York), GO FOR IT! . . . #loofah #luffa #loofahsponge #sponge #homesteading #DIY #homemade #sustainablehome #sustainablelifestyle #zerowaste

The last few years, I've fallen unintentionally into herbalism. This is goldenrod, which I picked every chance I got this summer, and has been drying up 'til now. Makes a mild tea (pairs great with lemon verbena or mint) and FANTASTIC for kidney health. What started a few years back with a pot of spearmint has exploded into a small pantry of homegrown herbs. 🌱🍵💕

Watched a documentary on ketogenic eating and reducing sugar intake, and in it a woman shared her homemade chocolate recipe she sweetens with stevia, so I had to try it. No sugar, no "non-sugar" crap, and no remorse. Satisfies without flipping that switch that makes you want to eat the whole thing, and definitely saves me from running out to pick up a pint of ice cream or worse. If you're a late-night chocolate lover, I highly recommend! 🍫✨

I got bees this summer. (Many thanks to @flowhive for designing such an incredible hive that someone like me would even consider keeping bees.) This summer I just let them establish themselves and fill their little gullets on the orchard where I situated them. Next year, looking forward to unobtrusively sampling their efforts for myself. Obviously more to come from this new life chapter! #🐝

I'm planting corn, you guys!!

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