Homemade Laundry Soap...Cheap and Easy just the way I like it!!!

We do laundry what seems like all day every day and now we are on an even tighter budget with me staying home. So I decided to do a little research and found out it is totally the thing to make your own laundry soap, and dirt cheap....I had to do some scouting for the products so for those of you in Bend I have done the hard work for you...leaving you no reason NOT to do it!

1/3 bar Fels-Naptha Walmart .97cents
1/2c. Washing Soda Walmart $2.12
1/2c. Borax Fredmeyer's 4.39(this was the tough one to find)

I followed these exact instructions and it was kind of fun:
http://thefrugalgirls.com/2010/08/how-to-make-homemade-laundry-detergent.html

I will warn you that once it sits for the 24hrs it does have an odd gel consistency, I stirred it up and funneled it into my container's and it doesn't seem to be an issue.

It is green(less chemicals, you can use an organic soap if you wish - google that) and affordable, 2 gallons(which is the recipe) cost a little less then a dollar according to my math :O

We used it and no laundry was harmed ;) who can't afford to NOT do this?! Me, me, me... and YOU!

Enjoy!

EXTRA CHEAP TIP: Soak wash cloth's in fabric softener wring out and use as a dryer sheet....one cloth should last 10-20 loads(wash when used up and re-peat!)and a $3 dollar bottle of softener should last almost a year!

Crock Pot Lasagna

SERIOUSLY people this is by far the BEST, EASIEST, dinner I have made in my 28 years of life! Better yet the babes(2 and 5) LOVED it! The little one even had seconds and little do they know it contains VEGETABLES. So why lasagna in the crock pot? Well I have a full time job and my husband was working late so that left me in charge of picking up the kids which ends up being an hour long commute(normally I come home and start cooking while he commutes), so that means we don't even get home till almost 7! I literally started and finished this dinner on my lunch break. ENJOY!

Here it goes (and really anything goes:) remember 20 minutes of prep time! Don't let my convoluted recipe deter you!

Ingredients: Sauce (see below for mine), cottage cheese and one egg,NO BOIL lasagna noodles, 1 bag of Italian blend cheese. THAT'S IT!

Step 1: Make your sauce weather it be with meat or with out that's up to you. I did one can of traditional spaghetti sauce, 1 pound of Trader Joes ground beef(my new fave beef)1 chopped up zucchini, mushrooms, garlic and onion(add more veggies if you got em'). Season as you wish.

Step 2:(this is my faux ricotta recipe) Mix one container of cottage cheese and one egg( I mix it in the cottage cheese container, less dishes;) . I seasoned mine with Italian seasoning and pepper.

Step 3 break out your awkward in my case hideous crock-pot and turn on low

***Here is the best part your almost done***

Layer the crap out of you lasagna in your CROCK POT
I used NO BOIL lasagna noodles(it's all I have ever used)

Layer 1
1/3 of your sauce
NO BOIL lasagna noodles (I had to break mine up to layer it with out a bunch of gaps)
1/2 of your Cottage cheese mix
Italian cheese mix (you know the cheating kind in the bag)
Layer 2
NO BOIL lasagna noodles
1/3 of your sauce
rest of cottage cheese
Italian cheese mix
Layer 3
NO BOIL lasagna noodles
The rest of your sauce
Italian cheese blend

Leave on low for 4 to 5 hours(or bake 45 minutes to an hour and cheese is bubbly)
and enjoy and amazingly easy good and good for you dinner!

It's 7:34 we have eaten and I typed up this whole recipe for you! That's how easy it is!Now to clean it up ;o ugh!