Body Lotion – Featuring Kukui Nut Oil

Experiments in Body Lotion

Every few weeks, I make a batch of body lotion.  I have very dry skin, so I always need a healthy supply of moisturizer to keep my skin smooth.

Since I need so much lotion, I make a point of trying new oils each time.  For example, a recent batch of lotion that I made featured Sea Buckthorn Oil.  More importantly, my latest batch of lotion is one of my favorites.  I used Kukui Nut Oil in the mix.  This was the first time that I had used Kukui Nut Oil.  I took some time to learn about it and here’s what I found out.

Kukui Nut Oil

Kukui Nut Oil comes from the Candlenut tree, the state tree of Hawaii.  The Kukui seeds have many varied uses, one of which is to use the oil from the seeds in skin care.  Not only is this oil known to soothe and soften the skin, it has also been used to treat wounds.  Some people have even seen positive results when using this to treat skin conditions, such as eczema.  This oil, when used in soap, makes the lather creamier.

I found most of this information from this site.

Does this lotion measure up?

Absolutely!  I love this latest batch of lotion.  It is nourishing, making a little bit go a long way.  It glides on smoothly and does not leave a greasy film behind.

I scented it with a mixture of vanilla and citrus essential oils.  I love the deep and slightly sweet scent of the vanilla essential oil.  This is a treat to put onto my skin each morning.

Sweet Treats

In my new life as a mommy, I finally have some time (during nap time) to get back to something I love…cooking.  I’ve been busy pulling out old recipes that I used to make all the time and also trying out some new ones.  I have a serious sweet tooth, so I have naturally focused on sweet treats to start!  Here are two of my new favorites:

Rice Pudding

Inspired by my mother-in-law, I have started making rice pudding.  I had no idea it was so easy to make!

1 cup of white rice

2 L of Coconut Milk (Vanilla flavoured)

Orange Rind

1/4 – 1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar (or to taste)

Put everything into a pot and bring to a boil.  Then, lower the heat to med-low and cook until rice is soft.

I was so pleased that this recipe worked well with a non-dairy milk. The vanilla in the coconut milk gives the pudding a great taste.  I tried a batch using unsweetened coconut milk and I didn’t really care for the taste of the pudding.   I’ve also tried this with a pinch of cinnamon instead of the orange rind.  It changed the taste of the rice pudding completely and I liked it just as much.

Lemon Cream

I truly love the taste of ice cream.  However, being fairly intolerant to dairy, it’s usually not a good idea for me to indulge in ice cream. Fortunately, I can easily have things like yogurt.  That lead me to try out this recipe for a Lemon Cream last week.

I used:

3 cups of 2% plain yogurt

juice and rind from 2 lemons

3/4 cup sugar

I mixed all of this in a blender.  I then poured the mixture into a shallow pan and put it in the freezer.  When the cream was almost frozen, I put it back into the blender and mixed it until it turned into a hard slush. Finally, I poured this into a container and froze it.  It has turned out to be an excellent low-calorie dessert.  Also, since it doesn’t have any water in it, the mixture does not get icy in the freezer.  I love the texture of this dessert.