Mountain News Great Discoveries - Castor Oil - Who knew?

Even though I am 53 years old I have never in my life used castor oil. I always thought it was something they used in the Olden Days for constipation and to punish children with, in the sense of, "Johnny? Feeling a little ornery are ya? Here's a tablespoon of castor oil. Fix you right up." with visions of a grimacing and gagging child. Or something like that. It thankfully never happened to me - I got good old fashioned spankings for being ornery. Otherwise I have never given castor oil much thought. But, oh my! What a discovery!

Want to know how I discovered it? Here are the events:

1. Watched an old movie about people heading to Oregon.
2. Where everyone got dysentery and died.
3. Out of curiosity, and for future knowledge in case I ever head to Oregon, looked up dysentery.
4. Discovered that castor oil may keep this sickness from killing you.
5. Happy to know this, for future reference.
6. Read entire article on castor oil.
7. Mind blown.

Ok first of all, contrary to popular belief (ok it's what I thought), it's not a petroleum product, it's actually considered a vegetable oil and very safe. It is fungicidal, a laxative, analgesic and anti-inflammatory! Who knew?! These are the things it supposedly does:

1. Laxative
2.Relieves Sore Muscles
3. Soothes Joint Pain
4. Treats Fungal Infections
5. Promotes Hair Growth
6. Enhances Hair Color
7. Homemade Natural Mascara
8. Deeply Moisturizes Skin
9. Spot Treatment for Skin Problems
10. Natural Sleep Aid
11. Treats Babies with Colic
12. Heals Skin Ailments
13. A Preservative for Food
14. Lubricant for Machinery Parts

Again, who knew??!! The only cautions I found were: do not use if you have an allergy to aspirin and do not use if you are pregnant because it can cause contractions.

It's also supposed to get a sluggish lymphatic system moving, helping to cleanse it, like jumping up and down on those little trampolines is supposed to do. Amazing. This is a miracle product, apparently.

As for my own experience, I just discovered this information recently and I am being the guinea pig and trying it out for y'all because I'm nice that way. One evening I heated some oil up, slathered it all over my hair and left it in overnight. (My husband was convinced all my hair would fall out. It didn't. Nyah.)  The next morning I washed it out and my hair was really soft and bouncy. So, the part about it being good for your hair as a conditioner does in fact seem to be true.

It's also supposed to help you sleep. They (who are 'they' anyway?) suggested you dab a little castor oil on your eyelids right before you go to sleep, which I did three nights in a row. I did sleep well these nights but I usually sleep pretty well anyway so...... not sure about that one.

It does indeed moisturize the skin very well.  I rubbed it on both legs after a shower. And promptly fell asleep. Whether this sudden onset of sleepiness was me just needing a nap or because of the castor oil, is hard to tell. Whether it got my lymphatic system moving is also hard to tell. We'll have to wait and see. (Wonder how you can tell if  your lymphatic system is suddenly woken up and perky?)

I put it on an overuse injury, a sore spot on my elbow, and didn't notice any difference. Also rubbed it on my husband's sore back and he didn't notice a difference either. (He says we must keep trying though in order to be helpful to others. Uh huh. I think he just likes the warm oil rubbed on his back before he goes to sleep at night. But that's being cynical.) So the jury is still out on that one.

Haven't tried it for constipation or fungus because, thankfully, I have neither. Nor do I have a baby with colic - thank God. I mean I'd love to have the baby, just not the colic.

Anyhoo, still experimenting. I plan to buy several big bottles of this stuff to have around. Can't hurt!  I'll let you know what else I find out. :)

Mountain News Favorite Recipes - Gingerbread Snacking Cake

Another favorite Martha Stewart recipe. This is easy and so good. Love having this around, especially at this time of year. You can make it have a bit of a spicy bite if you add pepper!  Oh yeah.......

Gingerbread Snacking Cake

8 Tblsp. (1 stick) butter, room temp
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup boiling water
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking powder
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup molasses
1 tblsp. freshly grated ginger (or more!) (don't worry if you don't have this. It's still good without it.)
2 large eggs, room temp, lightly beaten
Powdered sugar for dusting (optional)
1-2 tsp. black pepper or 1/2 tsp. cayenne for spicy bite (optional)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 9 x 13 cake pan.
In a bowl combine boiling water and baking soda; set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together flour, ground spices, salt and baking powder; set aside.
In yet a third bowl, cream butter with a mixer (or by hand), then  beat in brown sugar until well  mixed and fluffy. Beat in molasses and grated ginger, baking soda mixture, flour mixture and eggs. (Add pepper here if you want it.)
Pour batter into prepared pan.  Bake until toothpick comes out clean, about 30 - 35 minutes. Let cool. Dust with powdered sugar if you want.
This gets better with age. More moist every day. YUM.