Simple Herbal Soap Recipe
Make handmade soap with a blend of rosemary, peppermint, and lavender essential oils. You can also stir in a teaspoon of finely chopped herbs for added effect. These end up as dark speckles throughout the bars. Detailed soapmaking instructions are available in the next part of this series. Technical information: 1lb / 454g batch -- 6% superfat -- 33% water discount
Servings 6 bars
Cost $20
Equipment
- Containers to measure liquid oils, herbs, and dry lye granules/pellets.
Ingredients
Lye solution
- 62 g sodium hydroxide 2.19 oz
- 124 g distilled water 4.37 oz
- 1/2 tsp peppermint or lemon balm (dried and chopped) or 1 tsp fresh and chopped
Solid oils
- 114 g coconut oil (refined) 4.02 oz (25%)
- 68 g shea butter (refined) 2.4 oz (15%)
- 45 g cocoa butter 1.59 oz (10%)
Liquid oils
- 204 g olive oil (light colored or pomace) 7.2 oz (45%)
- 23 g castor oil 0.81 oz (5%)
Add after Trace
- 5 g rosemary essential oil 1 tsp
- 5 g lavender essential oil 1 tsp
- 5 g peppermint (mentha piperita) essential oil 1 tsp
Instructions
- About half an hour before soapmaking, make a peppermint infusion by heating the distilled water and adding the peppermint. Leave to cool to your room's ambient temperature and leave the peppermint in the liquid.
- Create the lye solution by pouring the sodium hydroxide into the peppermint infusion. Stir well and leave the jug to cool in a shallow basin or sink of water.
- Heat the solid oils in a small saucepan on low heat until just melted, no longer. Take off the hob and place it on a pot holder.
- Pour the liquid oils into the pan. Stir to mix, and make sure to scrape every last drop from the container. Take the temperature - you're aiming for around 100°F (38°C).
- Take the temperature of the lye solution - you're aiming for around 100°F (38°C).
- When the oils and the lye solution temperatures are around 100°F (38°C) and within ten degrees of one another, it's time to mix.
- Use an immersion blender to emulsify the ingredients. Mix until you reach a light trace.
- Stir the essential oils in, ensuring they're well-mixed in, and no streaks remain.
- Pour the soap batter into the mold(s)
- Leave it on the counter to cool and harden or insulate it to force gelling.
- Leave the soap for two days before unmolding, cutting into bars (if applicable), and curing for one month. After a month, the soap is ready to use and has a shelflife of up to two years.