When it comes to living plastic-free, party supplies can be the last thing you might think about. But it’s so easy to shift to plastic-free options, why not put them on your list now?

You’ll save money in the long run by buying long-lasting reusable supplies once instead of throwaways over and over again. And you’ll throw away a lot less trash, too.(We’re updating this post for Plastic-Free July 2020.)

NOTE: Even though “compostable” paper plates and napkins are available, they usually can only be composted in an industrial facility – not in your home compost pile. If they are “recyclable,” check with your local recycling facility to see if they will accept them – many don’t.

Here are the 5 Plastic-Free Party Supplies I Have That You Don’t Want to Miss

Here’s a picture of the plastic-free party supplies I usually use.

1. Plates – I have several sizes of reusable plates: salad-sized dinnerware for buffets, and full-sized plates for potluck dinners. I have bought the salad-sized plates over time when they were on sale after the Christmas holidays.

The dinner-sized reusable plates are by Preserve. They’re made from 100% recycled #5 plastic. They’re dishwasher-friendly and if you ever decide you want to get rid of them, Preserve will take them back and recycle them. I have both the 10.5″ size and the 7″ size, which are perfect for dessert, fruit, or salad.

NOTE: I normally don’t recommend using recycled plastic, but because these last so long and you won’t be throwing them away, they’re a good alternative, especially for an outdoor picnic or party.

2. Napkins – I went to the local Dollar store and bought the festive 100% cotton bandanas pictured above. They’re big enough to cover a lap, colorful, and very easy to wash. I think I have around 50 of them at this point. They’re good for picnics, too.

3. Table cloths – If you like to have seasonal or holiday themed table cloths (like for birthday parties, Thanksgiving, or Christmas), you’ll find a wide variety of reusable cotton table cloths online, at thrift stores, on sale in department stores, and at local yard sales. At this point, I have reusable table cloths for the 4th of July, Halloween, general birthday, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, plus table cloths I use for picnics.

4. Forks, Knives, Spoons – Plastic-free cutlery makes so much sense. The plastic stuff is usually so weak it breaks (I was at a party just today where the knives and forks weren’t strong enough and kept splintering.) You can get a 36-piece set of stainless steel flatware on Amazon that will last you 20 or 30 years. The set includes 12 each of a fork, knife and teaspoon.

5. Glasses/Cups/Tumblers – Of all the items listed here, glasses take up the most space. I have about 40 8 oz. glasses at this point, and I keep them in a couple of boxes that I stack and put in the back of a closet.

NOTE: You can get stackable stainless steel pint cups, with the advantage being both that they’re durable and they are unbreakable. But the smallest size they come in is 10 oz. I prefer to serve smaller drink portions, which is why I go with an 8 oz. glass. Figure out what’s right for you.

Preserve, the same company that makes reusable plastic plates, also makes reusable cups. They’re a bit big for me, but they might be perfect for you. Take a look.

I store all the table cloths, plates, napkins and cutlery in the cute duffle bag in the picture. Then I just tuck the bag out of the way in a closet, where it can easily be retrieved.

Get More “Green” Party Tips Right Here!

Where Can You Get Affordable Plastic-Free Party Supplies?

Speaking of Sales…

I buy many plastic-free party supplies on sale. All holiday-themed supplies will be 50 or 60 or 70% off the day after the holiday. Department stores like Macy’s, as well as the Big Box stores like Wal Mart and Target, are the place to look for post-holiday supply sales.

Borrow and Lend…

A Big Green Purse reader (and neighbor) wrote recently to say she’d accumulated enough reusable plates and glasses for a party for 40. She has let the neighborhood know that they’re available for anyone to borrow!

The post How Many Of These 5 Plastic-Free Party Supplies Are You Missing? appeared first on Big Green Purse.

Why plastic-free straws? Because throwaway plastic straws suck – and I don’t just mean literally.

They can kill wildlife – like one almost did in the case of this poor sea turtle.

The darn things are made from petroleum – aka, OIL – and once they’re loose in the environment, they can last thousands of years.

Manufacturing plastic pollutes the air, emitting toxic emissions like benzene, toluene, xylene, and VOCs (volatile organic compounds) that “affect the health of everyone within breathing distance,” says renowned plastic-free activist Beth Terry.

They can break into tiny pieces of micro plastic, then get ground into sea salt or get embedded in oysters and other seafood, so we end up eating plastic along with our dinner.

PLUS, they’re designed to be trash. Use them once, and throw them away. What a waste!

I’ve updated this post to include new information and new straws. Read on!!

You Don’t Have To Give Up All Straws – Just Plastic Ones

No doubt about it: sometimes, straws come in handy. It’s hard to drink a root beer float (my personal summer guilty pleasure) without a straw. Some people have sensitive teeth and find it easier to drink a cold beverage if they use a straw. And it can be easier for little kids especially to sip a drink using some kind of straw.

So the point isn’t to give up straws per se – just the plastic ones (I’m not big on throwaway paper straws, either).

You know how you take your own reusable shopping bags to the store, and drink from your own reusable water bottles? Now, there are reusable straws you can make your own, too.

Here are 10 Plastic-Free straws that will help you kick your plastic straw habit.

10 Plastic-Free Straws That Will Make It Easy to Kick Your Plastic Straw Habit

NOTE: I don’t recommend switching to paper straws because paper straws can only be used once. Even though they’re not the pollution problem plastic is, they do just add to the trash we throw away.

Stainless Steel Straws – Highly durable. Easy to pack. Angled or straight, depending on how you like to sip. Rounded and smooth, so very pleasant and comfortable to stip. Buy them in a two-pack or in a set to accommodate the whole family or a group.

Stainless Steel Straw & Brush Set The straws can be washed in the dishwasher, but the straw brush makes it easy to thoroughly clean the inside of the straw.

Stainless Steel 2 Pack One is good, two are better!

Mini Stainless Steel Straws – 4 pack These are idea for kids cups or tumblers, cocktail glasses and small glasses of water or juice.

8 Pack in a Pouch – Want some regular width and some wide? Get four of each, plus cleaning brushes and a pouch to carry them all in. (Note: This is an Amazon product, not EarthHero.)

Silicone – Straws made from premium food-grade, FDA approved silicone. They’re durable, flexible, reusable, washable and easy to travel with.

Set of 12 Silicone and Stainless Steel Drinking Straws with Cleaning Brushes

Glass Straws – Help eliminate the millions of plastic straws Americans throw away every day with this heavy duty and dishwasher safe plastic-free straw.

Wide Glass Smoothie Straw: This size straw is perfect for thick smoothies, milkshakes, Slurpees, and pureed cold soups.

Regular-width Glass Straw: This straw is similar in size to the straw normally served with a glass of water or soda in a restaurant or fast-food place. It comes with a travel pouch and a cleaning brush.

Bamboo – Bamboo straws are reusable to a point. They will eventually splinter and wear out, so they’re probably not the best option for kids. On the positive side, they are made from the bamboo plant and can be composted with other organic material, as long as they haven’t been chemically treated.

EarthHero sells a pack of 12 organic bamboo straws that can be reused many times, then composted.

Skip the Straw – Use a Sippy Cup

Sippy cups are the perfect plastic-free straw option for toddlers and younger children. Take a look at this bundle of four 8 oz. stainless steel toddler cups, along with four colorful silicone spill proof sippy lids. They work well at home or in the car. At a restaurant, ask your server to put your child’s drink in their own cup rather than in a cup with a straw.

Eat the Straw!

A company called Loliware is in the process of developing “the worlds first edible hyper-compostable drinking straw.” In other words, a straw you can eat. It’s made of seaweed, can be flavored, and is non GMO. It’s not on the market quite yet, but the company has gotten Shark Tank investor Mark Cuban’s buy-in, so look for it in a drink coming to you soon.

The post Finally, 10 Plastic-Free Straws That Don’t Suck! appeared first on Big Green Purse.

Plastic water bottles have become a scourge on the planet. They pollute the ocean with plastic. Their plastic debris kills birds, turtles and other wildlife. They cost us consumers way more money than we should be spending on something as simple as water. And they rob local people of their own source of drinking water. They should go the way of the dodo – and become extinct!

TradeMachines.com, a company that helps businesses buy used machinery and equipment rather than brand new (which helps save money and natural resources), has put together one of the best infographics I’ve ever seen about the impact that plastic water bottles has on us and our planet. Here are some key elements from the graphic. I hope you will visit TradeMachines.com to view the infographic in its entirety. Then, share it with your friends, family, and social media communities. Thanks!

Say NO! to Plastic Water Bottles

The oil used to make plastic water bottles could keep 1 million cars running for 12 months!

Plastic water bottles pollute the oceans and threaten birds and wildlife.

Don’t Miss: “Finding Dory Will Be Impossible If We Don’t Stop Trashing the Oceans” 

Enough plastic water bottles aren’t being recycled.

What’s the point? Water in plastic bottles tastes no better than tap water.

What Should You Use Instead?

There are so many alternatives to plastic water bottles now, there’s almost no excuse for buying bottled water unless there’s a pollution scare in your community.

We’ve identified five of your best options here:

Again, remember to take a look at the entire graphic and share it widely. People are so used to buying bottled water, they forget to consider the impacts. You can help, by using a reusable bottle yourself and by educating others.

Thanks to TradeMachines.com for sponsoring this post. As always, our editorial opinions remain our own.

The post Why Plastic Water Bottles Have to Go the Way of the Dodo appeared first on Big Green Purse.

Of the many important reasons why you should give up plastic straws, should wrinkles be one of them?

According to skin care expert, Renée Rouleau, if you want to avoid getting wrinkles around your mouth, you need to skip plastic straws (and other straws, too).

Evidently, the sipping action breaks down the skin’s collagen and elasticity. The result? Wrinkly “smoker’s lines” around your lips. Yuck.

Even without anti-aging mania, I’ve been on something of a personal rampage against plastic straws.

What a Waste!

One thing that bugs me about plastic straws is how wasteful they are. Whether I’m sitting in a four-star restaurant, a diner or a dive, my glass of water usually comes served with a straw. My martini doesn’t come with a straw. No one would think of handing me a straw with my beer. But water? Or soda? The server doesn’t even ask.

This boiled to a head for me a couple of weeks ago. I was in a snazzy new eatery in snazzy Bethesda, MD and ordered an appetizer and a drink. The server showed up with glasses of water that already had straws in them. I was annoyed. I guess I should have immediately said “No straw, please,” when I ordered, but I forgot.

So there it sat in my glass, a stupid plastic straw.

Shortly thereafter, the owner of the restaurant dropped by my table to say hello and ask how we liked his place.

Before anyone could say anything, I said, “So far, not so good. Why are you serving drinking straws? Do you know what chemicals are in plastic? And that it’s going to take 10,000 years for this one straw to break down? And how much micro-pollution is in the ocean? And…and…”

Yes, I was ranting. But I made my point that the menu brags about how sustainable the food is, but if he really wanted to run an environmentally responsible establishment, he needed to stop automatically handing out straws.

On the spot, he promised to do so.

I sure wish it was that easy to eradicate straws globally. Ecocycle reports that 500 million straws are used in the U.S. daily.

That’s enough to fill over 127 school buses each day, more than 46,400 buses every year. If we don’t stop using plastic straws, Ecocycle projects that every American will use approximately 38,000 or more straws between the ages of 5 and 65.

Mind boggling!

Even when you think a straw is being thrown “away,” there are good chances the straw will end up as roadside litter or disintegrate into tiny pieces called microplastic.

This microplastic eventuallys find its way into our rivers, lakes, seas and bodies.

In fact, microplastic pollution is becoming one of the most insidious forms of ocean contamination we’re trying to eradicate.

Don’t Miss: Fish Don’t Want to Eat Your Plastic Microbeads Facewash 

Plastic straws harm wildlife, too. Look at this video of a poor sea turtle with a straw stuck up its nose. Terrible!

Manufacturing plastic also pollutes the air. Notes plastic-free activist Beth Terry, most plastic is made from fossil fuels like oil and natural gas.

The toxic emissions from using these fuels can include benzene, toluene, xylene, carbon monoxide, particulate matter, and volatile organic compounds that “affect the health of everyone within breathing distance.”

How to Avoid Plastic Straws in Restaurants and When You Buy Fast Food

Plastic straws are useless to me and to most people. I never use straws at home, so avoiding them when I’m out is the key for me to stop using them completely. How?

⇒Tell servers in restaurants to skip the straw as soon as they offer to bring your water.

⇒Make it a habit to encourage any restaurant you patronize to ask their customers if they want a straw before automatically bringing one.

⇒The same goes for fast food. When you get a shake or soda to go, order without the straw.

If You Want a Straw, or Need One For Your Child, What Plastic-Free Options Do You Have?

If you have kids who will spill their drinks unless they use straws, you still have a couple of options.

One, take your own stainless steel straws for them to use (see below).

Two, take sippy cups with you to a restaurant and ask their drinks to be served in your cups.

Here are some eco-friendly alternatives to plastic straws.

The best is a reusable straw. You can get them in glass, stainless steel, and even bamboo. I’m partial to stainless steel.

Stainless Steel Drinking Straws – These straws fit in a tall glass or in a reusable tumbler. They won’t break, and they come with thin bristle brushes so it’s easy to keep them clean.

Stainless Steel Smoothie Straws – These are wider straws for smoothies and shakes.

Stainless Steel Sippy Cups – These cups come with or without their own straws.

LifeWithoutPlastic.com sells straws made from bamboo, glass, and stainless steel that come with their own convenient carrying cases so you can keep them in your purse, backpack, or brief case without worrying they’ll break.

Pledge to Stop Using Throwaway Plastic Straws

It’s probably too late for me to worry about wrinkles, but at least I can take the No Straw Please Pledge organized by the Plastic Pollution Coalition and the Last Plastic Straw campaign. You can join me here.

NOTE: This article originally appeared at MomsCleanAirForce.org, a terrific activist organization one million moms strong. Please check them out!

The post Why I Ditched Plastic Straws and You Should Too! appeared first on Big Green Purse.

If you’re still drinking from a plastic throwaway bottle, some kind of home water filter system should definitely be in your future. Why?

First, you’re spending way too much money on bottled water. Consumer Reports estimates that filling a 16.9-ounce bottle with tap water in New York City costs about 1.3 tenths of a cent. Buy that same bottle already full of water at a convenience store and, with the deposit, it will run you $1.00. If you refill that bottle from you tap every day for a year, you’d be out only 48 cents. Buy a bottle of water a day? It’ll drain you a whopping $365. Duh!

Second, you could be making yourself sick. Plastic bottles that contain (BPA) bisphenol A – or its alternative — may be toxic to your health . Some studies show that BPA may contribute to diabetes, heart disease, cancer, birth defects and Attention Deficit Disorder.

Third, you’re trashing the planet. Plastic bottles are made from petroleum, then packaged, shipped out, and ultimately end up as trash or litter along the road or in a river or stream.

Fourth, even when you buy bottled water, you’re probably drinking tap water, since that’s what many bottlers use to fill their bottles. So…why pay for someone else’s bottle, bottle top, filling process, and all the rest?

Fifth, you can filter tap water at home to get the quality of water that you want to drink. There are many affordable counter-top filter pitchers that do a pretty good job of filtering out some of the contaminants that might be in water.

But to do the most thorough job, consider a whole house water filtration system. One big benefit of such a system is that it filters your entire home water supply so that the water you have in the shower or at the bathroom sink is just as clean as the water you tap in the kitchen. For example, the PelicanWater whole house water filtration system leaves in beneficial minerals while removing other contaminants that are regularly found in tap water, ultimately creating better tasting water.

When choosing a whole house system, consider the following:

1. Contaminants Filtered Check the National Drinking Water Database maintained by the Environmental Working Group. It should be able to tell you what, if any, contaminants are present in the water coming out of your tap. When you choose a filter, make sure it will trap the contaminants local to you.

2. Performance Features Water Filter Systems Review says that under-the-counter water filters will reduce contaminants in different stages. They recommend that you look for a filter that provides at least three separate stages to reduce pollutants from the water. Each stage will remove a different type of contaminant such as sediment, chemicals and residue. Also, be aware that some filters can affect water pressure. Look for systems that have a water pressure range of 55 to 65 psi.

3. Maintenance At some point, the filters on the system will need to be replaced. It’s helpful if your system has an automatic notification system to alert you to when you should change a cartridge.

4. Installation and Fit Make sure your system fits in the space you have allocated for it. And before you buy, check to see if it is something you can install yourself, or will require professional assistance. You want to make sure you can change the filters or cartridges yourself.

Sponsored by Pelican Water

The post 5 Reasons Why a Home Water Filter System Makes Sense appeared first on Big Green Purse.

One of the places you’ll find the most plastic in your home is in the kitchen. Fortunately, it’s also one of the easiest places in our house to give plastic the heave-ho. Here’s how:

Your Plastic-Free Kitchen

1) Use reusable bags. Reusable cloth, jute or recycled fiber bags last for years and eliminate the need for plastic shopping bags. Many communities now charge a nickel for every plastic bag a shopper uses, which has been enough to convince people to bring their own bags.

2) Buy fresh, unpackaged food. One of the biggest sources of plastic in a kitchen is all the plastic that food comes wrapped in it. This is especially true if you’re buying pre-packaged food that’s supposed to be convenient – but ultimately just creates a lot of trash. In addition to reusable shopping bags, get a set of reusable mesh produce bags. For bigger fruits and vegetables like apples, oranges, pears, eggplant and onions, you can skip bags altogether.

3) Purchase food in glass jars rather than plastic containers. You can find tomato sauce, condiments, olives, peppers, soups, spices and more in glass, rather than plastic.

4) Use glass storage containers. Glass jars and dishes with lids are very effective storage containers – they don’t leach chemicals into food, they’re durable, and you can easily see what’s inside them. I re-use glass tomato sauce jars and juice bottles. I also prowl yard sales and thrift stores for glass dishes with lids that I can buy for a couple of dollars at most.

5) Make your own soda. A big source of plastic in the kitchen comes from soda bottles. We haven’t bought soda since we got a counter-top carbonation machine. We simply filter a jug of water (which takes about a minute), pour the water in the bottle that fits the machine, pull a lever to add carbon dioxide to the water (another minute at most), and add whatever flavor we choose.

6) Make your own bottled water. Single-use water bottles are a significant source of kitchen plastic. That dandy carbonator you got for making soda is also great for bubbling up a bottle of filtered water. Or skip the bottles and just filter your water and pour. We use this one, but you may be able to find others in your local hardware store. (We bought ours before glass bottles were available.)

7) Keep your own bottled water ready-to-go in the fridge. One reason why people buy bottled drinks – especially water – is because they don’t take water with them when they leave home. Keep a pitcher of filtered water in your refrigerator and an empty water bottle next to your purse or briefcase so you remember to fill up your bottle before you leave home. Teach your kids to do the same before they leave for school or a sporting event. You can also fill up a few reusable bottles of water and keep them in the fridge so you can grab and go.

8) Replace plastic utensils with stainless steel, wood, and silicone. I primarily use stainless steel or silicone spatulas when I’m frying and sauteeing, and wooden spoons when I’m baking. I have glass 1 cup, 2 cup and 4 cup measuring pitchers and aluminum measuring cups and spoons in a variety of sizes. I also use glass and aluminum mixing bowls. Look for these and other non-plastic kitchen tools in the pots and pans section of your grocery store or in the kitchen utensils section of a department store.

9) Make your own yogurt. Yogurt is super easy to make at home and will save you lots and lots of throwaway yogurt containers. Here’s how I do it.

This is only the beginning. How are you getting plastic out of your kitchen?

The post 9 Steps to a Plastic-Free Kitchen appeared first on Big Green Purse.

STOP.

The icky white, foam-like material used in both coffee cups and carry-out boxes is made from styrene, a chemical fingered by the National Institutes of Health because it could cause cancer. How?

Studies conducted in laboratories suggest that exposure to styrene damages white blood cells, increasing the risk of contracting leukemia or lymphoma. Additional research suggests that exposure to styrene may raise the likelihood of pancreatic cancer or cancer of the esophagus among workers who either manufacture styrene or products that contain styrene.

Styrene foam is bad news for the planet, too. It takes a good 500 years to degrade. And in the meantime, it breaks into smaller and smaller pieces made of toxic oil-based polymers that pollute soil and water and may be consumed by birds, fish and other animals. Because it is so light, styrene foam is easily blown about, creating unsightly litter. Plus, styrene foam that has been used for drinks or food is not recyclable. Some packaging shops may accept foam packing peanuts for re-use, but no one is going to take a used coffee-stained foam cup.

Here’s How You Can Avoid Styrene Foam

1) Use your own reusable water bottle or coffee mug. Pretty much every truck stop, fast-food joint, and roadside stand I’ve ever been at has been happy to put my tea or coffee in my own mug rather than in one of their foam cups.
Be prepared when you travel by air. Most airlines still serve hot beverages in foam cups. Make sure you pack your reusable mug in your carry-on bag and pull it out when you take your seat so you can easily hand it to the flight attendant when food service gets underway.

2) Skip vending machines that dispense hot coffee, tea, chocolate or soup in a foam cup. The same goes for vending machines and carry-out restaurants that serve hot soup in a foam cup.

3) If you’re throwing a party, use reusables, or even paper products, rather than foam. You can get heavy-duty paper cups for hot drinks and paper plates instead of foam. What I’ve done over the years is invest in reusable cups, plates, cutlery and napkins. I can now accommodate up to 40 people if necessary without having to buy a single foam or throwaway cup.

4) BYOC – If you want to take left-overs home from a restaurant, bring your own containers with tight-fitting lids. Alternatively, ask your server to wrap your leftovers in aluminum foil rather than foam.

5) Avoid instant food like ramen noodles and some soups that come in a foam bowl that you’re supposed to microwave to heat up. The last thing you want to do is eat food that could be contaminated by toxins that leak out of styrene when it’s microwaved.

6) Think ahead. The reason why we consume so much food out of foam containers is that we’re not in the habit of bringing our own safer alternatives. You have gotten used to taking your own shopping bags to the grocery store, right? Make it routine to bring your own cup, mug, or reusable doggie bag.

And just say NO to styrene.

WANT TO GET ONE NOW?

We’ve found a few reusable, stainless steel mugs that are lightweight but well-insulated to keep hot beverages hot and cold beverages cold. We’ve listed them in our Amazon store for your convenience.

One I particularly like is this stainless steel cup that even comes with its own stainless steel straw.

RELATED

Hate Throwaway Plastic and Paper Cups? Try This Perfect Reusable Alternative

Reusable Shopping Bags and Handbags

The post 6 Ways to Avoid Styrene Foam, Skip Cancer appeared first on Big Green Purse.

I was right! It turns out, making homemade yogurt is one of the simplest shifts you can make – not just for a plastic-free kitchen, but for a greener life all around. It is quick, easy, and doesn’t require any plastic after you get that first small cup of starter yogurt. What you add to it after you make it is completely up to you.

A word about the milk. I use a half-gallon of delicious fresh organic skim milk that I can get in a glass bottle from my local food co-op. The milk itself costs the same as a half-gallon of organic milk in a plastic jug or cardboard milk carton, plus $1.00 deposit on the bottle that is completely refundable when I bring the bottle back. If you can’t get milk in a glass bottle, the cardboard carton is preferable to the plastic jug. I haven’t tried making milk from powder (though I add a little powdered milk to my yogurt mix) and using that reconstituted milk for the yogurt. If you do, let us know how well it works out.

HOMEMADE YOGURT RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

Milk (at least 1 quart; generally I use a half-gallon of milk, which will make at least 8 cups of yogurt)

Yogurt starter – 2 tablespoons (I get a small container of nonfat Greek-style yogurt to start, then reserve two tablespoons of the yogurt I make to start my next batch.)

Powdered milk – 2 tablespoons (Powdered milk isn’t essential, but it makes the yogurt thicker and more flavorful)

EQUIPMENT

Large glass bowl and whisk

Candy thermometer

Microwave or Stovetop Pot

Oven or Heating Pad

Strainer

DIRECTIONS

* Pour the milk into the glass bowl.

* Put the glass bowl in the microwave and heat on high for 10-12 minutes, or as long as it takes for the milk temperature to reach 180 degrees. If heating in a pot on the stove, heat on medium high until milk reaches 180 degrees.

* Use a candy thermometer to test the temperature of the milk. Don’t rest the thermometer on the bottom or sides of the bowl, which may be hotter than the milk. Hold the thermometer in the middle of the milk where you can easily read the temperature.

* When the milk reaches 180 degrees, set it out to cool. You can hurry this along by setting the bowl or pot in a pan of cold water; otherwise, just leave the milk alone until the temperature drops to around 110 degrees.

* When the milk has cooled to 110 degrees, put a quarter of a cup of milk in a glass or small mixing bowl and add the powdered milk. Stir until dissolved (if all the milk doesn’t dissolve, don’t worry), then add the mixture back into the main bowl.

* Add 2 tablespoons of yogurt and whisk into the milk.

* Cover the bowl with a towel. Now it needs a low heat source to help the bacteria in the starter yogurt turn the entire bowl of milk into yogurt. Some people will heat their oven to warm and put the milk there. I set my bowl on a heating pad and drape the towel over the bowl and around the pad to create a nice warm environment for the yogurt. I turn the heating pad up to its highest setting for a couple of hours, then turn it down to low for the last couple of hours. It will take 4-6 hours for the milk to become yogurt.

Once your yogurt is made, put it in your refrigerator, either in the big bowl, or in individual glass jars. As you eat it, a pale yellow liquid will begin to pool in the yogurt. This is whey, and it’s good for you! Either stir it back into the yogurt, or drain it off and use it in pancake batter, milk shakes or protein drinks. If you want to make thick yogurt like the consistency of Greek yogurt, line your strainer (or a colander) with cheesecloth or a fine towel and pour your yogurt into it. The whey will drain off and leave behind your thick and creamy concoction. (Your yogurt should stay refrigerated, even if you are draining it.)

Homemade yogurt is delicious by itself, but use your imagination to enjoy it with all kinds of foods.

* Add it to fruit and granola for a yummy breakfast. Use it in place of milk for pancakes.

* Stir in dill, a little garlic powder, fresh ground pepper and salt, and a squeeze of fresh lemon and you’ve got a great veggie dip or salad dressing. Stir in thinly sliced cucumbers and serve it as raita with your favorite Indian food.

* Add cumin and garlic and use it to marinate chicken you then grill or broil.  Or … ? Please share your favorite recipes for yogurt, and let me know how you improve on my recipe.

The post Plastic-Free Kitchen: Shift to Homemade Yogurt appeared first on Big Green Purse.

The durable and easy-to-clean cup is made of food-grade stainless steel, making it perfect for the juice you serve at your kids’ party or the beer you serve at your own. It won’t break, so you don’t need to worry about throwing it into a backpack, cooler, or beach bag. And it’s dishwasher safe; whenever you’re finished with it, just pop it into the dishwasher and it will come out safe and sparkly.

KLEAN KANTEEN has been a pioneer in the world of reusable drink containers ever since it launched its reusable stainless steel water bottles more than ten years ago. KK recently became certified as a B Corp, meaning that the entire company operates to meet rigorous standards for social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency.

 KLEAN KANTEEN is also a wonderful partner when it comes to promoting important causes. I recently  partnered with them to provide their cups to the attendees at the first ever US – China Greener Consumption Forum, which I organized at the World Bank in Washington, D.C.

Thanks, KLEAN KANTEEN, for doing so much to help the rest of us kick our throwaway habits!

Related articles

Make Your Own Yummy Popsicles: Popsicle Molds and Recipes

Holiday Gift Bags Make Wrapping a Snap – and Reduce Use of Plastic Bags, Too.

The post Hate Throwaway Plastic or Paper Cups? KLEAN KANTEEN’s Pint Cup Is the Perfect Reusable Alternative appeared first on Big Green Purse.

This year is going to be different. I’m not making resolutions, I’m setting goals – specific goals that will have real environmental benefits and that I can measure with real “before” and “after” statistics.

Though I hope I’ll reduce my environmental footprint in all sorts of ways this year, I’m only setting three specific goals in the hopes that a narrower focus will lead to broader achievements.

GOAL #1 – MAKE MY OWN YOGURT

I eat two cups of yogurt every single day – plain, non-fat, usually Greek-style yogurt that serves as the delicious base for whatever fresh fruit happens to be in season. It’s a healthy and mostly eco-friendly breakfast – marred only by the fact that I buy the yogurt in big plastic throwaway tubs. When I was in college, I had an electric yogurt maker and made my own yogurt every week. I also made yogurt by mixing milk and yogurt starter in a bowl, then keeping it in a warm oven for several hours until the whole mixture became yogurt-like. Over the years as I was busy raising kids, running a business and writing books, I’ve gotten away from making my own yogurt. But I’m appalled at how many plastic yogurt tubs I throw away every week. If I made my own yogurt using milk I can buy in glass bottles from my local food coop, I would go from three or four plastic tubs a week to zero. So one goal for 2013 is to start making my own yogurt.

Do you make your own yogurt? If you have a recipe you love, please share it!

GOAL #2 – USE NO MORE THAN THREE PRODUCTS BOTTLED IN PLASTIC IN MY BATHROOM

In my bathroom right now, I have various cosmetics, body lotion, hand cream, face cream, make-up remover, shampoo, conditioner, body soap, shaving gel, toothpaste, curl definer, hair straightener, nail polish remover, and hair color – and they’re all in plastic bottles or jars. My kids use different products, so they have almost the same number of products that I have in their own bottles! Beth Terry at My Plastic Free Life has written a great book about ways to reduce the amount of plastic we use in our day-to-day lives. Her personal example has inspired me to figure out how to cut down the number of plastic bottles I use in my bathroom to no more than three. Right away, I can replace the shaving gel and body soap with bar soaps that come wrapped in paper or with no wrapping paper at all. I can buy much larger sizes of products so that I’m using fewer bottles overall. But I’d like to set an even more ambitious goal and figure out how to make my own body lotion, shampoo, hair conditioner, and face cream, for starters. Do you make your own? What do you make, and how do you make it? I can really use your advice!

GOAL #3 – IMPROVE MY COMPOST

My compost is not the best. I use a composting barrel, and ten  months out of the year (March – December), I just collect my kitchen scraps and throw them in the barrel. Then I flip the barrel around a few times and hope the stuff decomposes. Sometimes it does, and sometimes it doesn’t. I’ve never been very scientific about adding the right proportions of dry and wet material to it so that the compost heats up the way it is supposed to and turns all that food waste into the black organic gold that would make my garden thrive. Right now, the kitchen scraps from the last several months are all lying frozen in the bottom of my barrel. But as soon as the spring thaw hits, I’m going to empty out that barrel and start from scratch. Do you compost? Do you use a barrel? Please let me know what works best for you. I can easily compost 100% of my kitchen scraps, apart from the occasional fish or chicken remains I have. But what I’d really like to aim for is somewhere between two and three big barrels full of rich organic compost to add to my garden by the end of 2013.

So there you have it: use less plastic by making my own yogurt and personal care products, and enrich my garden by creating better compost. Please share your own goals and resolutions for 2013, and come back often to help me overcome the obstacles I find as I pursue my own.

RELATED POSTS

New Year’s Goal – Shift Spending to Eco-Friendly Products and Services

Environmental Resolution: Do Less, Do It Better

The post My Green Goals for 2013: Less Bathroom Plastic, More Home-Made Yogurt, Better Compost appeared first on Big Green Purse.