I have been buying Seventh Generation dishwasher detergent for a couple of months and it gets my dishes clean but it is expensive. I spend about $5 on a box that maybe lasts me a couple of weeks. In the past I have researched home made dishwasher detergents, but everything I have read is that they don’t get your dishes clean or that they leave a film on your dishes, or that they make too many suds. I did not want to use anything that would be bad for my kids to breathe in while the dishwasher was running like bleach, so I kept buying store bought detergent.

Yesterday I ran out of detergent and I forgot to pick some up at the store while I was out. It was nap time and I wanted to run the dishwasher but I could not leave the house to go pick up more. I decided I needed to figure out a green automatic dishwasher detergent recipe that would work from stuff I already had in my house, at least something I could use in a pinch.

I found about 20 different recipes online but this one made the most sense to me. I made a batch, I have ran my dishwasher twice and the results are great! Sparkling clean dishes, clean smelling dishes, no harsh chemicals, environmentally safe products, no film, no residue and no suds spilling onto my floor! Two thumbs up!

I thought about taking a photo of my clean dishes but I realized that my old, well used dishes would never look like the sparkling dishwasher advertisements, so I say you have to trust me, my dishes are just as clean as if washed with regular dishwasher detergent.

Here is the recipe for homemade automatic dishwasher detergent!

1 cup Borax
1 cup Washing Soda
1/2 cup salt
4 packages of lemonade flavor, unsweetened kool aid mix (need the citric acid)

Mix the above four dry ingredients, store in a clean sealed container.

Use 1-2 tablespoons of powder to each dishwasher load depending on how dirty the dishes are.

I read that you can use as few as 2 kool aid packets with soft water, If you have hard water add more unsweetened lemonade flavor kool aid packets.

I also filled my jet dry reservoir with white vinegar for the rinse cycle.

This recipe makes 40 Tablespoons of dry dishwasher detergent, if you use 1 tablespoon per load that would be 40 loads. I guess the total cost of this was about $1.20.

I am thrilled with the results of my cheap, home made, environmentally safe dishwasher detergent.

I decided to try something that I never thought I could do, make bread. There was always something really ominous about baking bread without using a box kit or a bread machine. I was craving good bread to dip in olive oil, balsamic vinegar and Parmesan cheese so I decided instead of forking out the $5-$7 bucks for the fancy artisan bread at the store, to try to make it myself. I also wanted to have a chance to use the dough hook on my Kitchen Aid Stand mixer, after 8 years, I finally learned that is what it was used for!

I pulled out my stand mixer and got started.
Here is what you need.

1/3 cup warm water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 packet active dry yeast
2 cups of flour, all purpose or bread flour
2.5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon salt
Italian seasonings 1/2 teaspoon
Shredded Parmesan cheese- sprinkle

In the mixing bowl pour 1/3 cup warm water add 1 tablespoon sugar and packet of dry yeast, mix with spoon until moistened. Let stand for about 10 minutes until creamy and frothy.

Add 2 cups flour to the yeast mixture
Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the mixing bowl

Turn on mixer on slow mixing with a bread hook if you have one.

Slowly add water about 1 tablespoon at a time until the mixture forms into a dough ball. (about another 1/2 cup water)
Remove the dough ball from mixer and knead lightly on a flat surface sprinkled with flour.
Lightly oil the mixing bowl with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
Return the dough ball to the oiled mixing bowl, roll the ball in the oil.
Cover the mixing bowl with a warm, slightly damp cloth and let rise in a warm area.
Allow the dough to double in size, about 30 minutes later.

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. (Seriously 475 degrees!)

Shape the dough into a loaf on a flat slightly oiled cookie sheet.
Poke about 30 small dimples into the dough with something like a chopstick.
Mix the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil with the 1/2 teaspoon Italian spices and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Use a basting brush and brush all of the oil, salt, and seasonings mixture onto the top and sides of the shaped dough. The seasonings will infuse the bread with the dimples.
Sprinkle shredded or grated parmesan cheese on the top of the oiled, seasoned bread, this will make it look pretty!

Place oiled and seasoned dough into the preheated oven and bake for 12-18 minutes depending on how dark and crusty you want your bread. If you want it lighter bake for 12.
I like my bread crusty so I baked the top for about 15 minutes, I flipped the loaf and baked the underside for 3 minutes.

Take it out of the oven, let it cool as long as you can stand to wait, and enjoy!

You just made your own artisan bread for about a buck.

Use it for sandwiches, dinner bread, or dipped in olive oil, balsamic vinegar and Parmesan cheese with a glass of wine. Sounds like a perfect dinner to me!