Vegan Castille Soap - Carrot and Basil, Lemon Balm, and Anise soaps

The carrot soap was made using all of the runty and wiry carrots growing in
tight in amongst the nice thick long carrots in our raised beds in the side yard.

I used only vegetation we grew ourselves, all organic, nothing was wasted.

I scrubbed these itty bitty carrots and boiled them in a bit of water and then pureed them smooth, using about 16 oz of vegetable matter. I then blended in 43.5 oz of olive oil.

In a large glass or ceramic bowl I added 12 oz of cold water very slowly to 6 oz lye, stirring gently with a silicone spatula until the temperature droped down between 110-115*. I slowly added it to the oil and vegetable blend. Using a stick mixer, I blended until trace appeared as a béchamel sauce consistency. 

It was then poured into a glass 8x17 pan (a ceramic, wax paper lined wood, or silicon mold would work as well). This was placed in an oven set to 170* for 2 to 3 hours. It then rested overnight. The next day it was un-mold, rinsed, cut,  and the slices cured on parchment for 2 to 3 weeks in a cool dark location.

After curing, they were wrapped in fresh parchment paper and stored in a plastic bag.

The soap shown below was mostly basil and lemon balm that I had soaking in the olive oil for a month in the cupboard. I added fresh anise seed during the blending process. It smells mostly of lemon balm.

Basil, Lemon Balm, and Anise made using
the herbs grown in our garden this summer.

Basil, Lemon Balm, and Anise soap