HAPPY HOLIDAY HAPPENINGS . . . DON'T DO THIS!

I was making muffins this morning . . . Cranberry & Orange . . . festive and delicious.  Don't get me wrong -- I'm not a baker.  I got the packaged mix stuff from the grocery store.  However, I do like to add my own twist to things and with this particular muffin mix, I always add craisins; also known as dried cranberries.  They already have little red chunks of cranberry-flavored sugar in them, but I just love craisins.  As I'm mixing it up and wishing I had an orange or two I could zest, I suddenly remembered that I have Orange Flavoring Oil which I use to make soaps because I'm not big on making candy either.

Not even bothering to pull out one of my eyedroppers, I just slowly and gently tilt the bottle, pouring in a substantial amount of oil for the mix, but I just figure it'll just be a little too orangey, which is okay with me.  It's only a guess, mind you, but after mixing up the batter, I licked the spoon and found myself making a face and saying, "That tastes like soap."  Even now, a good fifteen minutes AFTER licking the spoon, my mouth tastes a little like I bit into a bar of soap.  I can't decide if a little soap base got into the oil or if I insufficiently cleaned the eyedropper but SOMETHING of soap making origins got into the Orange Flavoring Oil.

If you've reviewed the website or purchased any of the downloads, you know that I love how crafts can overlap:  polymer clay crafting and soap making and candle making and so on.  I have learned a valuable lesson today:  CRAFTING can overlap ONLY SO FAR . . . Any flavoring oils or extracts you use for CRAFTS should probably be kept completely separate from those you use for edible things.  Flavoring oils are a wonderful choice for soap making . . . just don't use the same bottle for flavoring something you're going to eat.

UP SIDE:  I had planned on making muffin baskets for family members for Christmas this year.  Thankfully, I tried this little trick on some I had planned on eating, not giving away as gifts.  I'm pretty sure that no one would have appreciated getting soap-flavored muffins for Christmas; I'm equally sure they wouldn't have been THAT surprised.

I wish all of you HAPPY HOLIDAYS . . . whether you celebrate Christmas or Kwanzaa or Hanukkah . . . may your holidays be beautiful, bountiful and blessed.

Norma