Pinkerbell
New Member
My apologies if I'm posting in the wrong Forum; I'm very new to this group and to making soap. (moved)
Much to my surprise, the tree growing in the yard of my new home is a Bergamot. Being quite ambitious, I'd love to use the juice and/or peels in a soap recipe. I've read several articles on calculating the citric acid in fruits and how to modify the amount of lye to compensate but, none cover bergamots. The peels release a very sticky liquid, the fruit juice is very bitter.
I made marmalade ... dumped it - too bitter. I tried pressing the raw peels in a food mill to release the oils ... ditched that idea - jammed the mill and nearly pulled a muscle cranking the mill. I've got a pressure cooker full of peels and water ... processed for 15 mins with the intention of straining the liquid, freezing it & harvesting the oil - the house smells lovely.
Has anyone tried using the juice and/or peels of bergamot fruit in their soap recipes? Any suggestions? Tips? Warnings? Recipes?
I've got plenty of fruit ... at least 50 lbs of it!
Much to my surprise, the tree growing in the yard of my new home is a Bergamot. Being quite ambitious, I'd love to use the juice and/or peels in a soap recipe. I've read several articles on calculating the citric acid in fruits and how to modify the amount of lye to compensate but, none cover bergamots. The peels release a very sticky liquid, the fruit juice is very bitter.
I made marmalade ... dumped it - too bitter. I tried pressing the raw peels in a food mill to release the oils ... ditched that idea - jammed the mill and nearly pulled a muscle cranking the mill. I've got a pressure cooker full of peels and water ... processed for 15 mins with the intention of straining the liquid, freezing it & harvesting the oil - the house smells lovely.
Has anyone tried using the juice and/or peels of bergamot fruit in their soap recipes? Any suggestions? Tips? Warnings? Recipes?
I've got plenty of fruit ... at least 50 lbs of it!