What's the worse thing that can happen if I scorched my goat milk?

[srez]

Hi all,

So.... I made quite a few of CP batches here and there... all in the 500 grams per batch range to get my feet wet and get the feel of it.

I then thought I would give it a try with goat milk that I picked up from a nearby farm. They are sold frozen in quart sized plastic milk jugs. I let it thaw in the fridge for a day or so and transferred it into a mason jar so I could shake it up because of the separation.

Anyway, I used the thawed, cold, goats milk, and slowly added the lye in 1/3's. The temp reached to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. I mixed well, constantly stirring and cooled to about 110F and poured in with the oils. I made a couple of these 500 gram batches... all slightly different recipes.

After scouring the threads for a couple of days I am realizing that I should have, and will be doing so in the future, pouring into gallon bags and freeze it that way in order to not scorch the milk. I'm thinking it is ok to thaw from the bottles and refreeze in the Ziploc bags for soap purposes. Is that a fair assumption?

My question is, what harm did I cause to the goat milk? Will it not be as nourishing? Did I cook its natural properties into oblivion? I will solely use this for home use and not sell it. I'm assuming that there is no harm in using it as is, but would like to know the whys and why nots when going forward if at all possible.

Thanks in advance,

Steve

 

[cmzaha]

It will turn your soap orange. Frankly, lye really kills any properties of the milk although some may disagree. In my opinion, milks were more label appeal than anything. My lard tallow soap was just as creamy as my gm soaps but I still made gm soap as some folks want believe they are the greatest on earth.

 

[srez]

Yes, I noticed that. It has a nice tan hue to it. I'm ok with the color change.

Do you personally find a different feel / benefit to the gm versus just oils and butters? I'm not quite at tallow soap making just yet.

 

[Obsidian]

I never found any different between animal milks and water.
Coconut milk makes the lather a tiny bit creamier but not enough to make it worth the bother.

 

[srez]

Hmm. So far it sounds like... in the immortal words of Public Enemy... Don't believe the hype. I've been reading about how it's deeply hydrating, rich in nutrients, high milk fat etc.

Is it fair to say that you can probably get that through oils and butters?

Is there something that milks, in this case goat milk, provides that you can't get with oils and butters?

 

[TheGecko]

Some folks swear by GMS. But scorching the milk…yuck. I did a post this morning on my recipe and how I make it…you’re welcomed to it.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Often when a potential customer asks for a goats milk soap, claiming they used one and it was wonderful - after probing further I find out that it was the first handmade soap they had ever tried. So how do we know if it was the goat milk they liked, or just the handmade soap??

 

[user 56151]

I always use milk of some kind and definitely find a difference. It might come from the extra fats and sugars. Your scorched gm soap will be fine to use.

 

[desiredcreations]

I've made 7-8 batches of soaps to date, all with sheep's milk and haven't had a problem. I keep the milk frozen, set it in an ice bath, add the lye and keep stirring while monitoring the temp and the color. I refrigerate the soap batter after trace, so there won't be a chance for the lye to brown or scorch the milk sugars.

According to CavemanChemistry, casein (milk protein) isn't impacted by lye, so those proteins are available to condition the skin after the soap is made.

 

[lucycat]

I make about 1/3 of my soaps with fresh goatmilk. They are different; not necessarily better but different. The bar has a softer feel against my skin and the lather creamier. I can tell just by looking which are goatmilk because they don't have as hard a surface area and they will have a beige background. Enough difference that some customers prefer one over the other. Powdered milk may have the same lather effect but not that same bar feel.

I do as desiredcreations and work over an ice bath for a couple of minutes. Once enough of the milk and lye melt to be a liquid over the bottom of the bowl the potential for scorching is pretty much over and I usually take the bowl away from the ice bath.

If you don't have a consistent size recipe freeze the milk in ice cube trays so it is easy to measure out. I have a consistent size and freeze in small containers that are measured so that I need two for one log. Also, I don't like goatmilk frozen a long time (months). The solids seem to settle at the bottom, have freezer burn and then are harder to incorporate into the lye.

 

[srez]

Thank you @cmzaha @Obsidian @TheGecko @KiwiMoose @vivhalaska @desiredcreations @lucycat

I truly appreciate your responses, references, expertise and directions. And I hope to post some soaps soon!

 

[KiwiMoose]

Often when a potential customer asks for a goats milk soap, claiming they used one and it was wonderful - after probing further I find out that it was the first handmade soap they had ever tried. So how do we know if it was the goat milk they liked, or just the handmade soap??

Sorry I meant to post this on another thread - not sure how I ended up posting it here.

 

[srez]

Sorry I meant to post this on another thread - not sure how I ended up posting it here.

No reason to be sorry It made sense what you said and had me thinking .

 

[KiwiMoose]

Honey I scorched the goat's milk!

 

[srez]

Honey I scorched the goat's milk!

Ha!

 

[TheGecko]

Sorry I meant to post this on another thread - not sure how I ended up posting it here.

I thought it went with the conversation.

I started making soap because I wanted to make GMS because I loved it. But I struggled to find a recipe for "GMS" so I started making regular soap until I found out that GMS was just regular soap make with goat milk instead of water and...well...it's kind of like you said above: "was the goat milk they liked, or just the handmade soap" but to be honest, I can't say for sure since I have yet been able to try a single bar of the GMS I have made since it goes out the door as often as I make it and I only use the last bar of GMS from a decade ago when I go on vacation. I do have one customer who swears by my GMS and he has tried my other soap and only wants GMS. I have heard testimonials by others who have tried other artisan soaps that swear by GMS. And I have heard folks say that they can't tell the difference between soap make with milk or soap make with water.

 

[lucycat]

I am a shower person with no washcloth. How the soap feels against my skin is important and it is how I judge other people's bars. I want silky and slip, lather and hardness are important but for me not the most important. A washcloth user could probably care less. I have a couple of customers who say that goats milk soap makes their skin softer and only want goats milk bars. I suspect they are like me in that there is something about the bar feel that is appealing to them and one I am oblivious to. Evaluating a bar may not be as straightforward as hardness and lather. Plus, if it is thought of as a luxury then there are plenty of people who just consider goats milk bars that luxury.

 

[srez]

I wonder if it comes down to everyone's pH? I was reading how goat's milk soap has the same pH as human skin. I haven't researched it all that much so just going on a couple of quick searches and articles.

 

[TheGecko]

I wonder if it comes down to everyone's pH? I was reading how goat's milk soap has the same pH as human skin. I haven't researched it all that much so just going on a couple of quick searches and articles.

Look at the sources of your search...I'm betting as I found, they come from companies that make GMS and of course, they are going to encourage folks to purchase their product.

With that said, I did find an interesting article from a GMS soap company:

Many goat milk soapers make claims on the internet that the pH of raw goat milk is closer to skin’s pH, therefore it is healthier for your skin than other soaps. While I do believe goat milk soap is better for your skin, using pH as a reason is not correct chemistry.

Human skin produces a barrier on the skin’s surface known as the acid mantle. As the name suggests, this barrier is slightly acidic and is designed to keep out bacteria, viruses, and other contaminants that can penetrate and harm the skin.

The skin’s acid mantle has a pH normally in the range of 5-6. Despite this slight acidity, one of the best ways to cleanse the skin is with natural soap instead of chemical-laden skincare products. Most cold-processed, handmade soap has a pH in the range of 9-10.

The misconceptions come into play because raw goat milk has a pH in the 6 range, whereas the pH of water is 7. People mistakenly believe that all soaps made with goat milk have a lower pH than soaps or beauty bars made with water. This is simply not true.

The whole pH controversy is merely marketing that is misconstrued and out of control. Manufacturers will tell you that a “low pH” or a “pH balanced” cleanser is better for your face and your skin. But I've yet to see any science that proves that.

Even simple water will disrupt the acid mantle and the pH of your skin. Since your skin quickly replaces the acid mantle (usually at full strength within 2-3 hours), the pH of the soap you use is a non-issue. A lower pH cleanser will disrupt the acid mantle just as a higher pH cleanser does.

Unfortunately, this “pH fallacy” has been perpetuated on many websites due to the nature of the internet. But don’t let it fool you. There is no perfect pH measurement that needs to be achieved for your skin's health. Goat milk soap is better for your skin for many reasons, but pH isn’t one of them.

 

[AliOop]

@TheGecko I liked everything they said until the last line: “Goat milk is better for your skin …”

They really should have said, “may be better” or even: “is better for many people’s skin..”

But their actual statement does just what they are condemning: makes a broad statement that isn’t universally true or correct. Too bad.