Cool Coconut Products

I enjoy everything, or most things, coconut¬¬––the meat, the milk, the water, the oil, the butter, and the flour made from it. Besides the flavor, I like coconut products for their nutritional and medicinal benefits.

Coconut fat contains monolaurin, a fatty acid found in human mother’s milk that has proven an antiviral, antifungal, and antibacterial properties that can support your immune system.

Coconut oil is more stable in cooking, baking, and at room temp than vegetables oils, making a great alternative to vegetable oil, margarine, and butter (for those who are sensitive to even trace amounts of casein or lactose).

Coconut oil
I use coconut oil for sautéing vegetables, scrambling eggs, searing chicken breasts or tenders, roasting vegetables, and have used it in muffins, brownies, bars, and other baked goods. I’ve used it to remove eye make up and to moisturize my skin.

Coconut flakes
I sprinkle unsweetened coconut flakes over fruit salads, make coconut macaroons, and roll my Chocolate Dipped Date Nut Truffles in it.

Coconut milk
I add coconut milk to my favorite coffee alternative, Teeccinio. I use it to make creamy soups without cream, add it to sweet and savory sauces, Pumpkin Pudding Pie, and the non dairy frozen dessert recipes I developed for my most recent cookbook (see The Ice Dream Cookbook).

Coconut butter
I love drizzling coconut butter over sliced berries, peaches, melon, or my recipe for Poached Pears sweetened with raisins and Turkish dried apricots.

 Coconut water
I’ve enjoyed drinking coconut water. If you’re currently drinking Gatorade or giving it to your kids, aseptic cartons of unsweetened coconut water would make a healthier alternative, providing important minerals without artificial additives or refined sugar.

Coconut flour
This past winter I cracked the coconut flour code and, after many trials, turned out some fantastic recipes using coconut flour. I’ll post some of them after my article on the topic appears in an upcoming issue of Living Without Magazine.

Coconut body care
Besides eating coconut products, I’ve recently enjoyed wearing them and using them around the house.  I’ve used natural skin care products, personal care products, and biodegradable, non-toxic cleaning products for more than 20 years. The best products have the simplest and fewest ingredients, thing you can pronounce. In the case of body care products, the best ones contain ingredients whose names you can recognize and pronounce, many of them edible, such as honey, olive oil, coconut oil, and herbs.

I recently sampled some personal care, cleaning, and laundry products from one of my favorite coconut oil companies, Tropical Traditions. Many of their household products are made from or at least include coconut oil as a key ingredient. Here’s what I’ve tried so far. I liked all of the products.

Tropical Traditions Natural Liquid Soaps
Most liquid soaps, even the ones sold in natural foods stores, have added ingredients, fillers, that give them a thick consistency. When have you seen a liquid hand and body soap with only one ingredient? These liquid Soaps are made from 100% organic Virgin Coconut Oil, and nothing else. Scented varieties have organic essential oils added (lavender or tea tree oil).

These 100% Pure soaps are packaged in a special foam pump dispenser that adds air to the soap, which makes rich lather of foam come out. It looks like shaving cream and you could actually use it for that if you like. A little bit of this concentrated soap goes a long way.

I would get this product again. Not only does it work well, but it’s fun to use. You don’t have to toss out the container when your pump dispensers are empty; you can buy a 32-ounce refill to fill several pumps if you like.

Tropical Traditions Organic Moisturizing Lotions
Unlike most companies that use refined coconut and palm oils in their skincare products, Tropical traditions uses virgin oils that contain higher level of antioxidants, so they don’t have to add back synthetic or isolated nutrients. This 100% pure lotion is made from purified water, organic virgin coconut oil, organic jojoba, emulsifying wax (plant based, no soy),  grapefruit seed extract, and virgin palm oil. Scented varieties contain organic essential oils.

You can choose from six scents (lavender, citrus, arnica, peppermint, unscented, and baby silk). I tried the baby silk. It had a smooth, silky texture and a soothing fragrance. It softened my skin without leaving a greasy residue. I was so disappointed when I got to the bottom of the bottle! I want to buy this by the gallon! My skin felt so smooth after I put it on. It’s great for massage as well as daily moisturizing.

Tropical Traditions Lavender Deoderant Roll On
I liked this product for its simple (and short) ingredient list: purified water, organic virgin coconut oil, organic jojoba, plant based emulsifying wax, grapefruit seed extract, sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), and the following organic essential oils. It comes in three scents. I tried the Lavender. No chemical additives, no aluminum compounds, no parabens or propylene glycol.

This is not an antiperspirant. It’s not healthy to stop perspiration; you want your body to perspire. It’s one of the many ways your body gets rid of toxins and cools off. What you can do is tone done the smell by using a herbal fragrance. You may need to experiment to find the deoderant that works best for your body and has the fragrance that most suits you.

Tropical Traditions Dish Soap made from coconut oil
This product is free of fragrances, dyes, petroleum solvents, and respiratory and skin irritants. It was developed by and for people with allergies, asthma and Multiple Chemical Sensitivities.

I thought it lathered well, even in hard water. Because it’s so concentrated, it lasts a long time. It cleaned my dishes without stripping my hands the way commercial dish soaps do. I’ve used non-toxic, chemical free dish soaps for years and I really notice the difference when I go somewhere and have to use conventional soaps that dehydrate my hands. I like this product and the convenience of being able to buy it in a 1 gallon jug so I don’t have to shop as often.

Oxygen Bleach, Non-Chlorine Destainer & Deoderizer
I used this on my laundry and for cleaning the toilet. Tropical Traditions Oxygen Bleach is a safe and effective alternative to chlorine based products. It can be used in around the home. It is based on sodium percarbonate, which uses oxygen for destaining and deodorizing. It doesn’t produces no harmful by-products the way chlorine bleaches do.

I thought this worked well on my laundry and for cleaning the toilet. The instructions include tips for heavily soiled laundry and general household cleaning.

Powdered Laundry Detergent
Tropical Traditions Powdered Laundry Detergent is non-toxic, environmentally safe and contains no phosphates. Powdered Laundry Detergent cleans and safely bleaches your clothes. It also contains some of their Oxygen Bleach Destainer and Deodorizer. I thought it worked well. I would order it again. The instructions include tips for heavily soiled laundry.

More stuff
Tropical Traditions makes and markets an extensive live of safe, non-toxic personal care and household cleaning products that I want to try more of. I’ve used their virgin coconut oil, flaked coconut, palm shortening, coconut cream, and coconut flour at home, in my cooking classes, cooking demos, and for recipe development for magazine articles. I haven’t tried their red palm oil yet. These products taste great and I like that I can buy them in large containers to stock up and re-use the large gallon and 5-gallon buckets that many of their products come in.

SPECIAL OFFER
If you want to order any of these or other Tropical Traditions products, here’s how you can receive a a free copy of the book Virgin Coconut Oil: How it has changed people's lives and how it can change yours by Brian and Marianita Shilhavy with your first order online.

1. Go to: www.tropicaltraditions.com and click on 'products' found at the bottom of the menu list on the left side of the home page.
2. You'll be directed to the ordering form at the Tropical Traditions/Healthy Buyers Club website. (You do not have to be a member or purchase a membership. Membership allows you to purchase in bulk amount if you choose to join.) All regular orders for Tropical Traditions products can be placed at this website without a membership fee.
3. Select items you want to purchase from the online order form.
4. When ready to check out, click the “Check Cart'' link.
5. Review your order, then click the "Check Out" button from your shopping cart.
6.  Fill in your account information as directed. In the box: “How did you hear of us?''  you must select: “Referred by a friend’’ on the drop down arrow. When you make this selection a box for your sponsor’s User ID number should appear if you are a first time customer.
7. Enter the number 50549
8. To complete your order click "Save and Proceed to Checkout" at the bottom of this page and follow the instructions through the checkout process. You will receive an email with order number when you have successfully placed your order online.

Do you know of great coconut products with simple and pure ingredients? If so, email me to let me know about your favorite edible, personal care, or household cleaning products made from coconut oil, coconut milk, coconut butter, coconut flour, or unsweetened flaked coconut.

Comments

[Charlotte]

Hello Rachel,

You have a wonderful site here. Thank you for all of the information and for a wonderful site and a ton of information.

Sincerely,
Charlotte