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When I made the switch to eating whole foods over a decade ago, I realized I had a lot of food I no longer wanted to eat lurking in the pantry.<\/a> If you\u2019re making the switch or need to clean things out, here are some creative uses for junk food! <\/p>\n I compiled a list of ways to use these for other household purposes. I hate to waste as much as the next person, but I finally had to realize that my body is not a garbage can. And I refused to use things just to finish what\u2019s in the house.\u00a0<\/p>\n When we switched to a real food diet, I donated all of the unopened non-perishables. That still left all of the opened packages of flour, sugar, oil, etc. to deal with. Instead of just pitching it, we used it for some fun projects and around the house.<\/p>\n The kids had a blast (and I got pampered) while we used up the rest of our \u201cjunk food.\u201d I\u2019ve divided them up by categories, but some of the recipes use up several different ingredients. These were my solutions:<\/p>\n I\u2019ve certainly changed my stance and outlook on things over the years, especially when it comes to grains. I avoided them completely for many years while I was healing my autoimmune disease<\/a>. Now I\u2019ll eat certain grains, like white rice and organic flour (especially sourdough<\/a>) in moderation.\u00a0<\/p>\n One thing you\u2019re not going to find in my pantry though (at least not anymore!) is bleached, enriched, white flour<\/a>. Here are some ways to use it up. <\/p>\n A win-win situation. You get to spend quality time with your kids and use up the leftover flour in your pantry. If you don\u2019t have kids, this could be fun for grown-ups too\u2026 consider it stress relief. And if you need a gluten-free playdough<\/a> version, I have one here.\u00a0<\/p>\n This playdough uses up flour, vegetable oil, Koolaid or food dye, and iodized table salt.\u00a0<\/p>\n A basic playdough recipe that uses ingredients from your pantry for endless fun. <\/span><\/p>\n Author: <\/span>Katie Wells<\/span><\/p>\n Combine water and salt in a large pot and heat over low heat until the salt is dissolved.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Stir in the flour until well combined.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Add the vegetable oil and cream of tartar, mixing well.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Keep stirring over low heat until it thickens and pulls away from the sides into a ball. If it\u2019s too sticky, keep stirring over low heat until it thickens.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n Remove from the heat and let it cool until you can handle it.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Add the Kool-aid or food dye for color.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n You can also add some essential oils to give your dough a nice scent and some aromatherapy benefits.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Have some more food dye you want to use up? Mix it with some yogurt for finger paint.<\/a> Just be sure to take a picture of your kid\u2019s art project before throwing it away!\u00a0<\/p>\n Mix equal parts of white flour and water to make a glue-like paste. Let your kids use their hands and some old pieces of newspaper to make creations. Once it dries, it\u2019s much like a sculpture.\u00a0<\/p>\n As kids, we used to blow up balloons and put paper mache over them. When they dried, we popped the balloons, cut them in half and painted them to make masks.<\/p>\n Oh the fingerprints! Stainless steel shows smudges\u2026 a lot. After normal cleaning, pour or rub some all-purpose flour onto the stainless to make it shine and remove fingerprints or water spots.\u00a0<\/p>\n The oils and fiber in the flour buffs the tiny grooves in the steel. It also helps pull out dirt and grime that a regular cleaning cloth can\u2019t.\u00a0<\/p>\n I\u2019ve written a lot about sugar over the years and why I ditched it. While I\u2019ll still have natural sweeteners in moderation, I quit bleached, white sugar. Sugar is a humectant that makes for a great skin scrub though! Here are several different sugar scrub recipes to try.\u00a0<\/p>\n You can even use a sugar syrup to wax body hair. Here are instructions for how to make and use a sugar wax.<\/a><\/p>\n For many of us, warmer seasons can mean ants in the house. Instead of using noxious pesticides, you can easily tackle the problem with a little sweetness. Humans and ants alike both love sugar. <\/p>\n To make a simple ant trap:<\/p>\n Borax is poisonous to ants, but they can\u2019t resist sugar. It won\u2019t kill them immediately, but they\u2019ll take it back to their nest where it will eventually kill all of them. I\u2019ve used this twice to get rid of ants in our house. Killing ants=good use for sugar!<\/p>\n You might have noticed more conversations around seed oils and vegetable oils lately, even from mainstream sources. Vegetable oils <\/a>are high in inflammatory omega-6 fats and are linked with a whole host of health issues. These include corn, canola, and soy.\u00a0<\/p>\n Here are some ways to use up the rest of the vegetable oil in your home.\u00a0<\/p>\n There are natural ways to clean<\/a> any type of floor, and that vegetable oil lurking in your pantry makes an awesome hardwood floor cleaner.\u00a0 Rather than letting it skew your Omega-3 and 6 ratios, use it to make your floors shine.\u00a0<\/p>\n Mix 1 cup of vinegar OR lemon juice with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil. Use this mixture to clean your floors. Be sure to patch test an area first. You\u2019ll have less inflammation, and your floors will have a nice shine! <\/p>\n You can also mix vegetable oil with vinegar to make a DIY dusting spray<\/a> for wooden furniture.\u00a0<\/p>\n Some sources say canola oil can work well as an insecticide and fungicide in the garden. It kills bugs by suffocating them and helps prevent powdery mildew by providing a barrier between the plant and fungi.<\/p>\n To use it, add 1 tablespoon of canola oil and 1 tablespoon liquid soap to 1 gallon of water. Spray on plants to kill bugs and prevent powdery mildew. Just be sure to try and avoid the good bugs!<\/p>\n Rice is one of the foods that I ditched for years that I\u2019m now fine with on occasion. You might be surprised to hear that I opt for white rice instead of brown rice though and here\u2019s why.<\/a> If you have non-organic enriched rice or are avoiding it for gut healing purposes, here are some ways to use it up.\u00a0<\/p>\n Electronics and water don\u2019t mix, or at least they\u2019re not supposed to! My kids dropped 3 of our cell phones in water by mistake (and one I dropped myself). Three out of the four were saved by rice.\u00a0<\/p>\n Keep a jar of rice on hand and when an electronic gets wet, put it in the jar and close the lid tightly. The rice will absorb the moisture and pull it out of the gadget. Unless there\u2019s structural damage, this usually works. It can take a few days or even a couple weeks, so be patient.<\/p>\n Asian cultures have used rice water for luxurious locks for many years. Rice is full of amino acids, antioxidants, vitamins, protein, and other nutrients that are great for hair health. Here\u2019s how to make and use rice water<\/a> for softer, stronger, and shinier hair.\u00a0<\/p>\n Oatmeal can cause blood sugar spikes for many, and it\u2019s often contaminated with glyphosate. Here\u2019s how to use up some of that extra conventional rolled oats in your pantry.<\/p>\n For a relaxing facial, powder oatmeal in a blender or food processor and add warm milk to make a paste. Rub it on your face, let it dry, then wash off. It tightens pores, removes blackheads and moisturizes. <\/p>\n I swapped out my coke and other sodas for healthier (and tastier in my opinion) fermented drinks<\/a>. If you have some still sitting around, coke makes a great cleaner for tough messes. It contains phosphoric acid that breaks down rust and hard water and softens burnt food. And the citric acid is great for soap scum and grease.\u00a0<\/p>\n It can even take the rust off of a car bumper. Imagine what it does to the intestines??<\/p>\n Toilet dirty? I\u2019m sure yours isn\u2019t, but mine sometimes is. Pour a can of coke in a toilet and let it sit for an hour. Use a brush to remove the stains and flush for a shiny clean.\u00a0<\/p>\n I even tried this on a 30-40 year old toilet in a house I remodeled. It worked (and that toilet probably hadn\u2019t been cleaned in 30-40 years). Here are some more ways to use coke for cleaning.\u00a0<\/p>\n I\u2019m actually a big fan of salt <\/a>and consume a lot of it everyday. I\u2019m not a big fan of regular, iodized table salt though for several reasons. If you have table salt that needs used, here are some ways to do that.\u00a0<\/p>\n Make a weed killer for driveways and sidewalk areas. For every 1 gallon of white vinegar add 1 cup of salt and 1 tablespoon of dish soap. Fill a spray bottle or pump sprayer to use on weeds. Be careful not to spray in areas (like a garden) where you want some plants to grow.\u00a0<\/p>\n Salt also makes a great natural cleaning scrub.\u00a0<\/p>\n And for a fun project with the kids, try these 3 ingredient salt dough ornaments!<\/a> The recipe is similar to play-dough, but they dry hard and you can paint the finished creations.\u00a0<\/p>\n1. All-Purpose Enriched Flour<\/h2>\n
Make Play Dough<\/h3>\n
Playdough Recipe<\/h2>\n
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Paper Mache Paste With Flour<\/h3>\n
Polish Stainless Steel<\/h3>\n
2. Sugar<\/h2>\n
Kill Unwanted Ants<\/h3>\n
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3. Vegetable Oil\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Clean Your Wood Naturally<\/h3>\n
Canola Oil in the Garden<\/h3>\n
4. Use Up Rice<\/h2>\n
Dry Out Wet Electronics<\/h3>\n
Rice Water For Healthier Hair<\/h3>\n
5. Oatmeal For Skin Health<\/h2>\n
6. Coke For Serious Cleaning<\/h2>\n
Clean Your Toilet<\/h3>\n
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7. Table Salt<\/h2>\n
Weed Killer<\/h3>\n
Salt Cleaning Hacks<\/h3>\n
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Final Thoughts\u00a0<\/h2>\n