How to: Cucumber Glycerin Extract - 1
María gets full credit for being the inspiration for this post. Not long ago, she left a comment about having successfully made glycerine extract with both fresh cucumber and fresh strawberries.
That was enough to get me all excited about giving this a try.
Glycerine extracts are useful alternatives for folks who may not want to use tinctures (alcohol extracts) in their products. And even though a glycerine extract won't last as long (suggested 6 - 8 months) as an alcohol extract (4 - 5 years), it does offer other plusses.
With a glycerine extract, you have a dual-functional ingredient: a humectant with 'added botanical power'.
It's definitely a desirable alternative to formulating with fresh food.
Let's make a glycerine extract using fresh, organic cucumber!
The usual ratio of water to glycerine is 50/50.
Fresh cucumber is about 96% water, so it was easy to use Marías suggested method of using half cucumber to half glycerine.
For this batch I used
49.7 % Glycerine
49.7 % Cucumber
0,6 % Preservative (I used benzyl alcohol)
You: Preservative, Lise? Is that really necessary since we're using glycerine?
I had the same thought.
But, let's look at this for a second. Introducing plant material and water to glycerine and letting it sit around for a while.
Could this be a recipe for a bacteria rave party?
Yes, it could very well be.
Aroma Zone's glycerine extract how-to not only suggests adding 0,6% broad spectrum preservative, but storing the final extract cool and using within 6 months.
I think I agree with Aroma Zone on this one.
Tip: Always always measure your ingredients by weight - this is the only accurate way to be sure of your amounts in any formula.
Let's make a glycerine extract using fresh, organic cucumber!
Calculating the Water to Glycerine Percentage
Glycerine extracts are commonly made with dried plant materials that are reconstituted with water, then added to the glycerine.The usual ratio of water to glycerine is 50/50.
Fresh cucumber is about 96% water, so it was easy to use Marías suggested method of using half cucumber to half glycerine.
For this batch I used
49.7 % Glycerine
49.7 % Cucumber
0,6 % Preservative (I used benzyl alcohol)
You: Preservative, Lise? Is that really necessary since we're using glycerine?
I had the same thought.
But, let's look at this for a second. Introducing plant material and water to glycerine and letting it sit around for a while.
Could this be a recipe for a bacteria rave party?
Yes, it could very well be.
Aroma Zone's glycerine extract how-to not only suggests adding 0,6% broad spectrum preservative, but storing the final extract cool and using within 6 months.
I think I agree with Aroma Zone on this one.
Method
This is a pretty quick and easy process.- Sterilize the jar and your equipment
- Peel and slice the cucumber
- Weigh cucumber
- Weigh and add glycerine
- Add preservative
- Place lid on jar
- Keep jar in a dark and not too warm area
- Agitate the jar daily for 1-2 weeks
Tip: Always always measure your ingredients by weight - this is the only accurate way to be sure of your amounts in any formula.
Coming Up
Straining and bottling the extract and testing it out in a product.
More How-to's on making your own ingredients for skin care products
Making a tincture (alcohol extract) - 1Making a tincture - 2
Making an infused oil - 1
Making an infused oil - 2
Comments
I'm so looking forward to know about your experience...
I'm really happy with this method, but you're a big expert and that's different.
BTW, I've also used a 10% cucumber glycerine extract (I mean 10% glycerine and 90% water) as the only water phase in a summer cream and was fantastic!! I left the cucumber infusing 24h in the fridge, and after filtering thoroughly, I used the liquid extract as water phase.
I really like the summer cucumber cream as well María, that sounds just wonderful.
I can tell you that this summer cream is one of the simplest I've made. I used the cucumber 10% extract, as above, as the only water phase, and used only jojoba and olive oil for the oli phase. No other additives or actives whatsoever. Just preservative. No fragrances or essential oils. It was super light and fresh, so summery!
I used a 20% oil phase, so, 15% jojoba and 5% olive oil.
This is my favourite for the hot Spanish summer and it goes very well for almost all skin types :)
My favourte emulsifier are the Olivem 1000 and glyceryl stearate SE, as they are simple to use and I can modify texture just by adding thickeners or other texture enhancers, like stearic acid, cetearyl alcohol, cetyl alcohol, xantham gum, etc
Thanks for sharing!
Can I put this in the fridge for the 1-2 weeks?
Thanks for the response. Not sure where I went wrong cos mine has a runnier consistency, nothing like the glycerin I began with...
As for using dried materials, you will get best results by adding a bit of water and this information is also included in the calculation charts in the book :)
I started researching into making glycerites. I see you have chosen to use benzyl alcohol. Can other preservatives be used as well? And what would be your advice or recommendation when looking for the right preservative for food based glycerites?
Btw, I made your rosemary tincture earlier, it's great!