Luscious Pumpkin Body Butter

Ever get annoyed at the pumpkin puree left over from recipes that don’t use the whole can? Now there is something sublime you can do with it: Whip up this luscious body butter, a beta-carotene feast to moisturize, nourish and smooth your skin. Pumpkin Body Butter is easy to make, smells absolutely heavenly and does simply divine things for your skin. Pumpkins—they’re not just for pie anymore!

Pumpkin puree has enzymes and antioxidants that offer results similar to gentle alpha-hydroxy action: It removes dead dull cells, while its beta-carotene-rich antioxidants nourish your skin. Coconut solids are a lovely natural moisturizer, and ground cinnamon is gently warming, stimulating and antibacterial.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup pumpkin puree, preferably organic
1/2 cup solids from a can of coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Mix ingredients in a bowl. Apply generously to clean skin (standing or sitting on a towel, if you like), massaging gently to work well into the skin.

2. Allow to remain on for 10 minutes or so, then rinse with warm water and pat dry.

Read more: Beauty, Skin Care, alpha-hydroxy, body butter, moisturizer, pumpkin

By Cait Johnson, author of Witch in the Kitchen (Inner Traditions, 2001).

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Vanessa S.

10:13AM PST on Dec 27, 2011

Sounds great, might even make this for a gift.

send a green star

Carole R.

3:02PM PDT on Oct 23, 2011

Interesting. I'm sure it works great. Just not sure want to try it myself.

Hana B.

2:53AM PDT on Oct 11, 2011

I love this one!

Michele W.

10:37AM PDT on Sep 4, 2011

Thank you

Athena C.

4:26AM PST on Nov 7, 2010

Oh my gosh. Sounds good enough to eat!

Sylvia W.

6:12AM PDT on Oct 30, 2010

Pomme B - there are many small varieties of pumpkin, mostly the ones used for cooking - you don't need to buy one grown for Jack O' Lanterns ;-)

If your local markets don't have the little ones, you can use the canned puree - inexpensive and readily available most places, at least in the US - not so sure elsewhere.

Pomme B.

7:04AM PDT on Oct 25, 2010

Does it have to be pumpkin or any other orangey squash would do (I'm thinking butternut squash in particular...)? I use butternut squash all through winter (Butternut and carrot soup mmmmmmmmhhhhh....) but hardly ever get pumpkin, mostly because they are so big and there is only 2 of us....

Diane W.

12:59AM PDT on Oct 24, 2010

Yummy! sounds fabulous!

Jan C.

7:01PM PDT on Oct 17, 2010

I'm not sure I could sit for 10 mins with pumpkin slathered all over me. Nor can I imagine my pets not trying to lick it off while I'm sitting there! LOL!

Julie H.

5:02PM PDT on Oct 17, 2010

Uhm, it's pretty obvious that what she is trying to get from all that with the coconut milk is the coconut oil. Rather than go through all that - and end up wasting the remains of the coconut milk - why not just buy a jar of virgin coconut oil from a health food store or Amazon?! You can get a pint jar for less than seven or eight dollars, and people all over the world have been using it for skin and hair care for thousands of years, just straight coconut oil (at room temp. the texture is kind of like butter or lard but it smells like heaven.)

The virgin coconut oil does not spoil at room temperature, but I am fairly sure once you added the pumpkin in, because of the sugars and such, you must refrigerate it, or it would mold and spoil within a day or so. Refrigerated it would probably last a week or ten days, maybe more with canned pumpkin.