Pick moisturizing products that contain nutritive oils when washing and treating your afro hair. Most shampoos contain harsh chemical ingredients designed to strip hair of excess oil and dirt, but because extremely curly hair tends to lack natural moisture, these formulas can dry your hair out and make it brittle. Your best bet is to find a moisturizing cleanser that contains botanical oils derived from fruits and other natural sources, such as avocado oil, coconut oil or almond oil, and pair it up with a deep conditioner that also serves to add moisture.  Oils like coconut, avocado, jojoba, castor, and olive are deeply nourishing and repeatedly make lists of best products for afro hair. These should make up the bulk of your hair treatment arsenal.  Shampoo hair by thoroughly lathering and rinsing completely. When conditioning, let the conditioner rest in your hair for 5-8 minutes to allow it to penetrate to the roots. Rinse it all, or let a small amount of conditioner remain in the hair to coat and protect. Afro hair quickly loses its natural moisture, making additional moisturizing a key part of your hair care routine. Instead of just shampooing and conditioning, rub some specialty moisturizing cream or oil into your hair after you're done showering. These products are made to “wear in,” so that rather than washing them out after they’re applied you allow them to soak into hair strands to replenish lost moisture. Some of the best oils for this purpose are argan, jojoba, and grapeseed, as these also contain biological compounds that strengthen hair.  In addition to regular creams and oils, many hair products, such as masks, pomades, and leave-in conditioners, also include the compounds you’re looking for, and can also aid in styling hair. Apply moisturizers a little at a time. If you use too much, it can saturate your curls and make them look wet and droopy. Try cutting down the number of times you shampoo per week to three of four, instead of every day. Because of the way they clean, even moisturizing shampoos with beneficial oils can rob hair of its natural moisture. Just rinse your hair thoroughly a couple of times a week during your daily shower and avoid relying on products that deplete your natural hair oils. You can still condition between showers where you shampoo, or you might instead use special moisturizers after bathing.
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One-sentence summary -- Use special moisturizing cleansers. Apply deep conditioning oils or creams. Don’t wash your hair every day.


Beat for about 2 minutes.  Pour in the flour, baking soda, and salt. Blend slowly until properly combined.     Slice the cookie into pieces. Top with vanilla ice cream, if desired. Enjoy!
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One-sentence summary -- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees Celsius). Grease a 14 inch round pizza pan. Cream the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Crack in the eggs and blend until fully combined. Stir in the dry ingredients. Fold in the chocolate chips and mix well. Flatten and spread the cookie dough on the pizza pan. Bake the cookie in the oven for about 20-25 minutes. Allow the cookie to cool for about 10 minutes. Serve.


You'll need an extremely large stainless-steel mixing bowl and a large balloon whisk to properly whip cream by hand.  A bit of patience and strong arms (or a friend who'll lend a hand) are nice to have, too.  A balloon whisk helps to incorporate lots of air into the cream as you whip, creating an airier, lighter product. Chef Leslie Bilderback recommends what she calls a "ludicrously oversized bowl" because the more surface area the cream has, the faster it will whip. Always chill your mixing bowl ahead of time.  A stainless-steel mixing bowl is your best choice because it'll hold the chill longer, but you can also use porcelain or glass.  To keep your cream extra cold while working, you can also set the mixing bowl inside a larger bowl that you've filled halfway with ice. Begin whipping the cream in a wide, circular motion.  As you whip, lift the whisk out of the cream with each pass.  By doing this, you'll bring more air into the cream, and it'll whip more quickly. Whip as quickly as you can; the faster the better. After whipping your cream for about 30 seconds, you should see lots of little bubbles--the cream should resemble foam.  Continue whipping and notice when you get to the point that you can see and to feel your cream begin to thicken. It depends on your arm strength and how successfully you maintain good whipping technique. When you get to the point that the cream starts to hold it's shape, you've reached the soft peak stage.  This is the point at which you'll add sugar and/or flavorings to your cream. If you're working ahead and won't be serving your cream for a while, stop whipping now and put your bowl in the refrigerator until you're ready to finish. It should only take an additional minute or so to move from the soft-peak to the stiff-peak stage.  To test it, take a scoop on the end of your whisk and turn it upside-down.  The peak on the scoop should hold firm and not soften back into itself. If you over whip your cream, you will end up with butter.  If you see it the mixture starting to separate, you've gone too far. You do not to have to whip your cream by hand.  You can use a mixer with a whisk or whip attachment; however, since this is a classic French recipe, you may prefer to use this classic method of whipping by hand.
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One-sentence summary --
Pick up two essential tools. Get the technique. Whip the cream until it thickens. It could take a minute it could several minutes before your cream thickens. Enter the soft peak stage. Finish with stiff peaks. Stop.