Chemical free oven cleaning "recipe"

I put this post on my personal Facebook page earlier this week and was surprised by the interest it created.  It was my DH who suggested that I share it here with you.

I'm aware that chemicals are out there are they might be great for cleaning floors, but I'm not a huge fan of them when it comes to food - I don't want chemicals near!  As a mother I am aware of what I feed my babies.  I don't like that commercial oven cleaners require gloves, make my eyes sting for close to an hour, take days to finally stop smelling and if you're really unlucky - your freshly baked shortbread will have a faint taste of oven cleaner (yes, this really happened to me!)  Needless to say, they got thrown out. 2008 was the last time I bought and used oven cleaner.

So here's my post:

I was chatting to a number of mums at school last week about cleaning our ovens. I clean mine every 4-6 weeks (because I use it 5-9 times a week - very regularly!)  They were surprised to hear that I use no chemicals and wanted to know what I do. It's due this that I thought I'd share what I told them (in case you were interested in a chemical free option).

Mix equal parts of vinegar and bicarb soda, you'll need a big-ish bowl as it foams (I use about 1/2 a cup of each). Rub on to the insides of a warm oven (NOT HOT - this loosens the grease) and leave for 10-60 minutes. Using a damp clean cloth wipe clean and good bye grease, grime and chemicals. This mixture also works in your shower. It costs almost nothing but works. The only downfall is a faint vinegar smell for a few hours.

Happy Cleaning!
Elizabeth x