We recently received a box of freshly picked oranges from a sweet friend in Florida. She packed a box full of these amazing, fragrant beauties and we are SO grateful for them!
Our family doesn’t eat much store bought citrus fruit and I rarely purchase orange juice. So why am I so excited for this box?
Because home grown fruits and vegetables are always better.
Simple as that.
But WAIT SARA! Those oranges aren’t ripe!
Yes, in fact, they are. They’re ripe, super flavorful, and aren’t coated or sprayed with food dyes. Yep. That’s right. Those coveted brightly colored citrus fruit you picked up at the grocery store are more than likely sprayed with ethylene gas, shocked with cold, coated in wax, or dipped in Citrus Red #2 dye.
Conveniently, there’s no legislation that fruit dyes need to be disclosed to the consumer on the fruit itself. You can read more about what the FDA says about dyes on their website.
The spraying of certain fruits to make them more esthetically appealing, despite MUCH research on the harm that it can cause consumers over time.
The justification for oranges being the peels are not consumed. (Whoever said that CLEARLY has never experienced the deliciousness that comes from an orange pound cake #ZestIsBest).
Orange peels are green due to the chlorophyll in the fruit protecting it from sunburn. Oranges that turn orange naturally have experienced cold to the point where the chlorophyll begins to wear off.
The flavor of these beautiful little globes is unmatched in even organic citrus we’ve tried at the store. The boys wanted seconds and ate the fruit down to their rinds (which is unheard of for them).
I’m a firm believer that fresh is best. There are a lot of nutrients that are lost over time (some fruits and vegetables lose up to 80% of their nutrients within the first few hours of harvesting).
There were a handful of citrus fruits leftover from our last Misfits Market box that I included in our juice-making. Everything from Misfits Market is organic (check out our experience with Misfits Market here!) so they weren’t dyed or chemically treated to create the orange coloring. Unfortunately, their flavor and fragrance was definitely lacking in comparison with the fruit from my Floridian friend.
Making the Juice
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I made the decision to peel each fruit by skinning them and using our juicer. It’s a good model to use if you’re new to juicing, but I’m about to the point where we need an upgraded model for how often it’s used. There is also a citrus press juicer that is available. Honestly, I think using a hand juicer for citrus would have been much easier, and would have allowed me to use the rinds for making teas.
The method I chose today was quite time consuming, but there was something relaxing to the methodical motions and the burst of fresh scent with every slice.
They were soaked in water and vinegar for about 15 minutes and then scrubbed down prior to skinning. Stirling was our very enthusiastic helper on the scrubbing, and required several towels to soak up the water drippings afterwards. We will be using the rinds to make some house hold cleaner (check out our zero waste household DIY cleaner here!) and a few other projects, so I wanted to spend the extra time removing any mold or debris.
From there, it was merely skinning, chopping, and running them through the juicer! Most of this juice will be frozen to make popsicles in the summer or for baking, but everyone fully enjoyed their own glass before freezing.
We got about 1 and 1/2 gallons of concentrated juice, two large batches of household citrus cleaner brewing, and three gallon bags of pulp and extra peels to be frozen for future use.
To Use
For Juice
Mix 1 part juice to 1 part filtered water for juice. (We use an APEC Water System)
For Popsicles
- 1 cup orange juice concentrate
- 1 cup filtered water
- 1 TBSP honey or maple syrup
Mix ingredients together in a blender. Pour liquid into silicone popsicle molds (we like these, there tends to be less mess as they push up from the bottom!) Allow popsicles to freeze completely before serving! (Usually 2-3 hours).
For a Cold Fighting Smoothie
- 2 cups orange juice concentrate
- 2 TBSP freshly grated ginger
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 cup of ice
Blend ingredients together and enjoy resting in bed or on the couch reading a good book!