If you “like” me on Facebook, you know how much I adore our CSA. I mean, what’s not to like? Every Wednesday when I come back home from running carpool and errands, I’m greeted by a giant box of fresh produce + whatever lovely add-ons I’ve chosen for the week.
Black beans? Check.
Grass-fed beef? Check.
25 pounds of oranges? Don’t mind if I do.
I think it’s pretty much immoral to live in SoCal and not take advantage of the extra-delicious, surprisingly-inexpensive organic oranges that are literally falling all over the hills and sidewalks.
As you can imagine, we’ve been plowing through a lot of oranges lately. I feel so clean and bright and energized and, well, righteous or something. The fresh scent of citrus is enough to make anyone with a a pulse feel happy.
But what to do with all the peels?!
7 Uses for Citrus Peels
1. Make Sun Tea. There isn’t really a recipe for this, but I’ll tell you how I do it. As I go through my day and slice citrus fruit for snacks, smoothies, etc., I just toss the peels into a half gallon mason jar. When the jar is 1/3-1/2 full of peels I fill it almost to the top with filtered water and add 6-8 teabags. I like to do a combination of teas, but any flavor will be yummy, assuming it won’t compete with the flavor of the peels. My favorite is this tea. Put a lid on the jar and put it outside in direct sunlight. You may need to move the jar as the sun moves. Leave the jar outside for about 5 hours. It isn’t scientific. Just leave it out there until it is as strong as you like it. Then, transfer the jar to your fridge. I don’t even bother to remove the tea bags.
2. Make citrus vinegar for cleaning. Same idea as the sun tea. I just accumulate peels throughout the day in a mason jar. When the jar is full of peels I fill it with distilled white vinegar. I leave the jar on the counter for about a week (longer or shorter is fine too). When you’re ready to use the vinegar to clean, just strain or spoon the peels out, and you have vinegar that leaves a fresh citrusy scent, rather than a strong overpowering scent. I love to use vinegar to clean my house. (Well, let’s be honest. I don’t love to clean. But when I do I like a fresh scent.)
3. Make homemade “soda pop”. My husband and I both love carbonated water. We used to buy quite a lot of canned sparkling water, but last Christmas we made the switch over to a Sodastream machine. We love to make our own flavored waters. Sodastream machines are intended to be used with flavored syrups to make soda, but that’s full of nasty ingredients. Ick. We simply carbonate the water and add either a few drops of essential oils, a splash of fresh juice, or toss in some lemon peels. Once it’s chilled it is lightly flavored and refreshing.
4. Make lemon extract. For this, you’ll want to use only the zest (the yellow part), not the pith (bitter white part). Combine the zest from one lemon with one teaspoon organic sugar and 1/2 cup vodka into a glass container. A dark glass container like this one is best, but if you don’t have one just make sure you keep the jar in a dark cabinet. Shake and swirl the jar once a day (or as often as you remember) for a month or longer. I like to allow my extracts to develop for 2-3 months. The longer you leave it, the better the flavor. When you’re ready to use the extract, simply strain the zest out of the vodka.
5. Make sugar scrub. Do you ever make sugar scrubs? I looooove sugar scrubs for my feet, hands and face (I’m very gentle here). Every now and again when I’m feeling really spunky I scrub my whole body. All you want to do is combine 2 1/2 cups granulated sugar with up to 1/2 cup of either olive oil or melted coconut oil. Squeeze out whatever juice remains in your leftover citrus peels into the mixture. If you’re feeling really DIYish, mince the peels into teeny tiny pieces, almost a pulp, and stir into the mix. You’ll have a lovely scrub for a pamper session or for a gift.
6. Freshen your garbage disposal. This one’s easy- throw all the peels you have leftover into your drain with a big handful of ice cubes. Run your garbage disposal. The ice will sharpen the blades and the peels will leave your sink and drain smelling fresh.
7. Clean your cutting board. Sometimes cutting boards can hold onto smells and that’s not a good thing. You don’t want your next meal to taste like last night’s onions. I like to use lemon peels to remove smells and disinfect my cutting boards. I just rub lemon peels on the board, squeezing out as much juice out as I can. Then, I sprinkle the cutting board with kosher salt and allow it so soak for about half an hour (while I’m tucking kids in, or tidying the rest of the kitchen). Then, I rub the salt into the board, scrubbing as well as I can, then I wash it as usual (in the dishwasher for plastic, by hand for wood).
What do you do with citrus peels? Share your ideas!
(This post has been entered into Living Green Tuesdays Link-Up #39)
another great use for the citrus vinegar is with laundry. if you have a particularly icky smelling load to wash, add 1/4 to 1/2 c of the citrus vinegar to the load when you add the detergent. it really helps fight the stink and the clothes sometimes come out with a faint citrus smell. yum!