From the garden

Although yesterday started out cold and foggy I still found gems in the garden. I picked up this basket at the local salvo's for $2, it still had a price tag of $15 on it, it has been a great buy and I use it everyday to bring treats from our yard into our home. There is something satisfying about a basket full of items from your own yard; fresh eggs, lemons, oranges and flowers.

I decided to try my hand at making my own orange juice. I have an electronic juicer which certainly makes things easier, and to think it almost didn't make the journey from the old house to this place as it was barely being used. My first attempt at my own OJ has not been so great, despite instructions from the juicer that there is no need to remove the peel the taste suggests otherwise. The juice is still drinkable but it is a bit more tart then I was hoping for. Next time I will make the effort to remove the zest and peel and give this a try.

I ended up with a lot of grated zest, it seemed like such a waste to just throw away or compost all that lovely orange smelling oil. I remembered reading something about adding vinegar to citrus zest to make a general cleaner.

Orange Vinegar Cleaner Recipe
Orange peels
Vinegar
Water

1. Fill a glass jar with orange zest/peel
2. Cover the peels with vinegar
3. Let the vinegar and orange peels sit for a few weeks
4. Take the vinegar out of the jar and pour it into a spray bottle, diluting half/half with water