drying Archives - Authentic Simplicity

A large part of frugality is being careful about what you spend. You know, don’t waste your grocery money on Twinkies and Oreos and then say you can’t afford organic fruits and vegetables.

But an often overlooked aspect of frugality is being careful with what you already have. As our grandparents said, “Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.” Our generation is just starting to grasp this concept, but we’ve got a long way to go. Take a clue from those who lived through the Depression and the Great War, and learn to use up every last bit of everything before you throw it out.

Personally, I find it a rather fun challenge to see if I can find a new use for something that I used to just mindlessly throw away. For example, making an elegant dessert out of stale bread, or turning egg cartons into gift packaging. Or turning orange rinds into gourmet orange peel granules. Sure, you could pay $9 for someone else’s orange peel trash… or you could make your own and save your $9.

Trash into treasure. Something from nothing. It’s like you’re a magician.

The process is pretty simple. All you have to do is this:

If your orange is not organic, wash it very carefully before peeling it.
Peel your orange (or clementine, or tangerine) and eat it. Yum, yum!
Take the pieces of the peel and lay them on a plate. Leave them there for about 24 hours.
Run the dried orange peel through a coffee grinder (A clean coffee grinder, please. You don’t want coffee grinds mixed in with your dried orange zest!)
Store in an empty spice container (see all the trash you’re turning into treasure?!)

You can also store the dried orange peels in their entirety, and just grind them as you need them. Whatever’s easiest!

The people who know (those gourmet foodie types) recommend removing the pith (that white stuff that sticks to the inside of the peel) to avoid a bitter aftertaste in your orange zest. This is great advice that I usually don’t follow. Personally, I think it’s only a real issue if you’re going to simmer the peels for a long time in something like broth or spiced cider. (Or maybe it’s because I only ever use clementines. I hate oranges with a passion, mostly because they have a lot more pith and membrane than clementines. I mean, by the time you get to the good stuff, you’ve discarded half the orange!) But if you want to take that extra step, I actually recommend that you remove the pith after it’s dried and not before. It scrapes off really easily with the back of a small paring knife when it’s dry. At least with clementines. As I mentioned, I have no experience with real oranges because I avoid them like the plague. (Maybe I should retitle this post “Dried Clementine Zest”. Hmmm.)

Now what to do with those orange-y bits of goodness? Use them pretty much in the same way you would use fresh orange zest. Here are some of my favorite uses:

in simple syrup
in homemade coffee creamer
mixed and brewed with coffee grinds
stirred into pancake batter
stirred into any batter (cake, cookie, brownie, etc.)
as a garnish
in fruit dip
in marinades

The possibilities are practically endless! Anywhere you want a little orange flavor, throw in your dried orange zest and voila! Instant ~~orange~~ clementine yumminess.

What’s your favorite something-from-nothing trick?

Linking up to Monday Mania, and…