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How to Easily Freeze Oranges for Smoothies (plus a recipe!)

July 29, 2020 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

You can easily freeze oranges for smoothies. Here’s how!

I never liked oranges in smoothies until I invested in a Blendtec. Regular, inexpensive blenders don’t have the power to puree fruit like oranges. This is fine – if you like to chew your smoothies. :) But a high-power blender like my beloved Blendtec easily blends all fruits until they are super smooth. Here’s more info about why I love my Blendtec and why I feel it’s worth the investment!

But back to freezing oranges…

I recently found myself with 5 extra pounds of clementines that were looking a little bit pitiful. Knowing we wouldn’t eat them all before they had to head to the compost, I simply peeled them, separated them, and put them into a freezer bag.

Now, when we want orange flavor in our smoothies, instead of pouring in orange juice, we blend in a handful of these frozen orange slices. These are great with strawberries, bananas, and well, just about any fruit combination!

Here’s our favorite recipe that includes frozen oranges:

Tropical Smoothies

How to Easily Freeze Oranges for Smoothies (plus a recipe!)
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1½ cups frozen mango chunks
  • 1½ cups frozen pineapple chunks
  • 1½ cups frozen orange slices
  • 2 cups plain yogurt, milk, or coconut milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
  1. Place all ingredients into a blender or food processor together.
  2. Blend until smooth.
3.5.3251

It’s tough to beat pineapple, mango, and orange all together in a glass! Use coconut milk in this recipe if you want your smoothie to be extra-tropical tasting. And if you do that, it will be naturally diary-free too!

Do you freeze oranges? How do you use them?

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You Can Freeze a Whole Peach

July 17, 2014 by Laura 108 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

You Can Freeze a Whole Peach

Stick around here, and you might learn a thing or two from me every once in a while. But I guarantee that if you stick around here, you’ll learn loads of great information from all my readers! You all continue to amaze me with all of your cool, helpful, and time-saving knowledge. Ahhh, I love walking this homemaking journey with all of you. {wipes a tear with her stained apron}

Here’s the latest comment that had many of us saying, “Really? You can do that?! I can’t wait to try it!”

On my 10 Healthy and Easy Peach Recipes post, Jenny from DIY Parenting said, “We learned something VERY exciting last year… you can freeze whole peaches! Wash them, let them dry, then put them on a tray whole WITH the skins in the freezer. Once they are frozen solid, put them into freezer bags. Take out one as you need it. While still frozen, you can easily run your hands over the skin under water to remove it (if you want). Then let sit until thawed. This is how we now enjoy peaches, with no added sugar and without canning them, all year long.”

Well now that’s a tip that will save me loads of time and effort. I decided to try it. (How many of you did too?)

Into the freezer went some peaches…

freezing_peaches_1

Once frozen, I peeled one, just to see how easy it was. Oh wow, look at how that skin came right off with no effort at all!

freezing_peaches_2
For the record, we will generally be eating our peaches with the skin on, but one or two of my kids prefer it skinless – and at this point, I figure, hey whatever gets them to eat a peach, right?

I then sliced the peach into some cottage cheese for a refreshing snack. It was heaven in a bowl.  And it was practically effortless.

freezing_peaches_4

You know what I love best about this freezing peaches whole tip? (Besides how easy it is – because truly, this process could not get any easier. Unless I send my kids to the freezer with the peaches. Which I will. But besides that.)  I love that the nutrients in the peach are preserved with this method. Home canned peaches are great, but the cooking process does kill some of the nutrients. Frozen peaches though? Straight from tree to freezer, then into a bowl for a snack. Nourishing, and so juicy and delicious.

Jenny – I’m so thankful you shared this tip. You’ve changed the way I’ll preserve peaches from now on.

Whatever shall I do with all my extra time??

This post was originally published August 29, 2013.

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My New Kitchen Aid Food Processor (and a little frozen fruit drama)

April 28, 2011 by Laura 67 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Mama got a new food processor!

I seem to be a breaker of kitchen appliances. (Is breaker a word? Perhaps I’m a breakist?)

I think it’s a combination of two things:  1) I often buy cheap appliances. 2) I use my kitchen appliances constantly.

Therefore, when my previous food processor broke, we decided that instead of paying around $30 for another cheap food processor that would break in a year or less, we should save up and invest in a food processor that would last (because that would save us money in the long run!).

So, we saved. And while we were saving, I continued to use my broken food processor that still sort of worked, but if left unattended would fly off the counter and spray peanuts into the living room. The last day I used my old food processor, everyone was at the table waiting for their Mock Frozen Yogurt when all of a sudden, because I wasn’t holding the gadget with all my weight and standing on my right pinky toe just right, we had a sudden flinging of frozen berries and yogurt. The boys watched in astonishment as their Mama shrieked, the result of three frozen blueberries striking her on the forehead. The walls were covered in spattered yogurt and half the ingredients were dripping off the nearby pile of mail.

It was at that point that Matt, while gently dabbing at the blueberry stain that was running down my face, said, “Let’s get you that new food processor, what do you say?”

And so we looked around a little bit and decided on the Kitchen Aid 9-Cup Food Processor. I cringed when I first saw the price, because I’m used to buying cheap appliances. But now that I’ve got it all set up in my kitchen, I’ve decided that it was worth every penny. It’s so heavy duty that there is no comparison to the dinky things I formerly used.

Ain’t she purty? I’ve been playing…wanna see?

I spent several hours playing with her the first day she arrived. (I’m calling her a her because she’s so lovely and because there are plenty of males in our household so I can call her a her if I want to.)  As you can see, I began by making Peanut Butter. Two batches actually. The boys ate the Homemade Peanut Butter on their Whole Wheat Waffles, then I used some of it to make Peanut Butter Honey Fudge. This processor made my Homemade Peanut Butter making experience SO much easier!!!! What do you know…a food processor that actually works efficiently!

Next, I got out my cashews and dates and made some Homemade Larabars. Wow, those are fun to make and deliciously healthy for snacks!

I couldn’t resist setting the snacks up side by side and taking a picture. Oh lovely food made by my lovely new food processor. (Sorry to be gushing. I am obviously having a lot of fun playing with my new toy, can you tell?)

After I made those snacks, I got her all cleaned up and made some Mock Frozen Yogurt to go with our lunch. After all, I needed to see if I could make this treat without the drama of the previous Mock Frozen Yogurt mishap.

I’m happy to report that with my new Kitchen Aid 9-Cup Food Processor there was no blueberry violence or yogurt flinging. Nor did any peanuts shoot into the living room. All was calm in the kitchen as my new investment went to work for me.

Now there’s a story with a happy ending. :)

So, do you have a food processor? What kind do you have? Do you tend to buy cheap appliances, or do you invest in more efficient ones? Ever been a victim of frozen berry violence?

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