May 4: National Candied Orange Peel Day and National Orange Juice Day

National Candied Orange Peel Day

Last December, I made candied orange and grapefruit peels as gifts, inspired by the holiday cookie issue of the Food Network Magazine I had picked up on my holiday travels.  The orange peels were definitely more popular than the grapefruit peels and the grapefruit peels eventually made their way into cookies.  (And yes, the cookies were liked more than just the peels themselves.)

Candied orange peels are a great way to use up every little bit of an orange and they're incredibly easy.  It's essentially a lot of boiling and a lot of sugar, until you eventually end up with a chewy piece of candy with an orange flavor.  A lot of people like to dip the candied orange peels in chocolate, but I've never been a fan of the chocolate and orange pairing, so I usually just make plain candied orange peels. Although, the idea of sticking the candied orange peel in a date along with an almond and then dipping the whole thing in chocolate does sound very tempting.

When it comes to fruits that need to be peeled, some people don't buy organic because they're not eating the peel where the pesticides are applied.  When making candied orange peels, though, I always choose organic.


National Orange Juice Day



Orange juice goes with just about every breakfast food.

Ah, orange juice.  Seen as an ally in the fight against illness and a requirement for all brunches.  And there's so many varieties to choose from!  High pulp, low pulp, no pulp, calcium added, heart healthy, juice from US orange...  There's an orange juice for everyone.

Orange juice made the news a few months ago when imported orange juice tested positive for a banned fungicide.  And even more recently, there were fears of a price spike.  (Thankfully, that never materialized.)  Diseases and pest plague orange groves.  According to Orangejuicefacts.com, 80% of the orange juice made in the US is produced from Florida oranges.  This means that the US production of orange juice is heavily dependent on Florida having a good orange harvest.  If something happens to Florida's oranges, it's not like California oranges can easily step in.  (Florida and California are really the only two places in the US where oranges grow.) 

It seems to be generally accepted and it's also my opinion that Florida oranges are for juicing and California oranges are for eating. I do like eating oranges and drinking orange juice, so I guess you could say I support both states.