Canned Oranges

• In a sink half full with warm water and 1 tablespoon baking soda and 1/4 cup vinegar wash your mandarin oranges. Rinse well.
• Peel your oranges and set the peels aside for another project. Separate your oranges and place in a bowl and set aside.
• In a medium saucepan over medium heat add the sugar and the water and bring to a simmer. Stirring constantly until sugar dissolves. Turn your heat to the lowest temp possible to keep the syrup hot.
• Add your mandarin oranges to hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/2" at top of jar. Cover the oranges with the hot simple syrup leaving 1/2" at the top of the jar.
• Remove any air bubbles by running a chop down the insides of the jar.
• Wipe the rim of each jar with vinegar on a cloth and place your seal and add the ring only to finger tight.
• Place your hot jars into your hot water bath canner and bring your water to a boil and allow to boil for 10 mins for 250 ml jars. Make sure each jar is covered by 1 - 2" of water.
• After the time is up turn off the heat and allow to sit in the canner for 5 minutes and then remove the jars from water, do not tilt the jars.
• Allow your hot jars to sit on the counter undisturbed for 24 hours. After 24 hours check that each jar has sealed, remove the rings and wipe down each jar, label and place in your storage for later use. Use within one year.
• Any un sealed jar place in your refrigerator and consume within a week.

To use the peels:

• Place the peels in a dehydrator and allow them to dehydrate. Place the dehydrated peels in a coffee grinder to create an orange powder for baking, cooking or even in tea.
• The powder can also be sprinkled in your garden as a natural pesticide.
• You can also add the orange powder to sea salt and olive oil to create an all natural body scrub or bath soak.
• The peels un-dehydrated can be added to a glass jar. Cover the peels with vinegar and allow to sit for two weeks and you will have an all natural cleaner for around your house.
• The peels can also be made into orange candy or you can also make an old fashioned orange marmalade jam.
• Try not to waste anything around your house, always do some research to see how you can reuse or recycle something before sending it to the land fil.

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