Orange Peel Veggie Wash

CC can't really seem to figure out which side of the banana is the business end. Sometimes he enjoys mashing the fruit into his gummy little mouth, but most times he just like gnawing on the end. This gives you a brief glimpse into the messy life of a baby learning to eat solid food. It's sticky. It's slimy, and it's far-reaching. As if the sheer squalor of it all weren't enough to deal with, I am also racked with anxiety over where that banana has been. 

Bananas come from the tropics – so does malaria… and posion spiders. MY BABY!!!! 

(Plus there is the whole pesticide thing.)

It didn't take long for me to determine that some kind of produce washing solution was in order. We really should be washing all of our produce more thoroughly anyway (at least according to this) so it was about time I made up a batch.

I started out by sticking some orange peels in a jar of vinegar. I'd been seeing other people doing this lately and it looked… wait for it… appealing. 

Ba ha ha ha ha.

But really, there is something really attractive to me about orange peels floating in jars of clear liquid. I jarred some of my own and propped them up on my kitchen window ledge just so I could gaze at them for a while. It was almost a shame two weeks later when I finally got around to making something with it.

Anyhoo – here's the recipe. Watch out for the fizzing bit. It's no joke. Baking soda and vinegar = volcano. Ask me how I know.

Orange Peel Veggie Wash
Makes about two cups

Ingredients

• the peel from one orange
• 1 cup white vinegar
• 1 cup distilled water
• the juice from one lemon
• 1 tablespoon baking soda

Directions

1. Combine the orange peel and white vinegar in a jar and set aside. Wait two weeks, then strain the vinegar and discard the peels.
2. Combine the baking soda and water in a very large pot or pitcher – something with high walls to help contain all of the fizzing that is about to commence.
3. Add the vinegar and lemon juice. The mixture will fizz like crazy then eventually settle into a flat liquid. Stir it well to make sure it is fully mixed, then transfer it to a spray bottle.

To Use

Spray on fruits and veggies before giving them a gentle rub-down. Rinse with tepid water.

P.S. You can make a very simple all-purpose cleaner using a similar method. Stetted has a recipe you can check out along with some tips for keeping your digs in ship-shape.