Drinking is just the beginning of uses for
orange juice. Photo by Sting | Wikimedia.

May 4th is National Orange Juice Day. Many Americans start the day with a glass of OJ but don’t touch the carton again until the following morning. Yet orange juice is a delicious ingredient that you can work into recipes for every meal of the day for a refreshing hint of orange flavor.

Breakfast

 
Lunch

Desserts

 
Snacks

 
Beverage

 
WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE USES FOR ORANGE JUICE?

Add them to this list!

Add OJ to your vinaigrette. Photo by Elvira Kalviste | THE NIBBLE.

Oranges are believed to have originated in Southeast Asia, a cross between the mandarin and the pomelo. They were cultivated in China as far back as 2500 B.C.E. In the late 15th century, Italian and Portuguese merchants returned home with orange trees. The fruit proliferated in the warm Mediterranean climate. Spanish explorers brought sweet orange trees to America in the mid-1500s. Its Spanish name, naranja, as an adaptation of the Sanskrit word, naranga.

The first orange trees were planted in the U.S. in the 1500s, in the area of St. Augustine, Florida, by Spanish explorers. The native Americans loved the fruit as well, so more trees were planted. The climate was perfect—warm, sub-tropical temperatures and abundant rains. The first commercial orange grove was planted in 1830 on Merritt Island, Florida, which remains a thriving growing area.

The oranges were eaten as well as juiced for drinking. In the centuries before shipping of perishable foods, orange juice was a local treat.

And it was a late addition to the breakfast table. In the mid 1910s, there was bumper crop of oranges in California and a lot of excess fruit. In the days before home refrigeration, juice would only last for a day.

Fortunately, at the same time pasteurization came into use and a national railway system was completed. So the growers were able to pasteurize the juice for longer shelf life and ship it nationwide.

Orange juice became available everywhere; additional technological developments allowed it to be stored and marketed year-round. Florida is one of the top 3 orange juice producers in the world, along with Brazil and Mexico; OJ is the official beverage of the state.

About 90% of the Florida orange crop is used to make orange juice. Valencia oranges are the best juicing oranges. Navel oranges (grown in California) are the most widely available eating orange.

Drinking club soda is just for starters. Photo
courtesy Schweppes.

You may enjoy it as a refreshing drink or a mixer, or sprinkle it on tablecloth spills. But here are other uses for that bottle of club soda, seltzer or sparkling water (see the differences below).

IN RECIPES

1. Make Fluffier Pancakes. Instead of adding milk or water as the recipe directs, use club soda. The carbonation will help make the pancakes lighter and airier.

2. Make Fluffier Matzoh Balls. As Jewish grandmothers know, seltzer does the same for matzoh balls.

3. Make Fluffier Scrambled Eggs. Our mom used a few splashes of milk to make her scrambled eggs fluffy. Mom’s eggs were great, but carbonated water produces the same results.

4. Make Tempura Batter. The magic of tempura coating is helped by substituting club soda for the water.

AFTER EATING

5. As A Digestif. Club soda and bitters are a time honored, non-alcoholic digestif, (A digestif is an alcoholic beverage served after a meal to aid digestion). Similarly, sipping on club soda can soothe an upset stomach; feel free to add the bitters, an herbal distillation.

There are numerous non-culinary uses for club soda, from cleaning porcelain and stainless steel to preserving newspaper clippings. Check out 10 of them in the original article on Care2.com.

CLUB SODA, SELTZER & SPARKLING WATER: WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE

The overall category is carbonated water, also called soda water: water into which carbon dioxide gas under pressure has been dissolved, causing the water to become effervescent.

Carbonated Water: In the U.S., carbonated water was known as soda water until after World War II, due to the sodium salts it contained. While today we think of “soda” as a carbonated beverage, the word originally refers to a chemical salts, also called carbonate of soda (sodium carbonate, sodium hydroxide, sodium monoxide).

The salts were added as flavoring and acidity regulator, to mimic the taste of a natural mineral water. After the war, terms such as sparkling water and seltzer water gained favor. Except for sparkling mineral water, all carbonated water/soda water is made from municipal water supplies (tap water).

Carbonated water was invented in Leeds, England in 1767 by British chemist Joseph Priestley, who discovered how to infuse water with carbon dioxide by suspending a bowl of water above a beer vat at a local brewery. Carbonated water changed the way people drank liquor, which had been neat, providing a “mixer” to dilute the alcohol.

Club soda makes scrambled eggs fluffier. Photo courtesy American Egg Board.

Do your part to cut down on bottled water landfill.

If you regularly drink bottled water, today’s the day to consider alternatives. There are several types of water filtration units, each easy to switch to:

 
These small moves can have a big impact on the environment, and make you feel good to be a part of the solution.

During our childhood, our parents had tea with breakfast; we kids got hot cocoa. We craved it even in the warm weather.

While Mom used Hershey’s or Droste’s cocoa mixes, our evolving palate led us to hot chocolate, a richer drink made from bits of shaved chocolate. With cocoa powder, half of the cocoa butter has been removed (see the difference between cocoa and hot chocolate).

We’ve reviewed dozens of gourmet hot chocolate and cocoa mixes.

But hot chocolate on a stick is a novelty. A block of quality chocolate is placed at the end of a Popsicle-type stick and served with a cup of hot milk (or water, which some people prefer). The fun is then to stir and stir until the chocolate melts in the milk. It takes a while, but it’s an amusing activity, every now and then.

(Note: If you don’t have patience, don’t buy hot chocolate on a stick. Instead, chop, grate or shave two ounces of fine chocolate and whisk in the boiled milk.)

Stir in hot milk until the chocolate melts: That’s Swiss hot chocolate. Photo courtesy TheTicketKitchen.com.

The Ticket Kitchen is a Bay Area chocolatier that specializes in hot chocolate on a stick, in nine varieties (we’ve had four of them, all delicious):

The products are sold at fine retailers and online.

Read our full review of Hot Chocolate On A Stick.
 
MORE HOT CHOCOLATE GOODNESS

Perk up the misery of a cold or flu with
specially selected teas. Photo courtesy
David’s Teas.

If you have a friend or loved one who’s been done in by cold and flu season, consider this misery-fighting Cold Survival Kit from David’s Teas.

The collection of five super-soothing teas helps battle virulent viruses:

The Cold Survival Kit is $19.50 at Davud’s Tea stores in Boston, Chicago, New York City, San Francisco and Westport or online at DavidsTea.com.

HOW DOES TEA HELP A COLD?

Tea isn’t a miracle cure, but when you’ve got a cold, every little bit helps.

According to WebMD.com, people with colds should drink lots of fluids to prevent dehydration, compensating for the fluids lost in all that nose-blowing, coughing and sneezing.

Hot liquids are better than cold ones: They help to relieve nasal congestion and the pressure from blockage. They also help to soothe the inflamed membranes that line the nose and throat, making breathing easier.

The same dynamic comes from “Jewish penicillin,” chicken soup (any hot soup will do).

If you’ll be drinking lots of tea, make some of it caffeine-free. Caffeine is a diuretic, which removes water from the body.

Bravissimo, a throat-soothing, caffeine-free blend of chamomile, goji berries, licorice, orange peel, peppermint and rose hips. Photo courtesy DavidsTea.com.

You can also send a delicious chicken soup gift.

Rose tea is an old European tradition: Real rose petals are blended into black or herbal tea. Photo courtesy Republic Of Tea.

For someone who’s counting calories and doesn’t want box of Valentine chocolate, how about some calorie-free rose petal tea?

Consider these limited edition offerings from Republic Of Tea:

 
There‘s also a caffeine-free Valentine Gift Tea Set: a tin of Cuppa Chocolate Strawberry Chocolate Tea (rooibos herbal tea with chocolate and strawberry) and one of Raspberry Rose Hibiscus Tea, $23.95. The teas are packed in an attractive, reusable gift box with a gold foil-embossed red lid. We couldn’t find it using the website’s search box on the site, so use the link above.

For those who say “hold the roses, just give me chocolate,” there’s a Cuppa Chocolate Tea Sampler Cube, $23.95, with calorie-free, chocolate herb tea bags in:

 
Champagne is lovely, but tea is the best way to drink to your health on Valentine’s Day.

FIND A RIOT OF INFORMATION ABOUT TEA IN OUR TEA SECTION.

Pair a medium-strength cheese with a
medium-roast coffee. Photo © Natalia
Lisovskaya | Dreamstime.

Often there is more than one food holiday on a particular day. Rarely do we see a trio of food holidays; and January 20th is the only day we know of with four food holidays: National Buttercrunch Day, National Cheese Lover’s Day, National Granola Bar Day and National Coffee Break Day.

In theory, you could celebrate them all at once: A bagel and cream cheese with the morning coffee break and a granola bar and some buttercrunch at the afternoon coffee break.

But we’ve decided to focus today’s tip on something more enlightening: pairing coffee and cheese.

The coffee-cheese pairing is more common than it might seem. The Swiss, Scandinavians and other Europeans enjoy cheese with their morning coffee. Americans regularly breakfast on coffee plus cream cheese on the aforementioned bagels, cheese omelets, cheese danish, grilled cheese sandwiches and Egg McMuffins (grilled cheese, ham and a fried egg on a toasted English muffin).

But let’s take a look at deliberate coffee and cheese pairings.

PAIRING CHEESE WITH COFFEE

As with wine and beer pairings, mild cheeses should typically be paired with a mild roast coffee, medium-strength cheeses with a medium roast and strong cheeses with a strong roast.

COFFEE AND “CARAMEL” CHEESES

Some cheeses beg to be paired with coffee. Two that are known for caramel notes:

Barely Buzzed, one of our favorite cheeses, is a Cheddar rubbed with ground Turkish coffee. It’s equally delicious with coffee or beer. Photo courtesy Beehive Cheese..

COFFEE-RUBBED CHEESE

How about a cheese made with coffee? Utah-based Beehive Cheese Company coats some of their artisan Cheddar cheese in roasted Turkish coffee and lavender buds: an inspired combination that creates an edible rind and adds nutty flavor to the mild Cheddar. We like this unique cheese so much, it was a Top Pick Of The Week. Read our review of Barely Buzzed.
 
As with anything, your own palate and desire to experiment will lead to favorite pairings. Let us know what you come up with.

Cows need not apply: Soy milk is made from
soybeans and water. Photo courtesy
Mercola.com.

Milk alternatives can be substituted for dairy milk in any situation: from drinking a glassful to lightening coffee and tea to baking to pouring over cereal, to sauces and soups. They are available in plain, sweetened and flavored varieties, and can be fortified with vitamins and nutrients.

All of the alternatives have the creamy texture of dairy milk; each has different nutritional benefits. But the key is what tastes best to you. When a plain variety has a subtle flavor, such as the nuttiness of almond milk, that nuance is often covered up in the flavored/sweetened varieties.

There have been issues with consuming large quantities of soy milk, including the amount of phytoestrogens which can block estrogen. Check with your healthcare professional before using more than a few ounces a day.

Granola with Blue Diamond Almond Breeze almond milk. Photo courtesy Blue Diamond.

 
While many people view these alternatives as “health food,” the flavored varieties—particularly almond milk and soy milk—are as delicious as any glass of chocolate milk or creamy dairy treat.

As an old commercial advised: “Try it, you’ll like it!”

Mexican hot chocolate is made in scored,
round disks from stone-ground chocolate.
Photo courtesy TazaChocolate.com.

To take the chill off, chef Johnny Gnall explores Mexican hot chocolate. If you’d like him to address specific foods or topics, email Chef Johnny.

There are numerous artisan and gourmet hot chocolate mixes available from American and European producers.

But something old is trending anew: Mexican hot chocolate. I’ve been seeing the flavors of Mexican chocolate in magazines and on menus more and more. Having a ton of family in Mexico, the combination of cinnamon, chiles and chocolate is one I have been quite fond of since childhood.

Particularly nostalgic for me is the gritty, grainy texture of authentic, traditional Mexican chocolate: a result of its minimal processing (and the way the first chocolate bars were produced back in 1847, in England).

Instead of conching into the smooth, silky chocolate we know today, Mexican chocolate is ground with a stone wheel.

DON’T TAKE A BITE!

You wouldn’t want to bite into a disk of authentic Mexican chocolate: It’s too gritty. That’s because its traditional use is to be melted into milk or water to make the drink we commonly call hot chocolate. Mesoamericans have been enjoying the chocolate drink since around 1900 B.C.E.!

This rustic style of chocolate has been updated for modern palates by Taza Chocolate, an artisan chocolatier in Somerville, Massachusetts. Chocolate with an attractive grittiness is available in stone ground chocolate bars as well as discs to be melted into Mexican hot chocolate. Check out the wares at TazaChocolate.com.

If you want to make Mexican hot chocolate at home (it’s called taza de chocolate in Mexico), my brand recommendation is the Mexican-made Ibarra. It tastes exactly like the stuff I drank as a child in Mexico: sugary sweet and comfortingly warm. And it’s the most readily available brand in supermarkets (check the Mexican foods department; you can find it in any Latin American market or online).

MEXICAN HOT CHOCOLATE RECIPE

 
Water makes a thinner, more refreshing (and authentic) cup; milk of any kind (including nonfat) makes a thicker, richer cup.

MEXICAN HOT CHOCOLATE RECIPE

 
Preparation

1. GRATE a disc of Mexican chocolate with a cheese grater, microplane or rasp. Set aside. While it’s not essential to grate the chocolate before melting it into the liquid, grated chocolate melts faster and is less likely to burn on the bottom of the sauce pan.

2. ADD optional seasonings and spices, including sweetener, if you’re using unflavored Mexican chocolate: grated almonds and/or chiles and cinnamon powder are traditional, but you can get creative (anise, cardamom and so forth).

3. HEAT the water or milk in a deep saucepan to just below boiling. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk the grated chocolate into the liquid.

4. STIR vigorously to dissolve the chocolate and prevent the chocolate from sticking to the bottom of the pan. (The classic Mexican tool is not a whisk but a molinillo, invented in Spain in the 1500s.)

5. ADD any liquids, from vanilla extract (if disc does not contain vanilla) to bourbon, rum or tequila.

WHIPPING UP A RECIPE WHEN YOU DON’T HAVE MEXICAN CHOCOLATE

You can use regular chocolate. If the chocolate is unsweetened or a very high percentage of cacao (80% or more), you’ll need to add some sweetener.

1. SIMMER a quart of milk in a saucepot.

2. ADD 1 cup of roughly chopped or shaved semisweet chocolate or chocolate chips, whisking to melt and dissolve into the milk.

3. ADD a cinnamon stick, broken in half, and one chile de arbol, also torn in half. Whether or not you use the seeds of the chile is up to you, depending on your spice preference (seeds and inner membranes, not the flesh, contain the majority of heat).

4. STEAM, but not reduce, for 15-30 minutes, then strain to serve.
 
This is a very basic recipe, so once you try it, feel free to add more or less of any ingredients to your liking. Just remember to add it in very small amounts.

Mexican chocolate is an easy and delicious drink for dinner parties, camping, or just a cozy night it. You can make it a little more adult with a shot of Kalhúa or Grand Marnier, or drop a scoop of vanilla ice cream in for the kids. Everyone can get on board with the flavor combination that’s been warming palates and bellies for nearly 4,000 years!

While the classic flavors are cinnamon and vanilla, modern artisans such as Taza Chocolate make a variety of flavors. Here, orange cinnamon. There’s also a seasonal egg nog chocolate disk. Photo courtesy TazaChocolate.com.

MORE WAYS TO ENJOY MEXICAN CHOCOLATE

Beyond melting into hot chocolate, the combination of earthy cacao, sweet sugar, spicy cinnamon and warm chiles of Mexican chocolate is a flavor profile that works in a myriad of desserts.

I have sampled Mexican chocolate in a pot de crème at a fine restaurant; I have slurped Mexican chocolate popsicles and chomped through countless artisan interpretations of Mexican chocolate bars and chocolate cupcakes.

One of my favorite uses of these exhilarating flavors was in a cinnamon and chocolate lava cake belying a molten chocolate center spiced with fruity chiles. (Yes, chiles/chilies/chillis are a fruit—albeit a very hot and spicy one—the difference between fruits and vegetables.)

There are few dessert applications that won’t be deliciousness with Mexican chocolate. So if you’re a baking enthusiast, try spicing up your next foray into chocolate with a pinch of cinnamon and a chili or two. Remember to be sparing with the cinnamon and taste discerningly: A little can go a long way and you don’t want it to be heavy handed.

The same goes for the chiles. Rich, earthy chocolate is a fantastic background for these more fiery elements, and in the right balance, the taste experience will blow you away.

MORE HOT CHOCOLATE MAGIC

You can “zing anything” in your water bottle with Aqua Zinger and Citrus Zinger, new concepts that should have great appeal for lovers of flavored water.

The two new water bottles (actually thermos bottles that keep your drink cool as well) make naturally-infused flavored water, full of vitamins and other nutrients plus antioxidants. Commercially flavored waters use extracts.

The double wall stainless steel thermos bottles keep your drink and ingredients insulated. A wide-mouth top allows for the easy addition of ice cubes. As a thermos, the products can be used to carry hot beverages as well.

Both create a convenient new way to enjoy drinking water, adding your favorite flavors to satisfy your palate.

The Aqua Zinger infuses flavor from fresh fruit and/or herbs into your water bottle. Photo courtesy Brookstone.

AQUA ZINGER

First, the Aqua Zinger: a water bottle that naturally infuses still or carbonated water with the juice and essence of fresh fruits and herbs: basil, blackberries, citrus, ginger, kiwi, mint, peach, raspberries, strawberries and other favorites.

The fruits and herbs go into the bottom, screw-on base where grinder blades pulverize them and send the essences to infuse into the water. Mix and match and get creative: The flavors and ingredients are limited only by your imagination.

Aqua Zinger Flavored Water Maker is $26.00 to $29.00 in stainless steel with aqua, lime green, hot pink or black accents; at Brookstone stores and Amazon.com.

Citrus Zinger is a combination water bottle and citrus juicer. Photo courtesy Brookstone.

CITRUS ZINGER

When life gives you lemons, add them to the Citrus Zinger. Designed specifically for citrus fruits, Citrus Zinger juices clementines, lemons, limes and other citrus, and infuses the water with the juice. (Most oranges and grapefruits are too wide for the bottle-size juicer.)

It’s the easiest way to extract citrus juice and infuse the flavor directly into your water bottle, enriching your water with vitamin C and flavonoids (citrus antioxidants).

Citrus Zinger is available in aqua, lime green and orange for $20.

MORE TO ZING

The company also makes:

 
Learn more at ZingAnything.com.