Homemade Orange Infused Vinegar

How to Make Your Own Orange Infused Vinegar

This is one of those homemade items I hadn't intended on making but when I bought a bag of oranges on sale and the Pinterest post I had seen (who knows how long ago!) flashed through my mind as I was about ready to throw the peels out ... LIGHTBULB!!! Homemade item ... check. Post topic ... check. Repurposed (for a little while longer at least ... then to the compost or garbage disposal cleaner) waste ... double check! 

I'm absolutely in LOVE with my Norwex products as they meet everyone of our green cleaning needs. However, I feel like this is one of those items I wouldn't go to the store and purchase or even use to replace my Norwex but would gladly welcome the treat of refreshing orange scented cleaning spray every once in while! 

A fun fact about me, I really don't like to use paper towels ... there's something about that excess waste that just breaks my heart every time I finish a roll! (I find it quite humorous how much empathy I have for our disposables! The Mr., bless his heart, just goes along with my recycling tendencies most day!) In general, one roll lasts us about 2 months. We use them very sparingly to drain bacon, soak up the extra moisture from shredded potatoes when making homemade hash-browns, or any other task that would be more of a pain to launder than a towel used to clean up the typical glass of spilled milk. I'm really not sure where this decision grew from, but there is definitely a love-hate relationship I have with convenience, waste, and money. So this lack of using paper towels and my new orange infused vinegar for sporadic cleaning brings a question to mind for my Norwex consultant "Would it harm my rags to wipe up after this spray?" Vinegar and orange oils are all natural ... so if anything it could give them a extra cleaning boost if used right before laundering?!?!?

Day 1 - just noticing the resolution for this picture is terrible ... not to self take clearer pictures! :)

Homemade Orange Infused Vinegar

1 quart size mason jar

vinegar

orange peels (we used 3-4 clementines)

Place orange peels in jar. Top off with vinegar. Securely close. Allow to set for at least a week or two. Shake periodically. 

Day about 7 or 8 ... or maybe more!

At this point, it is smelling heavenly! At first whiff I get a refreshingly aroma of orange and then if I get my nose a little too close I get a whiff of vinegar. A few tweaks for next time ... more oranges or less vinegar just to allow for the orange to completely "out smell" the vinegar. Definitely not a deal breaker and will be using this as soon as it's ready! I plan on giving this a few days when all of the orange peels have settled to the bottom of my jar. 

There really is no right or wrong way to make infused vinegar but I loved My Merry Messy Life's additional suggestion for using the peels to cleaner you garbage disposable; as well as The Peaceful Mom's thoughts on cost and diluting it. 

My thoughts are exploding with different scents to infuse here ... lemon or mint or grapefruit, OH YUMMY! 

As for cost, I wouldn't buy oranges (or any other citrus fruit) just for this purpose, BUT it definitely adds an additional value to them as a purchase option! Since vinegar is relatively inexpensive at about $2 per gallon ... this would be a much cheaper option than most store bought all purpose cleaners AND I love the fact that vinegar has SO many uses! (Thinking I need to start a few on-going posts that focus on the uses for different items?!?)