Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Tuesday Tutorial

Dried Orange Ornaments


Teresa at Teresa's Primtive Treasures has shared her tutorial for making Dried Orange Ornies. She just loves the smell of her kitchen when she's making these Dried Orange Ornies! Can't you smell them? With Christmas just around the corner, this is a good time to start thinking about those little things you can do to make your holidays a little sweeter. Make sure you stop over and visit with Teresa and check out her blog. She is a wonderfully creative lady who is busy, busy, busy.

First you want to pick the largest oranges you can find..... I like to use Navel Oranges. Just look at how much they shrink during the drying process.


Take about 3 slices off the navel end of the orange. After each slice, sit the orange on a flat surface checking for straight cuts. Some are really lopsided when sitting so cut accordingly to help straighten it up. You will also be able to work with it during the drying process.

Scoop the pulp out of the orange by loosening up the edges with a thin tablespoon. Don't throw this out!!!! It is yummy...nothing like fresh squeezed orange juice ....................and you can also add powdered sugar, coconut and cherries to the pulp for a wonderful dessert! I think it's called Ambrosia....... a recipe I learned in Home Ec way back in my high school days!




After it is all cleaned out it will look like this! It doesn't need to be spotless!


Now you are ready to place the whole cloves around the top. You can use any pointy object to make the holes for the cloves..... an ice pick works great! Just poke your holes about 1/2 inch apart the whole way around the orange and then insert a whole clove into each hole.


Dry in a 200 degree oven by placing the orange, hole side down, directly on the oven rack. Check every 15 minutes or so. After the inside seems fairly dry flip it over and place on a cookie sheet. If it is not sitting straight try pushing it into shape. Sometimes the edges tend to turn in or out so keep adjusting them as needed. Drying times will vary but be prepared for an hour or two! Dry the slices on a piece of foil along side of the ornies or dry in a dyhydrator. You can let your ornies air dry but I found they tend to lose the round shape.

After they are dry, remove 2 cloves from opposite sides and insert a piece of rusted wire for a handle as pictured in the first picture. They look great on a tree or you can sit them around too! If you make some, please let me know... I would love to see them! Enjoy!!!




11 comments:

Tins and Treasures said...

Good Morning, everyone,
I remember making something similar with my mom when I was a little girl...Somehow it involved an orange and whole cloves, too. Wouldn't this be a fun thing to do with young grandchildren?! Making sweet memories! Thank you so much for sharing the idea.

Have a terrific Tuesday ~Natalie

Janice said...

I bet this smells soo YUMMY!! Great Idea!! =)

I Play Outside The Box said...

Very nice tutorial. I've done these before for a centerpiece. They were a hit.

dee begg said...

Thanks for sharing this great old fashioned Christmas tutorial with us. The look really cool to do...now it almost makes me wish I had girls to craft with instead of boys!

D

Cat Nap Inn Primitives said...

what a cute tutorial..I need to make some.;)

primcountrycreations said...

so cute! I think dried orange slices are awesome too. Thanks for sharing! :) Julie

A Primitive Homestead said...

Very nice ornies. I think I will give it a try. Thanks!

Maria said...

Love it. Sounds like a nice project. Probably smells even better. I can imagine my 5-year old with her nose pressed up against the oven window waiting impatiently. Love natural decoration. Thanks a bunch for sharing with us.

Cordwood Cabin said...

That is beautiful! It makes me think of Victorian Christmas ornaments on the old-fashioned "parlor trees".

Firecracker Kid said...

This is neat. Thanks Teresa! Maybe I can learn to be as crafty as the rest of you gals now:) Thanks Lucy! Great tutorial!

Jody said...

What a nice tutorial! I enjoyed this very much! Thanks for sharing it!