Until recently, I thought it was common place to drink orange juice through a peppermint stick placed in the orange either at camp or during the holidays. Turns out, I was wrong. My former Boy Scout, 4-H husband, and several friends said they never even heard of it before.
I could not believe so many people had been missing out on this tasty treat. (No, it is not like drinking juice just after eating candy).
Well, Santa brought my daughter some soft peppermint sticks. Juice oranges went on sale. Thus, I decided to teach my five-year-old and my husband how to drink OJ through a peppermint stick.
First, you need a soft peppermint stick. A hard candy cane, barber pole, or other hard peppermint stick will not work. You need the softer sticks. They are sold by a variety of manufactures including Bob’s and King Leo.
Cut or bite the ends off of the candy. This exposes the small holes inside.
Roll an orange (juice, navel, whatever) on a hard surface with the palm of your hand, like to juice it or a lemon. Cut an X in the upper part of the orange.
Place the peppermint stick in the hole.
As you drink the juice through the peppermint stick, the holes will get bigger.
Juice sometimes rolls out either through the stick or the slits. Sometimes the pulp with clog the straw on the orange end. However, it usually works great.
My daughter liked it, but doesn’t like that she got sticky from the juice. She hates being messy. She thought we should call it Peppermint Orange Blossoms.
My husband was surprised by how good it tasted.
At least they both know now that it can be done.
