How to Make an Orange Julius: The Summer Drink with Memories

The original Orange Julius was concocted as an alternative to the pure orange juice served at Julius Freed's orange juice stand in the 1920's. The story is that Julius Freed had an accountant with a sensitive stomach, so he couldn't drink the straight orange juice. Adding some water and milk allowed him to enjoy the orange taste and turned plain orange juice in to a novelty drink. Diluting the acidity and adding some froth, resulted in overwhelming popularity and big business. Today, the Orange Julius is a well known drink in malls and on boardwalks especially during the summer months.

While this version may be missing some of the secret ingredients or measurement of the actual Orange Julius, it's a great substitute you can make at home anytime, in your own blender. You can change it up a bit by adding a banana, strawberries, pineapple or even an egg for those of you brave enough to consume raw eggs. You can also substitute yogurt for milk and of course use low fat mike or whole milk. You could substitute ice cream for the milk and have something more akin to an orange shake. Substitute artificial sweetener for the sugar and keep the calories down. You can turn the Orange Julius into a punch by adding some ginger ale, put don't put it through the blender with the ginger ale, add the ginger ale afterwards. Adding alcohol is an option also, vodka being the obvious choice.

The basic recipe is easy and you make it right in the blender. For one serving, mix ½ of a six ounce can of frozen orange juice with ½ cup of milk and a ½ cup of water/ then add ¼ cup of sugar, ½ teaspoon of vanilla and six ice cubes. Blend until smooth and serve it in a tall glass with a straw. The thing to remember with the Orange Julius is that you can't make more than you will consume as it looses the icy frothiness if it sits in the refrigerator. This is the kind of special drink that you make and serve to your guests immediately. While there are many summer drink recipes you can make and serve guests, this one brings with it fond memories for almost everyone. Most people know what an Orange Julius is and can remember having them on vacation, at the beach, or in the mall. This drink is a refreshing fun beverage that gets the conversation rolling as it quenches your thirst.