During my childhood, Orange Julius was a source of delight on Saturday morning outings to the mall. I remember when my mother insisted that she could duplicate the famous original orange julius smoothie in our own home. She got out her tiny little hand juicer and set to work. At some point, she cracked open an egg and put it in the blender. “We get to be like Rocky!” my older brother chimed in. (If you don’t get the joke, you will make me feel old. So, please don’t say anything.)
These days, raw eggs are unjustly frowned upon thanks to rising outbreaks of salmonella. Of course, I don’t let that stop me. You shouldn’t either. Buy eggs from a small flock of truly pastured hens and eat your raw egg yolks! They’re so deeply nutritious.
Orange Julius, the company, has since adapted its original orange julius recipe to accommodate the changing landscape of conventional nutritional wisdom. Raw eggs? Bah! You’re lucky if you can get an orange julius made without synthetic creamers and flavored powders. (It’s actually kinda scary.)
Want a trip down memory lane? This wholesome, real-food throwback version of an orange julius recipe is the perfect way to enjoy the sweet, fresh oranges coming into season. I’ve even adapted it for those of you who need to be dairy-free.
I’ve chosen to use whole oranges instead of juicing them. What can I say? I’m too lazy to juice. Plus, I believe eating fruit whole is more nourishing. That’s because a whole fruit comes with fiber, pectin, and other goodies that help slow the absorption of the fruit’s sugar so that you’re not left with a sugar rush (and crash).
I’ve also chosen to use more raw egg yolks in this recipe because almost all of the ever-important nutrients like DHA, folate, choline and the essential vitamins like A, D, E, K-2, B-6, & B-12 live in the yolk rather than the white.
Orange Julius Recipe
The Players
- 3 medium-large oranges, peeled and de-veined
- 1 cup of raw milk (where to find raw milk) or coconut milk (where to find coconut milk)
- 1 egg plus 2 egg yolks (from pastured hens)
- 1 tsp. real vanilla extract (where to find quality vanilla)
- 2 tbsp coconut sugar, raw honey, or the sweetener of your choice (where to find natural sweeteners)
- 1 1/2 cups of ice
The How-To
Combine everything except oranges and ice in a blender and mix for about 20 seconds to create a frothy cream. Next, add the oranges and blend for another 20 seconds or until smooth. Finally, add the ice and blend for another 20 seconds.
Yields 2 16oz orange julius drinks.
Enjoy!
(photo by ibyangbabe)
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I’d never have thought Orange and coconut milk would go – very intrigued to try this one!
All things tropical go well together!
Thanks for this! I have fond memories of the Orange Julius up on Broadway in NYC. I’m looking forward to making this soon for my daughter.
You’re welcome!
How ironic you should post this now. I was just thinking about Orange Julius not too long ago, and have been thinking about trying to make one with fresh oranges. I started out making them without the egg (didn’t know they had raw eggs), but we all knew something was missing. Then one day I thought I saw the guy putting raw egg into our Orange Julius, so I asked him about it. His reply was yes, they used raw egg, that was one thing that made it so creamy. That’s when I started putting raw egg in. Even though we used something like Minute Maid or Tropicana, white sugar and, at that time, probably 2% milk, they did taste pretty good. At least that’s what you guys said! I think I’d much prefer your version, though! Can’t wait to make some!
Oh, and yes, I did actually hand juice oranges most of the time. But we did buy either Minute Maid or Tropicana for “regular” drinking, so at times I would use that.
You know what? My husband is having major surgery on Monday. Guess what he’s having Sunday?
Wow raw egg – I know it’s probably fine… but I’m chicken. No pun intended.
Dear Food Babe – if you’re buying your eggs from a supermarket, then I can understand why you would be afraid. But if you get *real* eggs from your farmer’s market – specifically those from chickens that are grazing freely and not subject to industrial chicken-raising methods, then you’ll be fine. (And I don’t mean the stuff sold in Whole foods labeled “free range” eggs, because that’s a marketing term that doesn’t mean squat – I blogged about this in my churnyourown.com article called food labels that lie). Raw eggs are one of the most nutrient-rich super-foods.
I buy most of my eggs from a lady who lives in the only farm house left in our neighborhood. She has about 10-15 acres left and she raises Alpacas. She is vegan and of course doesn’t eat meat or eggs but she raises a few chickens of all varieties and they run around freely in her backyard. She does not eat her chickens and she does not kill them either. When they are no longer able to lay eggs she keeps them and cares for them until they die of natural causes.
Huh! I never knew eggs were in it. I too loved them as a child and made up my own recipe although it never was exactly the same as what I remembered them being like. Maybe the eggs is the issue. Thanks for posting this.
The eggs make all the difference! It’s where that glorious froth used to come from — whipped egg white.
This sounds delicious! Would raw milk be an acceptable replacement for coconut? Can’t wait to try it!
Citrus+dairy=curdled milk. I don’t think it’s a good idea!
I’ve been making these for years and the milk has never curdled! Just don’t let it sit – blend it and drink it right away.
Duh, just saw your ingredient list says raw or coconut milk 🙂
Thanks for that trip down Memory Lane. When my grandmother did the same as your mother, my sister and I thought, “Raw eggs? Yuck!”. However, they were really good. I greatly appreciate your recipe since she is long gone from this life and I can’t ask for hers. I’m so glad to have my own fresh eggs & use raw milk. Guess I’ll be off tomorrow to get oranges:)
I need help keeping the coconut milk creamy after adding ice. Everytime I add anything cold I get clumps of hard milk. How do you keep it creamy when cold?
I had just been whipping it real well with the egg yolks and hoping for the best. Then someone’s FB comment inspired me to freeze the coconut milk in ice cube trays and use that instead of ice. It works!
I just made this with raw kefir instead of milk and a vanilla bean instead of extract. It was divine! Thanks for sharing this recipe!
I made this tonight with coconut milk, sweetened with stevia. It was so good!!! Thank you for the recipe. 🙂
That sounds yummy. You’re welcome!
I haven’t had one of these since high school! Can’t wait to try it. Yum!
oh used to love those!
Great, now I need one! 😀
This post about Orange Julius takes me down memory lane to Mohawk Mall in 1978! Great recipe for making OJ at home, too.
Yup…Memory lane! Orange Julius in Nanaimo 1974 – Northbrook Mall. <3
Can’t wait to try this one!
Coming in late here, but I have all the ingredients for this… it’s just that I live alone. Do you think I could get away with freezing one for another day, or should I just make a half recipe?
my kids loved this!!
This was DELICIOUS!! Made some 10 min ago and this recipe is already written down in my “keeper” recipe book. Even my small kiddos liked it, and they don’t do eggs, so I’m doubly happy, I’m always looking for ways to get nutritious foods in them.
Why not just use 3 whole eggs? I hate having egg whites sitting around – I never get around to using them. I usually do mine with one orange and 2 whole eggs (since I’m making it just for myself).
You could do that. The added whites will make it frothier!
I use egg whites for various things, so that’s not such a big deal for me.
What sorts of things? Also always looking for ways to use the extra whites…
So where the dairy free version that was mentioned?
It’s the coconut milk option in the ingredients list.
Thanks for this! I just recently got my first regular source of raw milk and fresh eggs, and have been looking for a good raw egg recipe (don’t want to kill all those great enzymes!). I have such fond childhood memories of Orange Julius, and have wanted to replicate it for a long time. So this is right on the money for me!
Woo-hoooo! Yummy! So I mostly followed the recipe and it turned out wonderful! cant wait to follow it completely though. Unfortunately I only had white sugar on hand, but didnt put too much of it. I had no vanilla and I substituted my homemade kefir for the milk. My kids have started requesting it 🙂 wondering how stevia would work with this? I need to go shopping 🙂
for how long can i keep it…..
Mixing MILK and ORANGE JUICE will make you VOMIT. The acid in the juice curdles the milk; even if you drink it fast then it curdles in your throat or your belly. This is home economics 101. Remember in Heathers when Veronica wanted to give Heather #1 a milk and oj hangover cure so she’d puke her guts out? Anyone that tries this recipe got trolled hard.
Ever eaten orange sherbet?
Sounds like the only person doing the trolling here is you.
I just got an Orange Julius at DQ and I’m so excited. I remember them putting raw egg in them too when I was a kid and they had a stand in the mall. Now I have to go buy a blender!!
I just got a vitamix and am experimenting, throwing anything and everything in there. I love it. I wanted to use oranges, so I googled “orange julius recipe”. Most of them use concentrated oj. I changed my search to “whole orange julius” and saw your name in my search. Since I’ve been following your blog, I knew you’d know nutrition. Beauty, and it tastes like “more”.
Just tried this and it was yum. Even my son who has Aspergers and is quite fussy with foods and drinks because of taste, texture and colour sensitivities, loved it, so that’s saying something! No curdling or vomitting lol. Maybe it’s because of the egg in the mix? He doesn’t like coconut, but I had coconut cream frozen in an ice cube tray and that’s the ‘ice’ I used and he didn’t notice. I’m always looking for ways to sneak healthy things in – so thanks!
I’m not sure what I did wrong, but I didn’t find this to taste anything like the Orange Julius that I remember. 🙁 It wasn’t very flavorful at all, even with a 4th ripe organic orange added. 🙁 So bummed!
Anxious to try this!!! I remember Orange Julius as a kid were frothy top to bottom!
The Orange Julius they sell today tastes like a glass of OJ with a head on it 🙁
Thanks for the recipe!
A concoction I’ve made on vacation was Breyers Vanilla Bean ice cream and Sunny Delight in the blender. Tastes like an old style Orange Julius/50-50 Bar hybrid… It’s good, but it’s NOT an Orange Julius.
Thanks again
Can you clarify the preparation of the orange, please? In the post you say you use the whole orange, but in the actual recipe you say to peel and devein the orange? Peeling I understand, but what veins are you removing?
My memory of OJ in the 60’s had egg as an optional (and extra charge) extra.mall I remember them using was fresh juice and some white powder. Any idea what that was?
I haven’t had a mall Orange Julius, but the recipe I have had and made since I was a child 40 years ago uses cream of tartar (a white powder). It helps hold the frothiness.
All the white stringy pith on the orange after you peel it.
I always thought the Orange Julius had a little bit of malt powder in it? I know it was a powder mix (which originally had powdered egg, too – gross) but I could swear there was a touch of malt in the recipe and flavor.
Thank you, thank you, thank you….. The food network (which loses credibility more and more every day) didn’t even have egg in their recipe! Thanks for the closest thing to the original as I have found. Big thumbs up! 🙂
Yum!
No eggs for me
Sounded so good, I just made an 8 oz version!
Erica-Michael Bullard Cheryl Capaldo
Recipe sounds delish. May I make a suggestion? The text on your site is very hard to read. The font is very thin and it’s gray, so not a lot of contrast. I have old eyes to make it even worse and can never read your articles, which I would like to do. How about changing the font and making it black for more contrast?
Do you have nutritional info for type 2 diabetics? I’m specifically looking for carb content
How do you de- vein an orange?
Get rid of all the orange stringy crud on the orange after you peel it.