DIY "green" citrus kitchen cleaner

My friend Rose H posted a link at Gather today that spurred me to action...See it HERE ... she had found it on Pinterest (a site I have been avoiding as much as possible even though I have had several friends bombard me with "you need to join" messages and links to interesting-not-to-be-missed pins)...

 

When I saw the pin about the Orange Vinegar cleaner I realized I had both plenty of white vinegar and about 8 tangerines I needed to do something with, so instead of orange peels I used tangerine peels and I added some cloves to the mix.

 

Here is the basic recipe as shared - the original blog link is below.

 

 

Orange Vinegar - A 'green' kitchen cleaner

 

1 16 ounce canning jar

2 oranges - peel only (eat the insides!)

Vinegar to cover

 

Fill jar with the peels and then the vinegar.  Let it sit 2 weeks, decant into spray bottle and you have a green solution for your kitchen cleaning chores.

 

http://fountainavenuekitchen.com/orange-vinegar-a-green-cleaner/

 

 

As I mentioned above I followed my own thing and made

 

Tangerine Vinegar - A 'green' kitchen cleaner

 

1 half gallon canning jar

8 tangerines - peel only (see below what I did with the slices!)

1 level Tablespoon cloves

White vinegar to cover

 

Fill the jar with the peels and add the cloves; add the vinegar and let it sit 2 weeks.  Decant into spray bottles and use for kitchen cleaning chores.

 

Tangerine Slices in Allspice Syrup

 

1 half gallon canning jar

8 tangerines - peeled

4 cups water

3 cups white sugar

4-5 allspice leaves

 

We have an allspice tree in our yard and I like to use the leaves for flavoring as they're just as potent or more so than the berries.

 

Separate the tangerine slices and take off all the little white 'hairy sticky fuzz'.  Place slices in large saucepan or Dutch oven.  Add the water, sugar and washed leaves.  Bring to a boil; turn down heat and cook for about 10 minutes.  Take out the tangerine slices with slotted spoon and let the syrup cook a bit longer with the leaves still in it.

 

When the syrup reaches the desired consistency, turn off, fish out the leaves and funnel the syrup into the canning jar - tangerines will float if there is space.

 

Cool and refrigerate.  Use as topping for ice cream, cakes, puddings, custards, etc...  The syrup left over after you finish eating the tangerine slices can be used for making vinaigrette.