Orange Peel Powder

So what do you do when its late summer and delicious fresh oranges are everywhere you look? You buy a ton to devour greedily and stuff in your face. The next logical step is to obviously make orange peel powder with the leftovers.
 
Orange peel powder is a great addition to any pantry. It is very simple to make and much cheaper than buying at the store. I like to add it to things like teas, sweets, and Asian dishes to give them a wonderful orange flavor.

To start, begin stock piling orange peels. Like a squirrel preferably. It is important though to remove as much of the white pith as possible soon after eating because if left in the mixture, it will cause the powder to taste bitter. As the peels dry it becomes exceedingly harder to remove the pith so make sure to stay diligent.
You can dry these two ways:
1). Place the pith-less peels in a dark dry place like a pantry for a few weeks until stiff.
2). heat them in the oven on the lowest setting possible with the door slightly cracked for ventilation.

I like to use a combination of both. I throw the peels in my pantry until I have enough to make powder with and then dry the ones that are not stiff enough in the oven.

Citrus peels have natural antibacterial properties, so it is not important to worry about them molding or going bad as they sit out. 

Once dry put all of the peels in two or three plastic ziploc bags.

Take a hammer and pound the peels until they are the right size or consistency you want them. I work on mine until they are about a centimeter in diameter.

Store crushed peels in a bag for future use.