Dehydrating Oranges for Christmas decorating is truly so easy. All you need is Oranges, a dehydrator, and a little time. The bright orange color makes for such a fun and joyful decoration. Use for the Christmas Season, or any time of the year.
This year we chose to do some DIY ornaments and decorations for Christmas. Due to our kids being so young still, we don’t have very many decorations built up yet that our family has personally created. Our goal over the years is to create more and more decorations that the whole family helped to create.
Christmas is such a wonderful time of year. Our savior was born to die for us, sinners. It’s truly amazing to share this truth with our small children. The joy of this realization is something we can visually see them starting to put together in their little minds.
Why decorate with Oranges?
You may be wondering why in the world Oranges would even be considered a decoration. I remember as a child I would always get an Orange at the bottom of my stocking. Was I the only one that got them in their stocking? I never understood it as a child. I see now it was probably just a cheap way to make my stocking look full. Or possibly, the Oranges could have been to balance the Chocolate candy I got with a healthy food.
I have a new appreciation for Oranges. The first reason is that they add bright color for the Holiday Season. Secondly, They are so delicious and packed with vitamins. It’s something I’ve been incorporating into our diet more. Lastly, as a mother I like to save money where I can so I love that they are cheap. Oranges are cheap for both eating and decorating with.
Experimenting with Oranges for decorations has never been on my radar as a decoration idea. I had been seeing ideas float around on the internet and figured I’d give it a try.
Dehydrating Oranges to use to decorating is a great project for the whole family to be involved in. Because it is so easy to do, even my toddler helped me with this project. He helped me place the slices on the racks of the dehydrator. Then, when they were fully dry he helped hang some of them on our Christmas tree as ornaments. This is a hard thing to mess up and Oranges are cheap so if you do it is totally fine. It made for a low stress family project that added joy to our home.
My first failed attempt at dehydrating Oranges
When I first tried to dry the Oranges I used an oven. Now, you can totally use an oven to dehydrate Oranges. But, I must have done it at too hot of a temperature or for too much time. My Oranges turned out brown.
The oven method also required me to go turn the Oranges every so often. Which is not very convenient since I have two small children to care for, I often got distracted and forgot about them. I did attempt using a timer, but then I would lose track of how many times it had been re-started. So, in my opinion a better option is to use a dehydrator if you have one.
What you need
- 2 Oranges
- Dehydrator
- Scissors
- Thread or other means to attach the Oranges
How to Dehydrate Oranges for decorating instructions
Begin by thinly slicing the Oranges. About 1/8th-1/4 inch is how thin they need to be sliced in order to dehydrate in a timely manner.
Then, place the Orange slices in a single layer on the dehydrator racks.
Set the temperature to 130 degrees on the dehydrator. Leave to dehydrate for 18 hours, rotating the racks up one at a time, about every 4 hours, to ensure even hydration.
*Note: Since part of the dehydration process is over night, it is unnecessary to rotate the racks during the night.
Check if the Oranges are fully dried. If moisture is present leave them in the dehydrator for additional time, until completely dry.
Ideas for using the Oranges for decoration once dried
These dehydrated Orange slices work great as a fun and bright ornament. After looking for ways to use up all of the Oranges I bought, I decided to try them out on the Christmas tree. They turned out great and will keep in an air tight container to use again next year.
Another great way we decided to use up the Orange slices is on our faux garland over top the fireplace. We love the color it adds to the fireplace.
The last way we decided to use the dehydrated Oranges this year in our Christmas decorations is the entryway. We added the dehydrated Orange slices to a bowl of other faux Christmas decorations.
For a yummy addition to your Christmas food, try this recipe:
The Best Orange Cranberry Scones with Essential Oils
If you utilize Oranges for decorations this Season, comment below with how you used them. I’d love to see your creative ideas!
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