Edible Fruit and Vegetable Peels

We are aware that fruit and vegetables are good for you. Many of us are aware that peels from fruit and vegetables have plenty of nutrients in them. We are concerned about bacteria like salmonella, listeria, and E-coli. We are also concerned about pesticides and wax. Of course you can buy organic buy locally from trusted growers or grow them yourself and still definitely wash them off.

Many fruits and vegetable skins are eaten without concern. We chomp on apples,peaches, pears raw and without peeling and unless you are like Mae West you don't peel grapes. You shouldn't want to, resveratrol the antioxidant in red wine that makes it healthier comes from...you guessed it...fresh grape skins (purple and red mostly). You can get the benefit even if you don't want to imbibe. Certain dried fruits have the skin on it. Pickles made from cucumbers are not peeled.

Some say they have a problem with peels that are from food that is on the ground. We eat greens like lettuce of all kinds and spinach which are on the ground and we eat them raw. And they have to be washed thoroughly to get the grit out from the leaves.

First wash your hands before handling your raw produce to prevent contaminating them. To wash your raw produce you can use plain running water, a store bought produce or vegetable wash or make one with vinegar and water. Some sources prefer equal parts of each others prefer 2 tablespoonful of vinegar to a pint of water it is a personal choice. The FDA only recommends using water when washing the fruits and vegetables, what you use is your decision.The food with the thicker skin can be scrubbed with a vegetable brush (also called produce brush). Others can be sprayed with a vinegar solution or just water and wiped with your hand or lightly scrubbed. The produce is then rinsed. Now all utensils and the work area used must be washed with hot soap and water maybe with a weak bleach solution. This includes cutting board and brush. Finally wash hands and kitchen gloves if you use them.

Washing helps kill a lot of the bacteria but if you let it sit after that they will start to grow back. Freezing food does not kill all salmonella, listeria or E-coli it just slows down the growth. If food is infected before it is frozen it is still infected when it thaws and the bacteria will resume growing at its normal pace. All it takes is cooking the peel with the rest of the food which kills the bacterias.

Citrus peels are something folks of different countries have been using for a long time. We use them as zest for baking, soups and stews. We candy them and use them in pastries. We dry them and place them in closets and drawers for the smell. We make them into potpourri. Also we use them as teas. Citrus tea can be mixed with other teas or stand on its own.

You can drink it or use it in bathwater. The recipe usually is to take the fresh or dried rind and steep or boil it in water and served with a sweetener. The dried rind can be mixed with loose tea and put in a tin for future use. The different type of citrus can be mixed to taste. The rinds can be ground up with water and made into a paste. The usage for this is over meats and as face masks.