Orange Julius’ have been part of my life for forever, really. My older sister made them for us all the time growing up and over the years, we must have consumed gallons and gallons of the frothy, orange, cool and creamy mixture.
My kids, thanks to their inherent Orange-Julius-loving genes, also love the classic combination and our entire family’s adoration has been rejuvenated since our newest family member, the Blendtec, came to join us. A popular after-school snack around here, the Orange Julius can be made in any kind of blender, Blendtec or not, and the lovable and classic flavors always seem to please my kids (and of course myself).
Enjoyed year round, everyone needs a recipe for the classic Orange Julius in their repertoire, if you ask me!
One Year Ago: Mulligatawny Soup
Two Years Ago: Hot Fudge Pudding Cake
Three Years Ago: Chicken with Green Curry Sauce
Classic Orange Julius
Printable Version with Picture
Printable Version
*Note: our favorite variation (albeit not very original) is to throw a handful of frozen or fresh strawberries into the mix. Strawberry-Orange Julius. Inventive, eh?
*Makes 3-4 cups
INGREDIENTS:
6 ounces frozen orange juice concentrate, no sugar added
1 cup lowfat or skim milk
1 cup water
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
10-12 ice cubes
DIRECTIONS:
Combine all the ingredients except the ice cubes in a blender and process until smooth and frothy. Add the ice cubes and blend until smooth (you can blend to your desired consistency – I like a few nubs of ice here and there but my kids like it ultra-smooth).
Recipe Source: from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
{ 56 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh yeah…making these as my kids are on a smoothie kick right now. I love a good Orange Julius, too!
Can you believe I have never been to or had an Orange Julius? It looks so yummy…I feel so deprived! I must remedy that problem immediately!
Oooh! My husband absolutely loves these. I will definitely try your recipe!
P.S. I love that you said “eh”.
-From your Canadian reader.
I never really knew what orange julius was but this looks delicious!
I use French Vanilla Coffee creamer so it’s just orange juice, the creamer and a little ice. Thank you for posting..I LOVE Orange Julius. We’ve played around with using Sunny Delight with pineapple too..it is sooo good.
One thing I’ve thought about trying but have yet to try is to add a little meringue powder when making these. I bet it would give that lovely froth that you would get when you go get an actual Orange Julius. Yum!
I’ve always wondered how to make this drink! Thanks
Estee – I know there are recipes online that use a raw egg or egg white to create the frothiness so the meringue powder is a good idea!
do you think this would work with regular oj or does if have to be concentrate?
We love these at our house. I’ve always just used regular sugar. Maybe I should give powdered sugar a whirl. Also, I can’t remember the last time we made plain orange julius. I usually throw something else in there. Our favorites are banana, fresh pineapple, peaches, strawberries, and blueberries.
Mmm. Can’t actually remember the last time I had orange julius. Of course, our family converted to strawberry julius early in my childhood, so my experience with simple orange is limited. But beautiful.
I left a comment about Orange Julius just last week–how timely, and I’ve been craving one ever since. I’ll have to give it a whirl (pun intended).
Delightful! Thank you.
Funny how I remember not really liking these when I was a kid, but NOW I LOVE THESE, and they are an absolute MUST HAVE during mother-son quality time, as we watch the football games on t.v. together!!! ~tina
Perfect timing… I was looking for an orange julius recipe last night and voila… here it is! I love that I can always count on your site for the PERFECT recipe!!! You are awesome, Mel! Thanks for all that you do!
You are my new best friend. I love looking at (and drooling over) all the fantastic recipes you come up with!! Does that make me a stalker!? LOL!!
Yay!
funny this was posted today. was craving this after coming home from the gym. (I know, lots of sugar) anyway, found a scribbled note that I had this written on and had it for breakfast with a banana. Delish!
You must be reading my mind – I have been totally craving an Orange Julius. I am going to have to make a batch this weekend!
Almost exactly the same as my Grandmother’s recipe from the ’50s!
Some recipes add a bit of finely grated orange zest.
Some use half regular milk and half condensed milk.
Some add a banana and use half the sugar.
One even adds a bit of malted milk powder.
But arent’t they Good?!
I grew up on these too. On this exact recipe. Every once in awhile we go totally crazy and cut back on the sugar and add a small scoop of vanilla ice cream instead!
I have haven’t had an Orange Julius in years! Thanks for reminding me of it… I can almost taste it!
I used to get these in Manhattan during the years I lived there (c. 70-80). I always thought there was some kind of powder they put in it. Could it have been powdered milk? What a blast from the past.
Mmmmm…We used to get these at the mall. I’m going to give it a try this weekend!
I made this immediately after reading, thanks for posting! I always used to make this as a kid and it was a nice reminder of something I love. It’s so simple and fast to make, I love those types of recipes.
Awesome! I asked for your recipe during the Blendtec giveaway….I tried a recipe a few weeks ago, but it ended up tasting like well smelly socks (not that I’ve tried that) . I can’t wait to try this one! Thanks!
Oh wow I had to make this right away…it was sooooo good!!! Thank you
I did half a banana and a handful of strawberries. This was really yummy. My husband LOVES orange juice, so he was in heaven!
Oh I love these! I have them for breakfast at least once a week. I just got a good blender for Christmas and discovered that a whole orange instead of the juice is amazing. Sometimes when I’m in the mood I’ll use grape-raspberry juice instead of orange… There are just so many tasty possibilities.
I happened upon one of your recipes via Pinterest about 2 weeks ago. I was even more surprised when I clicked on it to discover name of your website…love that it’s MEL’s Kitchen Cafe, feels like it was made just for me!
I have since made 3 recipes and have a few more planned for dinners this week! I am LOVING all of them so far! Thanks for giving me the motivation to COOK! It’s so fun to do when the recipients rave about the food! 
I am a big fan!
I have never heard of orange julius before, sounds really good, just need to get some juice to make some tomorrow.
MEl–I tried to save this to my recipe box and it is saving as mac and cheese…! Can you fix that somehow?
Trish
Hey Trish, there is a coding bug that I am working on to fix the Save Recipe button. This issue (saving the Mac and cheese recipe instead of the current recipe) has been happening for a week or so now. In the meantime, until it is fixed on the homepage, click on the post title (in this case, Orange Julius) so that the post opens up in its permalink:
http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2012/01/classic-orange-julius.html
And save the recipe from there. It should work just fine that way!
I love orange julius’ but I never knew how to make them at home! So excited!
Don’t think me strange but I’ve never had one of these before. I never really liked the idea of smoothies from places like that, especially when there’s a Dairy Queen attached to it too, lol. But THIS looks much better than that place. Plus, now I’ll know what went into it.
So I made this again tonight because I felt bad my son was asleep last night when we made this. Tonight we just did the strawberries without the banana, and I think it’s my favorite way. My son LOVED it. He was in Heaven sitting in Daddy’s lap watching “How It’s Made” sipping his orange julius. My husband said “this is my kind of dessert!” This will be a repeat over and over and over again!
i’ve never tasted an orange julius (nor have i ever seen one of the shops, i don’t believe). it sounds quite tasty, but not nearly as tasty as the strawberry-ed version!
This brings back so many memories! I used to love going for an orange julius!
My kids enjoyed their first ever orange julius this morning before school. They loved it!
Love, love, love Orange Juliuses. I remember saving babysitting money when I was 13 to buy the Top Secret Recipes book that the Orange Julius recipe was in. Yum! I make mine just a tiny bit different, but I am sure yours is just as delish!!
Kids LOVED!! Hurrah! Made the strawberry one and all raved.
OMG.. this was my favorite growing up .. going to the mall.. Thanks for posting this… I will be making this tomorrow..
i am making this as soon as possible! yum!!!!!!!!!!!!! thanks for posting it!
We add a handful of spinach and make it into “Shrek – julius”! A little extra nutrition with no change in flavor!!
mel-
thanks for reminding me about homemade orange julius. i forgot how good they are. we added strawberries to ours too and they were amazing. want to hear a tip from my mom to make them over the top amazing? add a tablespoon or two of dry vanilla pudding mix! makes them frothy and creamy and adds another hint of vanilla. try it out! one quick question… on your blendtec giveaway post you mentioned mixing mango, strawberry and honey to make a sorbet, are both fruits frozen or fresh? been dying to make it but didn’t want to mess it up. thanks!
Jackie – the smoothie I mentioned uses fresh mango and frozen strawberries. Hope that helps!
Wow, I haven’t had one of these is years and now I’m craving one..lol. I think these will be today’s after school snack. Thanks for the recipe.
I can relate! I used to get these every time my dad and I went to the mall. He especially loved them. I was excited to see this recipe, and I recently got a Vitamix so it was a 2 minute process. I served these up for dinner last night and my 3 year old gobbled hers up and this morning is begging for more. I hope you’ll post more blender recipes. I need a boost in that department!
hass anyone tried this with rice milk as substitute? That’s only milk substitute my 4yo can drink.
I’ve been making the strawberry Julius for years and years, using powdered egg whites. YUM!
Oh, I remember Orange Julius. I haven’t had one in so long. I didn’t even think to make one at home. Can’t wait to try the recipe.
These look great! i can’t wait to serve them to my husband tonight~ He loves orange julius and will be thrilled that i can make them at home. Thanks!!
Oh my! The first day I made them, I must have had more than 6 oz of concentrate because they didn’t taste very good. Well, MY BAD! The next day, I was more careful in measuring. THESE ARE FANTASTIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My kids have never had one before so this was something new. I have made them every day now for 6 days!!! They are so addictive! It’s a great way for my kids to get their fruits (and veggies-can’t wait to add some spinach leaves!) So far my favorite is adding a handful of blueberries to the mix. So delicious! Now I just need to find a killer sale on OJ concentrate!!!
Skip the sugar and sub with half a banana. healthier and a better texture!
1 cup milk or milk substitute
1 cup orange juice (not concentrate)
1/2 banana
3-4 icecubes
2 scoops of whey/protein powder
I do this almost every morning with whey powder as a meal replacement, but use almond milk instead due to being lactose sensitive.
Awesome!
Delicious!
{ 1 trackback }