Orange Julius: revisiting a classic

Last week Steve was home from work feeling tired, achey, with a sore throat and a stuffy nose.  Today it's my daughter's turn to lay on the couch moaning a bit and unable to get comfortable.  The trajectory of my day is certainly going in a different direction than planned: my gym workout will have to be squeezed in at home in between bringing cups of crushed ice and washing bed linens.  My chats with friends will have to be shorter and edited due to the presence of an audience.  The television will be on at times that would ordinarily be marked by blessed silence or my song choices.  The reverberations of today will be felt for the next few days as homework is made up, undone errands are caught up, and missed workouts are doubled up or left behind.  With all this change you wouldn't think I'd be very happy, would you?

I am happy.  Our lives have been busy lately: extra band practices get ready for a big multi-school concert, sleepovers, dinner parties, and all of the hustle and bustle that accompanies a new year, burgeoning tax season, and the 2nd half of the school year.   I decided this morning that I would take today to (briefly) air out the house, wash all the bedding, and make an Orange Julius smoothie for my daughter.  She's never had an Orange Julius because I've never purchased concentrated  orange juice and didn't know you could make one without it.  Last night when Steve made an emergency run for more children's medicine he brought home orange juice concentrate and the idea was born.  I loved an Orange Julius when I was a child, a rare treat at a time when smoothies were unknown and "wasting" 6 ounces of orange juice concentrate was unheard of!  Today when I searched online for the recipe I found that I could make substitutions that would make the drink healthier and still maintain that yummy taste.  Here is what I did:

Recipe online which I believe is the one used by my mom (found on this blog)

6 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate

1 cup milk
1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8-9  ice cubes

1. Combine all ingredients except ice cubes in blender.
2. Blend for about 1-2 minutes, adding ice cubes one at a time.

I know, that’s a lot of sugar, right? Yeah, no wonder it’s so good
Update: A reader emailed me a suggestion to use powdered sugar to make the drink a bit creamier. I’ve been using 1/4 cup regular sugar and 1/4 powdered sugar and it’s fantastic!

My changes:

6 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate

1 cup soy milk
1 cup water
1 TBSP organic pure cane sugar
2 TBSP vanilla whey protein
1 TBSP psyllium husk
2 TBSP orange-flavored Omega-3 supplement
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8-9 ice cubes

1. Combine all ingredients except ice cubes in blender.
2. Blend for about 1-2 minutes, adding ice cubes one at a time.

I am pretty sure I don't even need the orange juice concentrate.  I am thinking I will try it again this afternoon or tomorrow with fresh squeezed orange juice and perhaps add more whey protein or perhaps some kefir for probiotics and bulk.

My daughter loved the drink and I loved giving her something packed with vitamins, protein, Omega-3, and fiber that didn't contain 1/2 cup of sugar (although keep in mind that any kind of fruit juice concentrate is concentrated sugar!)  I love smoothies but unfortunately my daughter doesn't like most of them, so this was a good find for me.

Do you have any recipe makeovers that you like?  I'd love to read about them.