The Perfect Orange Julius Recipe

Yes, my friends, after much research, I bring you the “Perfect Orange Julius Recipe”, as promised! But first, here’s a closer look at the vintage 1970’s Orange Julius logo. It supported their slogan of “a devilishly good drink” and I love it. What a cheeky little devil! This little guy could also be the logo for my quest for the perfect orange julius recipe! As we researched and then tested a myriad of copycat recipes, it’s like he would say, “Nope! That’s not it! Fooled you again! Heh heh heh!”

Y’all, there are so many copycat recipes out there! Each one swears theirs is the real thing, “just like the mall”. It just isn’t so. Here at the house, we tried everything folks swore by – adding coffee creamers, whole eggs, heavy creams, yogurts, Dream Whip, increasing some ingredients, decreasing some ingredients, powdered sugar, adding milk, less ice, more ice…! Ugh. We tested them all. (Some of them were just downright awful!) But everything came to a screeching halt when we found and tested the recipe I’ll share with you below.

The gal (a professional food stylist) at a blog called “Girl Gone Grits“, had always loved Orange Julius drinks and was excited to get her first job at an Orange Julius as a teen in the 80’s. Like all of us, she wanted to know the secret ingredients that made them so yummy! Although her manager never divulged the actual secret to her, she now has the real deal recipe, based on her time working there and forensically researching the ingredients. Here are her own words:

For some, [Orange Julius] brings back a ton of memories and for others, it sets them off on a wild chase of finding that “mystery ingredient” that makes the drink seem so unique. While doing some research I noticed over and over the many copy-cat recipes from people who think they have found the answer. The funny thing is that though creamy, no ice cream or yogurt is used, and though really rich in orange flavor, no concentrated frozen orange juice was used. Normally I am all over copy-cat recipes that may use an ingredient that has nothing to do with the original but takes on the same look, taste, and feel in the finished product. But in this case, only the original would do.

…years later, and after lots of research, I’ve discovered that it was egg white powder mixed with dry milk and vanilla flavoring powder. That’s it! That’s the “secret ingredient”! But it’s not just the secret powder that makes it an Orange Julius – it’s also the directions on how to make it. So here you go, no need for copy-cat recipes that use yogurt, frozen orange concentrate, or ice cream. Just get these ingredients and a good blender and before you know it your friends and family will be saying “Give me an Orange Julius!”

Give Me an Orange “Julius”, Wednesday, January 11, 2012, Girl Gone Grits blog

Despite having our fill of trying Orange Julius recipes, we jumped in one more time to test this promising version. One word: EUREKA. This is it. One note: if you have a regular old blender like me, add the crushed ice a bit at a time, until it’s the consistency you like. A huge amount of ice at one time overwhelmed my little blender.

OK. Here’s her recipe. Enjoy!