10 Frugal Uses for Extra Fruit Juices in the Kitchen

by Andrea Norris-McKnight

Perhaps you don’t drink juice regularly in your house, but occasionally, you may buy it for a specific recipe or when entertaining. And end up with several glasses of juice no one in your household wants to drink. Or maybe you buy a lot of canned fruit. Do you dump the juice from that canned fruit down the drain?

Rather than let that leftover juice go to waste, simply try one of the following uses for extra juices.

10 Uses for Extra Fruit Juices

Most of the ideas are very easy to whip up in the kitchen and all are low-cost.

1. Cocktails and Mocktails

Of course, the quickest way to use up juice is to drink it. But you don’t have to drink straight juice. Mix juice with your favorite alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages to create tasty drinks. Or add splashes of juice to flavor plain water.

2. Smoothies

Combine leftover juice with fruits, vegetables, yogurt or ice for a delicious and nutritious blended drink. Add a scoop of protein powder to your smoothie, and you’ve got a homemade meal replacement shake.

3. Popsicles

Pour the juice into ice pop molds and freeze to make refreshing and healthy treats for kids or adults. Keep some of these popsicle molds on hand so you can freeze up some treats whenever you find yourself with extra juice.

4. Sauces, Marinades and Dressings

Juice makes a tasty base for marinades, dressings and sauces. Here are a few recipes to try the next time you find yourself with extra juice:

• Orange Juice Vinaigrette from Dash of Jazz
• Apple Juice Marinade from Food.com
• Tomato Juice Spaghetti Sauce from AllRecipes.com

5. Baking

Substitute juice for water or milk in recipes for cakes, muffins, and other baked goods to add a fruity twist. According to SheKnows.com, you can even substitute sweet juice for white sugar in some recipes.

6. Jelly or Jam

If you like to make homemade jellies and jams, why not throw in those leftover juices to make unique flavor combinations? If you’ve never made homemade jelly, try some recipes from this beginner’s guide from The Farmer’s Almanac.

7. Fruit Leather

Make homemade fruit leather by spreading juice onto a silicone baking mat and dehydrating or baking it at a low temperature until it’s dry and pliable. Visit the National Center for Home Food Preservation for instructions.

You may find your family prefers it over store-bought fruit leather and roll-ups.

8. Sorbet

Do you have an ice cream maker? You can blend juice with a sweetener and use your ice cream maker to make a delicious sorbet.

9. Oatmeal or Yogurt

Stir juice into oatmeal or yogurt for a fruity twist on breakfast staples. Save some money by making your own flavored oatmeal packets.

10. Flavored Ice Cubes

This idea is from a Dollar Stretcher reader:

I make fruity cubes by freezing leftover juice that fruit has been stored in. I just put the leftover juice into ice cube trays and freeze. (The Dollar Stretcher recommends these stackable silicone ice cube trays.) When frozen, I pop them out of the trays and store them in a freezer bag until ready for use. I made them by freezing the leftover juice from berries after we had strawberry shortcake, pear juice from home-canned fruit, and juice from store-bought mandarin oranges. I think the possibilities are endless.

The fruity cubes are great in smoothies. You can also put the fruity cubes in a glass of water and make your own flavored water instead of buying from the store.
Sue

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How Will You Use That Extra Fruit Juice?

Stop pouring fruit juice down the drain. If nothing else, freeze it in an ice cube tray to use later. Just make sure any juice you use or save is still good. Saving a dollar’s worth of juice isn’t worth an upset stomach.

Related:

• 10 Uses for Leftover Bacon Grease That May Save You Some Money
• 19 Uses for Bread You Might Not Know That Can Help You Save
• 10 Creative Ways To Repurpose Leftovers (and Frugal Too)

Reviewed January 2024

About the Author

Andrea Norris-McKnight took over as the editor of The Dollar Stretcher and After 50 Finances after working under the site founder and previous editor for almost 15 years. She has also written for Money.com, GOBankingRates.com, HavenLife.com and The Sacramento Bee.