July 19, 2012

My Favorite Juice Recipes

We juice a lot at our house and I have made numberless varieties or recipes. A couple weeks ago, my husband and I embarked on a short juice fast. I did seven days, he did five! Soon I will be posting more about our experience and what benefits we saw in our physical bodies. I will definitely do these more often throughout the year and I recommend everyone who can, to do the same. Before I continue, though, juicing is different than using a blender, so don’t get the two confused. Juicing removes the pulp and is assimilated by the body almost immediately. When blending, the fiber remains intact and your body goes through the digestive process to assimilate the nutrients into your system. There are benefits to both and today I’m talking about juicing.

Juicing for three meals a day makes it a great opportunity to get creative. Most I have created on my own, but I have grabbed some from books. I normally don’t like to do all fruits all the time, because that’s a lot of sugar, no matter how naturally occurring it is, so I actually usually add some greens to mine. Some are heavy on the greens, some are more heavy on the fruit – obviously the green taste can be overwhelming, so it’s not popular when I’m making it for the kids. Many times I’ll add ginger or a SMALL amount of garlic to help with immunity. Then many times I juice, I’ll add the juice to a blender with bananas or avocados for a smoothie, in which I add other cool smoothie add ins – coconut oil, honey, whey, almond meal, yogurt, etc. (I don’t do this when on a juice fast though). I would suggest, that when doing an extended juice fast (three days or longer), that you always add greens to your juice. This way you aren’t loading your body up on sugars and causing insulin levels to spike and drop.

Juicing is the True Vitamin Water. Most people don’t realize how many nutrients you get when you consume raw and organic fruits and veggies. As a Certified Health and Nutrition Consultant, I recommend juicing to all my clients and in all my classes. It’s an amazing lifestyle change to make that reaps benefits continually. Changes you’ll notice are: weight loss, clearer skin, mental clarity, more energy, abdominal peace (you’re giving your digestive system a break), wonderful cleansing – and on a cellular level, allergies and skin rashes disappearing and more!

Normally I just use handfuls and bunches of the greens – I don’t measure. I experiment every time I make something. The recipes below are general. Some make larger amounts than others. I usually use these as a foundation, then add what I have at the house. Each time I get something new!

When it comes to apples, I normally use red apples (gala or red delicious work good) since green is too tart, but if you like the tartness, then those are a great choice!  I always peel the oranges and lemons so the juice isn’t too bitter. I also think adding carrots, apples or celery makes any drink taste great. I do not peel carrots, cucumbers, zucchini, etc. because the nutrients in the skin are amazingly beneficial. If using conventional, I would remove the skin to avoid toxin exposure. Always make sure you remove the pits from fruits such as peaches and apricots. Never juice bananas or avocados – they will clog your machine. Always add them in using a blender after you have juiced everything.

It’s great knowing that you can get your daily intake, and then some, of fruits and veggies when you take a few minutes a day to juice fresh, organic fruits and vegetables. This is also great for those kids who tend to shy away from veggies on their plate. With the pulp you end up with you can add it to breads or smoothies – and if you have too much to ‘reuse’, then you can always compost the extra fiber.

Remember, organic is ALWAYS best, but if it’s not available, get what you can and make sure you wash the outside very well. The big difference between conventional and organic is the nutrient value of the fruit or veggie. The conventional will contain far less nutrients than organic, not to mention the toxic chemicals on and in them. So, as you can see, choose organic whenever possible. In my opinion, the price difference isn’t so large that it makes a huge dent in your wallet. It’s worth your investment.

 

2 organic oranges, peeled
1 organic apple
2 organic carrots
1 stalk celery, organic

  * * * * * * *

1 organic orange
1 organic apple
1 organic carrot
1 stalk celery, organic
handful of organic chard
handful of organic spinach
½ handful of organic parsley

  * * * * * * *

4 celery stalks, organic
2 organic apples
3-4 organic carrots
¼ – ½ organic lemon

 

 

2 organic carrots
2 small organic apples
1-2 cups fresh organic strawberries

  * * * * * * *

4 large organic carrots
2 organic apples

* * * * * * * 

4-5 organic carrots
2 organic apples
½” of fresh organic ginger

 

 

2 organic cucumbers
2 organic carrots
1organic  apple
½ organic lemon

  * * * * * * *

3 organic apples
½ organic lemon

  * * * * * * * 

2 organic peaches
2 organic pears
1 organic apple

  * * * * * * * 

2 cups organic kale
2 cups organic parsley
1 cup organic spinach
1 organic apple
3 stalks celery, organic

  * * * * * * * 

1 organic cucumber
½ cup organic parsley
1 organic apple
4 organic carrots
add juiced ingredients to ¼ – ½ cup coconut milk (when you aren’t doing a juice fast)

  * * * * * * *

1 cup organic strawberries
2 organic apples
2 stalks celery, organic
2-3 organic carrots

 

 

4-5 celery stalks, organic
½ organic cucumber
½ cup organic spinach
1 organic apple
½ organic green pepper  

* * * * * * *

1 organic peach
2 organic apricots
2 organic pears
1 organic apple

  * * * * * * * 

1-2 cups organic grapes
1 cup organic strawberries
1 organic apple
1 organic orange

 

Do you juice? Have you been wanting to, but weren’t sure if it was worth it? Do you have any favorite blends?

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