Here’s a Juice, Smoothie and Salad Recipe you’ll love!

I can’t believe it’s been 2 months already of eating a mostly raw vegan diet. I’m not a big fan of labels because I don’t want to deter anyone from my main message which is that fruits and vegetables ROCK!!! The more fruits and veggies you add to your diet the healthier you will be and feel… guaranteed! I do appreciate labels though for how important they are in having discussions of any kind. In my quest to attain greater health this year, those words (raw and vegan) are the IT words. My diet has sloooooowly evolved in the past 9 years (since I read Never Be Sick Again by Raymond Francis) and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’ve never gone cold turkey on anything. Cold turkey does not work for me. I am much further along than most people I know who for years have quit this, that or the other, announced it to the world and sworn by everything, only to be smothered in grease on a Friday night and decide that eating healthy is too hard. Nice and slow works, no need for torture 🙂 I know my why and that keeps me going. I’ve had a few cooked non-vegan meals (one or two a week on average) since this journey began but I’m not sweating them! I am focusing on how easy and delicious it is to have simple and fast raw vegan meals! Here are 3 new recipes I made in one day. I actually wasn’t trying to create new recipes, it just happened! and then of course I thought to myself… better run and get that camera so you can share this with everyone. Enjoy folks. Every recipe was deeeeeelicous 🙂

Juice Recipe #32: Orange Glow

I love 3 ingredient juice recipes, they’re so easy! This juice was sweet and had a great zing thanks to the ginger. Remember… go for organic ingredients if possible. This recipe is very reminiscent of this ABC and ginger recipe but it tastes and looks very different. I used my Breville Juice Fountain Plus instead of the Omega J8006 for this recipe because they were all hard ingredients that the Breville just juices faster.

• 1 large golden beet (this was my first time using them and they are gorgeous)
• 5 carrots
• 1 inch of ginger

Smoothie Recipe #9: Hubby’s Fruit Medley

I have a confession. This was my husband’s creation, not mine. It is THE joy of my life that eating this way (and sharing it with others) inspires anyone, and most importantly the people I love so deeply. Hubby has become quite the smoothie maker so when he came up with this winner I knew I had to share it. If you want to do it hubby’s style just throw everything in your Vitamix (blender) in whatever proportions you like, add ‘some’ water and voila! If you’re like me, you’ll use…

• 1 mango, peeled and chopped
• 1 cup of strawberries
• 1 large banana, frozen
• 1 cup of pineapple, frozen
• 1 apple
• 1 cup of water

It doesn’t matter what fruits are fresh or frozen, I just indicated which ones I used that happened to be frozen. I particularly love using only frozen bananas for smoothies. It somehow tastes better to me.

Salad Recipe

This salad was filling and out of this world good!

• 3 large handfuls of baby kale, chopped
• 1/2 cucumber, chopped
• 1 large carrot, shredded
• 3/4 cup of broccoli florets
• 2 large handful of a variety of sprouts (garbanzo, alfalfa and bean sprouts)

Salad Dressing: 5 strawberries, 1 orange and 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar.

Ok, so balsamic vinegar is obviously not raw but I loooooove the one I have and it is fantastic for making salad dressings. The recipe would actually be just fine with only strawberries and oranges so feel free to leave it out.

~Add more fruits and vegetables to your diet, juice and enjoy!~

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I think I’m RAW, VEGAN and Juice Recipe #31

I’m not sure how in heavens name I have a blog and don’t own a laptop. It makes no sense to me, hence the lack of blog posts. I do intend to fix that sometime in the next few months and get a really nice laptop. Suggestions welcome. I have spent the last few months wisely though and chosen to make food my medicine especially since the latter part of 2013 came with lots of physical and emotional trauma. 

I have never planned any of my life’s major changes. I spend as much time as the next person setting goals but I almost always get side tracked. I probably intuitively ‘plan’ all of the changes that happen in my life by ‘day-dreaming’ about it, reading about it, talking about it, being truly grateful for where I am, excited about all of the changes that I am already experiencing and then WHAM! my life’s on a whole new path.

So my latest life change is that I’m my diet is now RAW and VEGAN. I have been reading and thinking about eating this way for a few years now. The urge to try this lifestyle became so strong that on the night of January 22nd I’d had enough and decided I just had to do it. My diet was already significantly healthier than the average American’s diet thanks to the changes I’ve been making in the past several years. I had (and still have) juices/smoothies for breakfast, fruits for snacks and delicious home made salads very often. I purchase organic fruits and veggies when available as they are my absolute favorite food. In spite of all this I felt like there was plenty of room to expand, not physically! 🙂 . I have since had a few cooked meals because my husband and I traveled out-of-state for 5 days. Boy oh boy! Traveling and trying to remain raw and vegan with only 14 days of experience at the time was haaaaaard. I’m back home now and its been much easier. I don’t want to ramble on and on about this so I will just outline some of the benefits I have experienced from eating this way for 3 weeks.

• I feel lighter after meals
• I have increased energy
• Meal prep is FAST and EASY
• Increased mental clarity
• Better and less sleep necessary
• Weight loss 

The hardest thing has been trying to eat enough. With this lifestyle, your food is digested much quicker so the best thing is to either snack more often or have larger meals if your stomach can handle it. Snacking more works better for me now. The cooked meals I had were at restaurants with family and I have only experienced TERRIBLE effects, not side effects… EFFECTS 😦

• I felt sluggish/lethargic after eating
• SEVERE acid reflux
• Nausea
• SEVERE Indigestion
• Excessive gas

No matter how small or large the cooked meal was I experienced ALL of the above effects ALL the time. I am now wondering…was I experiencing some/all of the above effects before and just totally oblivious to them? How sad is that? Or…did my GI tract love raw food so much (after only a few weeks) that it’s trying to let me know that cooked food is not the way for me anymore? I honestly don’t know what the answer is but I do know I enjoy eating raw and vegan for now and I will continue to do so to the best of my ability.

Here’s today’s breakfast green juice recipe.

New Beginnings GREEN juice recipe

• one large cucumber
• one head of romaine lettuce
• half a pineapple, peeled (do not core)
• one orange, peeled

It’s light, refreshing and on the sweeter side. I prefer stronger green flavors in my green juices but I craved something slightly sweet this morning and this juice satisfied that craving perfectly!

~Do something new, juice and enjoy!~

Anyone make any new (small or big) changes to their lifestyle in the past few months? Please share. 

Here are some pics from my raw food adventures. I took all of the pictures in today’s post with my iPhone so excuse the not-so-awesome quality.

Joyful Juice Recipes, #29 and #30

I’m so glad I’m back to juicing and blogging about it. I took a very long break from doing both most of this year to pursue other personal goals that suffice it to say left me feeling drained and hopeless. I am finally beginning to feel like my true happy self again and I owe much of that to my beloved 5 year old Breville juicer and my yummy hubby. While in the throes of my sadness I forced myself to think of (and act on) activities that bring me joy and juicing was pretty much at the top of the list. Ok, so maybe juicing tied with sleeping 9+ hours on my days off regardless of how many ‘important’ and  ‘timely’ errands I needed to run. So here are two recipes that I made on a day I literally slept in till 11am! These recipes are raw, fresh, mostly organic and quite delicious. Give them a try!I had one for breakfast, at 12pm 🙂 and one for lunch at 3pm 🙂 🙂 with lots of water in between.

BEET JOY JUICE RECIPE (32 ounces)

• 6 large carrots
• 3 beets, thoroughly washed
• 2 granny smith apples
• 1/4 large fresh pineapple
• 1 inch piece of ginger
• 3-4 leaves of beet greens

GREEN JOY JUICE RECIPE (24 ounces)

• 4 stalks of celery
• 1 large green bell pepper
• 2 granny smith apples
• 1/2 lime
• 2 leaves of mustard greens

Juice and Be Joyful!

Juice Recipe #24: Green To-Go Juice aka ‘Christmas-Guilt’ Juice

I did not survive Christmas very well. Like many people, I could not resist over-indulging on my mother and mother-in-law’s delicious culinary creations.  I do not feel one ounce of guilt though *total lie* because I know that I’ll more than make up for it in the days and weeks to come and because it was only one gosh-darn day of gluttony. I went to bed Tuesday night vowing to have something.. .anything green for breakfast. I was beyond exhausted of course, so I slept in and woke up with only enough time to shower, dress, juice and go! Here’s the seriously yummy light and refreshing green juice recipe I created with left-over fruits that I’d cut up for a breakfast on Monday.

I made 32 ounces of it but the measurements below are for approximately 16 ounces.

• 6 stalks of organic celery
• 1 large pink grapefruit
• 1 organic granny smith apple
• 1  handful of red seedless grapes

This green juice was so good I’d barely driven 3 miles before it was all gone. It’s a winner 🙂

~Juice & go!~

 

Juice Recipe #23: Lean Green Juice!

This green juice recipe is sure to make you feel & look great. It was the perfect light and super healthy breakfast recipe and it has super ‘green’ powers to make anyone lean (after lots of doses on a consistent basis alongside a healthy diet of course). Yes, being lean doesn’t come easy. I know because I’m still on that path but I love and appreciate every step I make in the right direction. And by lean, I don’t mean skinny, I mean… ‘right & tight’ 🙂 I just can’t think of a better way to describe it. Feel free to help me out.

Anyway, here’s the recipe to this delicious and refreshing green juice. Your whole body will thank you for it. This made exactly 32 ounces which is a whole lot but I woke up starving, ran a few miles and needed that much. Cut ingredients in half to make the usual 16oz.

• 4 medium/large collard green leaves
• 5 celery stalks
• one handful of mint leaves
• 3 granny smith apples
• 1 cucumber
• 1/2 lemon (I juice with the peel on)

Some of the benefits of this green juice, just to name a few, are that it is anti-inflammatory, alkaline, a diuretic, promotes weight loss and improves immunity.

Ingredients of The Lean Green Juice

Lean Green Frothy Goodness

Lean, green and filled to the brim.

Settling in

~Juice & Get Lean!~

Sources:

Benefits of Juicing Collard Greens

The Incredible Powers of Celery Juice

Sweet Clemetine Salad

Clementines are not safe in our house. I bought a box of them and between my husband and I they were gone in four days. I don’t know how many the box holds but I would estimate probably about 35. They were perfect to have for breakfast, as a snack and as you will see in today’s post, they were a great addition to this salad. This salad was incredibly filling, delicious, crunchy, sweet and a little tangy thanks to the yummy dressing I used.

Here’s the simple recipe:

• Organic mixed greens
• Organic baby carrots
• Organic cherry tomatoes, halved
• One clementine

Yup! That’s it! Simple is best. I used Cindy’s Kitchen Sundried Tomato dressing which I purchased at my local Whole Foods Market but feel free to use whatever dressing you have on hand or better yet make one.

Clementines have Folate, Potassium, Fiber and are of course loaded with Vitamin C.

~Munch & Enjoy!~

Juice Recipe #22: Not-So-Green Juice

I was craving a green juice today and made this tasty juice that looks anything but green. In fact, I’m not fond of its color but it packs some serious nutrient power so whatever! I purchased some collard greens at my local supermarket a few days ago that were calling my name. I’m sure I’m not the only weirdo that sees a gorgeous veggie in the market and just has to have them. That’s how I felt about these collards when I laid eyes on them. They were fresh, large, leafy and the most gorgeous shade of green.

I LOVE Collard Greens or what I grew up referring to as Sukuma Wiki, google that! Collards and Kale are definitely my favorite greens. I grew up eating them sauteed with onions and tomatoes. My mouth is watering just thinking about them. But given that this is a juicing blog and I was craving one I thought I would create a juice around them. It just refused to become green though thanks to the carrots. Go carotene! I also was excited to drink a veggie juice out of the glass in the picture. It was a wedding favor from a wedding I attended two weeks ago and I can’t say I’ve ever been more excited about a favor. Silly, I know!

Collard greens are loaded with Vitamin A, C and K, along with calcium, potassium and omega 3 fatty acids. Greens are definitely nature’s secret weapon. Here’s one recipe that helps you drink your greens and get filled up on these nutrients.

• 2-3 large collard green leaves, thouroughly washed, stem and all!
• 5-6 carrots
• 1 apple
• 1 inch piece of ginger

~Juice & Enjoy!~

If you want to taste and see a ‘real’ green juice, check out the most popular green juice recipe MAJ has so far… Juice Recipe #4

Loving My New Mason Jar Lids!

I am not a home canner and really would have no idea where to begin when canning but I am definitely obsessed with mason jars, large, small and in between. They are the cheapest and safest way to store foodstuffs (as well as many other items in and around the house). I would store my juices before in plastic containers that would stain and end up smelling kinda funky no matter how much I scrubbed them. Storing foodstuffs in glass has become all the rage these past few years but the ones made for storing liquids are pretty pricey. Thank heavens for mason jars! They come with two part lids that are incredibly annoying if you don’t can so I was very happy to discover these through one of my favorite websites. I bought the Ball Wide-Mouth Plastic Storage Caps . They come in a set of 8 and cost less than 5 dollars which is an amazing deal. Happy Shopping! Here is the recipe to the juice in the picture in case you missed it before… Bright Orange Goodness.

Ball Wide-Mouth Plastic Storage Caps

~Juice and cover your jars with these!~

Juice Recipe #21: Thanksgiving Juice

I can’t believe I haven’t had a single post since right before Storm Sandy came and turned mine and so many other people’s lives around. I pray for those whose lives will never be the same again and it is admirable to see the country come together to help in any way possible.  Like so many of you Thanksgiving is truly one of my favorite holidays and in the spirit of gratitude for all that we have, are and can do I would like to take the time to list 5 things that I am beyond grateful for.

1. The idea and inspiration to begin this blog this year. Eating and Living well is my life’s passion and this blog has been a wonderful channel for expressing that. Thank you World Wide Web, thank you Word Press, thank you Breville Juice Fountain Plus, thank you Olympus Pen epl1 and thank you Veggie Markets.

2. Thank you to every follower, reader and ‘liker of my posts’. Thank you for validating my work and taking the time to support my blog and sharing in the excitement that a little homemade juice can bring.

3. There are no words to express how grateful I am for the strength and health that I have had this year. I have gone the entire year without so much as a sniffle. This time last year I was suffering from my umpteenth cold, couldn’t breathe and felt like death warmed over. Yup! It was that bad. Health is our Wealth.

4. I am thankful with every breathe that I take for my AMAZING family but most importantly my beloved husband. He is my rock, my #1 fan and my best friend. I am grateful that he tastes almost every one of my kitchen creations and gives me feedback that is sometimes a bit too honest 🙂

5. I am thankful for this juice recipe I created last week while feeling mooshy and happy inside. It awoke my taste buds and got me excited to juice like crazy again.

• 2 cups of pineapple, chopped
• 2 oranges, peeled 
• 1/2 an inch of a ginger root

~Juice and Give Thanks!~

Types of Juicers

I was so eager to get this blog started and begin sharing the wonderful new juice recipes I was creating in my kitchen that I completely forgot to go over a few basics that anyone new or old to juicing might like to read about. I remember how hungry I was (and still am) for information in the beginning of my juicing journey. Having said that I would like to take the time to discuss very simply and clearly the three main types of juicers along with their pros and cons.

CENTRIFUGAL JUICERS

This is by far the most popular and most affordable type of juicer on the market. These juicers have a round disc with sharp blades that grind the vegetables and fruits as you push them through, allowing the juice through the sieve and out the spout while discarding the pulp on the opposite end into a container.

 Pros

• most affordable (price range is about $40-$300).
• high RPM which makes them the fastest
• they have a wide mouth/large feeding tube which means you don’t have to chop up your fruits and veggies too much or at all.
• produce a pulp free high-yield juice

Cons

• not so great at juicing leafy greens
• can be quite loud
• they have several (some quite bulky) parts to clean. I place a plastic baggie in my pulp container before I begin juicing which makes for one less part to clean up. I also clean the other parts immediately after juicing and before enjoying my juice.
• The shredder/grinding disc spins incredibly fast which means the juice begins to oxidize. Try to always drink your juice immediately and store only if you must regardless of what juicer you use.

I own a Breville Juice Fountain Plus that I purchased in December of 2008 for $120 (with my Macy’s coupon).  Check out the first green juice recipe I ever made with it. This is the one and only juicer I have owned and it has NEVER given me a problem. I use it several times a week and the only con that sometimes makes me want to get a new juicer is the fact that it is just ‘ok’ with leafy greens. Otherwise, I love my juicer, take good care of it and feel eternally grateful for the abundance of health that has come my way because of what it can do!

Here is my Breville Juice Fountain Plus today…

MASTICATING JUICERS

These are single gear juicers and tend to be more expensive than centrifugal juicers. They work by slowly grinding vegetables and fruits and then squeezing the juice out.

Pros

• great at juicing leafy greens, including wheatgrass
• easier to clean than centrifugal juicers
• can make nut butters and fruit sorbets
• not as loud as centrifugal juicers

Cons

• they are more expensive than centrifugal juicers and range from about $200-$400
• they are much slower than centrifugal juicers
• they have a smaller feeding tube and therefore veggies and fruits need to be cut up quite a bit to get them through

After doing a bit of research if I wanted to purchase a masticating juicer I would get the Omega Vert VRT350. They seem to have great reviews across the web, have a 10 year warranty and are upright which means they take up less counter space!

TRITURATING (TWIN-GEAR) JUICERS

These juicers also work by grinding and pressing the juices out except they have an even slower RPM and double the gears to produce the highest quality juices a juicer can make.

Pros

• able to juice any and all kinds of produce including leafy greens and wheatgrass exceptionally well
• produce an incredibly high quality juice that barely undergoes any oxidation or exposure to heat.
• produce extremely dry pulp
• fairly quiet

Cons

• most expensive and can range from $500-$2500
• take the longest to make juice but good things come to those who wait, right?
• have several parts to clean that can be a bit of a hassle.

Check this out to see what I consider to be the Rolls Royce of juicers. They cost a pretty penny but they definitely get the job done exceedingly well.

Remember, the BEST juicer for you is simply two things:

• the one you can afford
• the one you will use

~Happy Purchasing and Juicing!~

What juicer do you own and what kind is it? Do you agree or disagree with these pros and cons? Do you have a ‘dream’ juicer?