Apple and Kiwi Green Juice with Ginger

Blend of green apples, kiwi and ginger. 

Apple and Kiwi Green Juice with Ginger

Skinny Limits

Makes 2 Servings

Stars of the Show:

• 2 granny smith apples, cored, and sliced
• 2 kiwis, peeled
• small chunk of ginger
• 1 lime or lemon
• 1 celery stalk
• 1/2 cup parsley 

And Action:

Run all ingredients through the juicer and enjoy!

"Summer In A Glass" Cantaloupe Juice

I realize this recipe is seasonally challenged but so is this Texas weather. Cantaloupe went on sale for less than $1/lb. As mentioned before, I plan my juices based on what's on sale and the recipes I find... seasonally appropriate... or not.

An update on my progress for the Biggest Loser Weight Loss Contest at work:

I've had a workout setback since coming down with a sinus infection and now fighting off this chest congestion. My feet haven't hit the pavement in a couple of weeks. Even with the lack of sweat sessions I have managed to drop a few lbs and threw up a 2.8 lb loss this week. Aiming to lose a total of 10 lbs by the December 14th weigh in.

"Summer In A Glass" Cantaloupe Juice

Adapted from: Hawk Family Juice & Food Blog

Makes About 35oz

Stars of the Show:

• 1 bag romaine lettuce
• 3 pinches of grated ginger
• 1 cantaloupe
• 1 cucumber
• 2 1/2 cups pineapple chunks
• 1 lemon - Unfortunately my lemon was no bueno and I didn't pick any up at the store today. Boo!

And Action:

Run all the ingredients through the juicer and enjoy!

Grapefruit Celery Juice

Grapefruit juice is too tart for my liking which doesn't make sense because I love grapefruit segments. The only way I've ever enjoyed grapefruit juice is cutting the fruit in half, sprinkling with a packet of zero calorie sweetener, eating the segments, and then squeezing the juice out of the fruit until it's dry.

I haven't come across a store-bought grapefruit juice I can stomach yet. When grapefruits went on sale I added them to my shopping list. As I've mentioned, I'm really into juicing right now and search the Internet for new juice combinations depending on what produce is on my weekly grocery list. After searching for grapefruit juices I came across a recipe for this Grapefruit Celery Juice.

Two ingredients... that's it. This juice is tart but not in that face puckering kinda way.

Grapefruits provide folic acid and Vitamin C... which we can use more of with all of the illnesses going around right now. In fact, Little Man is home sick today with Croup. Boo! The celery provides potassium and sodium making this juice great for preventing dehydration. The phytonutrients in this juice also help reduce cholesterol. This juice is also very refreshing.

Disclaimer: ***Please be aware that grapefruit juice does not agree with some prescription medications. Check your prescription labels and if you have any questions or concerns please consult your primary care physician or pharmacist.***

Grapefruit Celery Juice

Space Girl Organics

Makes 1 Serving

Stars of the Show:

• 2 grapefruits, peeled and cut into quarters
• 1/2 head of celery

And Action:

Run ingredients through the juicer and enjoy!

Pear Carrot Ginger Juice

We've began the "Biggest Loser" weight loss contest at work and we're 3 days in. I am 2 days behind due to a diet setback thanks to Wurstfest 2013. Saturday morning I was invited to road trip it to New Braunfels, TX to gorge on sausages and fried foods. That I did... 5 sausages on a stick, fried turkey leg, fried pickles with ranch, frito pie, corn on the cob slathered in butter and salted, fried oreos, funnel cake with strawberry topping, and countless cups of iced tea.

My food binge carried into Sunday with a stop at Einstein Bros. Bagels. I couldn't decide between a spinach florentine bagel with garlic schmear or the under 350 calorie bagel thin with turkey sausage and green chiles so I got both and a pumpkin spice latte. Sigh. No shame... kinda.

Feeling guilty about not being able to commit longer than 1 day to this healthy lifestyle change I made a trip to Whole Foods and loaded the cart up with healthy choices for the upcoming week. Juicing is something I've been enjoying lately because I feel so good after downing a glass of it and not to mention all of the health benefits.

Getting back on the wagon I pulled out the juicer. Here's to hoping I can stick to this for another month.  The Pear Carrot Ginger Juice is a little bit thicker than the juices I've made so far but this is so tasty.

Pear Carrot Ginger Juice

Brewers Organics

Makes 1 Serving

Stars of the Show:

• 4 pears, cut into pieces
• 8 carrots, peeled
• 2-inch piece of ginger, peeled

And Action:

Run ingredients through the juicer and enjoy!

Homemade Tomato Juice

Tomatoes are an excellent source of antioxidants...Vitamin A, C, and K, folic acid and fiber. Juicing increases the absorption because you break the tough cell wall of the vegetable...err...fruit? Tomatoes also help prevent cancer (especially prostate and pancreas), heart healthy, a natural anti-inflammatory, and aid in lowering your cholesterol.

I've been told that tomato juice is a hangover cure. Yet to be tested since the last thing I want to do when I have a date with the toilet bowl all morning is stand over my juicer making fresh tomato juice. A handful of my guy friends that I work with flew in from our Detroit office and we met up at the bars two nights this week and partied until midnight. Another night we celebrated a retirement party. I overdid those nights but surprisingly did not get hungover. Will report back on this theory another time.

One night I was hungry and getting close to going over my allotted calorie count for the day so I decided to whip up a glass of homemade tomato juice. Juicing is easy, quick, and the health benefits of fresh juice are numerous. I am aware that sharing this recipe during the months of July-September would have made more sense but they were on sale and ended up in my cart during my last grocery trip to Whole Foods.

The taste is nothing like V8 and much more refreshing. It would be perfect for a Summer morning or a recovery kinda morning. Enjoy!

Homemade Tomato Juice

Adapted from: The Best of Raw Food

Makes 2 Servings

Stars of the Show:

• 3 large tomatoes
• 2 stalks celery
• 1/2 cucumber (peeled is optional)
• ginger (1/4 inch)
• 1/2 lemon, peeled
• 1 jalapeño 
• black pepper, to taste

And Action:

Run all of the ingredients through the juicer. Add the black pepper to taste. 

Refreshing Cantaloupe Juice

Looking for a way to sneak veggies into your child's diet? The cantaloupe in this juice masks the flavor of the greens. My 5 year old went crazy for this juice and was not put off by the green color, however, he was hesitant at first until I told him it tasted just like cantaloupe.

Cantaloupe is full of beta-carotene which is converted to Vitamin A.

This juice is refreshing and acts as a body coolant and thirst quencher. This would be the perfect juice recipe to have on hand for next summer.

Refreshing Cantaloupe Juice

His Harvest

Makes about 16 oz

Stars of the Show:

• 1 container mixed greens
• 1 container spinach
• 1 cantaloupe

And Action:

Remove the outer rind of the cantaloupe and juice with the greens. Serve over ice or chill in the fridge before enjoying. 

Carrot Apple Grape Juice

I have been turned on to juicing since watching the documentary, Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead. Once a week I try to do a one day juice cleanse. Usually on a Monday since Sundays are usually my free day to eat what I want. I can easily justify splurging on items that promote healthy living such as my Breville Juice Fountain.

I feel so good after drinking homemade juices and the taste... oh the taste! So delicious! No additives and all natural. I'm always looking for new flavor combinations to try. After browsing the grocery ads to see what's on sale for the week I'll search the Internet for new recipes or stick to the combinations I already love. My favorite juices tend to contain beets and carrots.

Carrot juice is sweet which is surprising to me because sometimes when I munch on baby carrots they can taste bitter. Carrots are great for your liver, digestive tract and eye sight. One of the richest sources of Vitamin A. It's also concentrated in Vitamins D, C, E, K, B1, and B6.

Apple juice is high in antioxidants and great for your lungs and eye sight. Rich in potassium, improves intestine function, maintains lower levels of cholesterol, and helps to clean the kidneys and liver.

Grape juice is also high in antioxidants and vitamins.

When you need an extra boost of energy consider this instead of a caffeine jolt.

Carrot Apple Grape Juice

Forbidden Rice Blog

Makes about 30 oz

Stars of the Show:

• 4 large carrots
• 3 fuji apples
• 1 cup red grapes

And Action:

Core the apples. Run all of the ingredients through the juicer. Stir and serve over ice or chill in the fridge.