Juicy Juice!

So, we have a juicer that we got as a wedding gift. It was one of those things that I knew I would want but in all honesty was skeptical about how much usage we would get out of it. It’s kind of big and bulky, so it lives in the cupboard above our fridge along with a few other kitchen appliances. In my ideal kitchen, I have a lower cupboard or a pantry where I’m able to easily access stuff like the juicer, the crockpot, the espresso maker…you all know what I’m talking about.

Anyway, on our weekly shopping trips we tend to stock up on lots of fruits and vegetables. We probably “overbuy” in that area, but I would rather have it than not have it. There was a Saturday morning a few weeks back where I realized we have quite a few leftover pieces of produce sitting on the counter, and it dawned on me that juicing them would be an easy (and nutritious!) way to make sure nothing went to waste. I hauled the juicer out of the cupboard and set it a-whirling. In went two sweet potatoes, an apple, an orange, a few carrots, two overripe bananas, the remainder of our spinach, and half a bunch of cilantro.

The result was pretty darn tasty! One thing I sometimes dislike about homemade juices is that they tend to separate too easily and the texture can be funky. The sweet potatoes seemed to act like a bonding agent and made the whole concoction really nice and creamy.

Juicing is a good way to quickly get some nutrients into your body. Because the fibrous matter is broken down or removed entirely, it’s much easier to digest and absorb the vitamins. Anytime you’re feeling a little bit icky, like when you have a cold coming on, I would recommend juicing up some fruits and veggies to flush that stuff out. It’s also a nice, healthy treat once in awhile.

Now that I’ve stumbled upon a good way to make use of my juicer AND not waste extra produce, I’ll hopefully be juicing more in the future.