Juicing has been around for years and there is a monstrous amount of information on the internet and written in books, with juice bars popping up everywhere. I want to show that everyone on any budget can juice and that the bright colours and a nice glass with the aroma of a few crushed herbs, is a wonderful way to start the day. The 5 senses of juicing have made a huge difference to my day, not only is juicing so good for your inners, it can be a treat for your nose and a delight for your sight!
Back in 2010 I bought this huge juicer which, after a few energetic juicing months, ended up at the back of a kitchen cupboard. We used it recently for making apple juice from our trees, but just a few months ago I decided to experiment with juicing, to see if it could be done on a budget, nothing flashy or fanciful, but made with ingredients easily and cheaply found at any local mart. My main reason for juicing was to cleanse and detox my liver each morning after a 16-hour fast, but the effect on your senses when you
consider the smell of herbs, the fabulous colour of the juices with the clean, natural
flavours, I highly recommend it as a real boost to your morning. I have also noticed juices
seem to taste much better with a clean palette, where it is possible to identify the flavour of each ingredient. Quite amazing!
5 senses of juicing
1. Sense of Touch
In preparing for juicing, I really like having a nice glass, that can be bought as singles from any of the cheapo shops. Part of the appeal of having tea or coffee when out and about, is the nice tableware chosen to enhance your experience. The glasses I have were each less than £2; a handled glass that I also use for hot chocolate in winter, an American diner milkshake glass, also for milkshakes in summer, (shocker, right!), and a dragonfly tumbler with a matching carafe. Using a nice glass makes a big difference, a quality juice should be delivered in a quality glass. I also always use a metal straw for many reasons; you can stir if the juice separates, avoid fruit sugars on your teeth and it helps to filter any large bits of herb.
2. Sense of Smell
There is nothing better than the smell of fresh herbs, citrus and roots first thing in the morning. The sharpness of lemon and the summery cucumber is so refreshing, with the added aroma of rosemary, sage and mint, there is no better way to start the day!
If I am using fresh herbs from the garden I tend to chop them finely and add them either straight to the glass or into the juice collector. I also stir herby juice so it is well mixed.
3. Sense of Taste
There are thousands of recipes from the exotic to the simple. I have found that on a budget, I have two juices I make as a starting point, to then add some variants:
Orange and carrot
pair with radish, lemon, strawberry, grapefruit or lime with either cinnamon, ginger or turmeric
Apple and pear
pair with celery, blue and blackberries, cucumber or grape with mint, sage and rosemary.
Full basic recipes at the end!
(The radishes and herbs are all from the garden)
Find your own path by adding more of something and less of another from the basic suggestions here and rather than measuring and weighing everything I simply put my ingredients into a large bowl, which once full of uncut produce, (as in these photographs), is the amount I need for our two juices. It makes it so simple and adds variety as no two juices will ever be the same, and it's a little like the 'just chuck it in a pan' dinner. It'll always be good if you're using ingredients
you like!
4. Sense of Colour
Every juice will be a fabulous colour, even simple apple pear which is a dull beige still looks amazing with herbs floating in it. There is nothing more pure than the natural colours of homemade juices. For something special add a red cabbage leaf to the carrot orange juice!
The combination of bright colours, (that taste as they smell), fresh aromas of herbs and spices, your favourite tableware and almost a ceremonial preparation process is a really therapeutic way to start the day. It awakens your body on so many fronts, an ancestral recognition that you're looking after yourself, enabling you to tackle the day head-on, knowing you've looked after your insides as an order of priority.
5. Sense of Wellbeing
Before deciding to do juicing ensure there are no reasons why you shouldn't. I can imagine that some foods may trigger medical problems, and whilst juicing is always better than a chocolate bar, it is important to vary the ingredients as much as possible. 50 ingredients a week is considered the ideal amount of variations for your serious fasting juicer, but on a budget, I would say 30 ingredients a month is certainly better than toast and jam. Common sense tells you that only juicing with the same few ingredients could cause an excess, and an excess of anything is never good. Simple variations such as 2 carrots 2 oranges, to 3 carrots 1 orange 1 lemon will change the juice just slightly.
As often as possible add a little treat, maybe a bag of exotic frozen fruit like mango or stock up when there is an offer on blueberries, pineapples or watermelon. Coconut milk is also absolutely fabulous, (it's my new favourite thing for both cakes and milkshakes!) and is absolutely delicious with mango or pineapple. Using soft flesh fruit like strawberries, blueberries and raspberries would need to be blended not juiced, then add your juice to the berry pulp for another quick spritz. Likewise, if adding coconut milk, natural yoghurt or honey, it is better to add the juice in the blender and mix.
Basic juicing rules
There are no rules, once you get the hang of taste strength and proportions, just chuck what you like into the juicer and enjoy the surprise each time! Here is a handy guide on what to pip and peel:
If you eat the peel, e.g. apple, pear, or radish, leave it on and juice it.
If you don't eat the peel, e.g. banana, mango, citrus, take it off before juicing,
If the skin is very thin with soft flesh, e.g. strawberries and raspberries, blend instead and add the juice to the blender
If it's got small pips like watermelon, apple and citrus don't bother removing them.
If it has a big stone like a peach or mango, (both soft flesh) remove them before blending. Remove a plum stone before juicing.
Lemon juice is a brilliant appetite suppressant so put it in any or all juices. It is also really refreshing squeezed into fizzy water throughout the day!
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Basic juice recipes based on a few simple ingredients
Every 10 days we spend about £7 (from Lidls) on juicing ingredients for two people, which works out at just 35p per portion. We shop every 10 days to ensure the produce is fresh. By the tenth day, carrots get a bit gnarly and pears can go soft.
AMOUNTS ARE FOR ONE PERSON
Juice 2 large peeled oranges and 3 large carrots
add:
half a peeled lemon, grapefruit or lime
or juice 3 radishes with leaves and half a beetroot
or juice a thin slice of ginger and stir in a pinch of turmeric (some people react to turmeric, so take it steady!)
or stir in a pinch of cinnamon
As a treat try adding a quarter of pineapple, peeled, cored and juiced
or a handful of strawberries/raspberries or a stoned peach blended.
Juice 3 apples and 2 pears, stalks removed
add:
Half a cucumber or a few plums or half a stalk of celery with leaves or all 3!
or add half a handful of chopped sage and/or rosemary
or add chopped mint leaves
As a treat, try adding a handful of grapes, blackberries or blueberries, or a few of each if you have them. I would probably blend the blackberries but juice the grapes and blueberries because of their quite thick skins.
I highly recommend trying simple, hassle-free juicing. It's such a cheap and fun way to do something good for yourself. Before long you'll be throwing a selection of fresh fruit, veg and herbs into a bowl, chopping, blending and juicing a healthy morning start. I plan to get some rosewater or ginseng purely for variety and goodness. It really doesn't have to break the bank, even the juicer itself can be bought from cheap outlets like The Range or the big supermarkets.
Happy juicing, a simple, fun life change for huge rewards!
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