Our Greener Life

Before you buy a can, carton or bottle of commercial vegetable juice, consider making your own. There is no great mystique to making vegetable juices, and you don’t need an expensive juicer. The following recipes can be made in your blender.

Here are two basic vegetable juice recipes. Think of them as springboards for your own vegetable combinations. Depending on the season and what is available, you can make a healthy vegetable juice any time of year.

Tomato-based Vegetable Juice
Ingredients:
-3 cups chopped, fresh tomatoes
-1/2 cup chopped green cabbage
-1 stalk celery, chopped
-1/4 cup chopped onion
-1 clove minced garlic
-1 small cucumber
-1 teaspoon lemon juice
-1 tablespoon chopped, fresh parsley
-1/2 teaspoon sea salt
-Red pepper, cayenne, or chili sauce to taste (start with 1/4 teaspoon)
Optional: 1 tablespoon sugar, or to taste

Directions:
Place all ingredients in a blender and turn blender to high speed (liquefy). If you need to add some liquid, add water a tablespoon at a time.

Green Vegetable Juice
This is a slightly sweeter juice that you can also freeze into popsicles.

Ingredients:
-2 large leaves of kale, chopped (middle stalk removed)
-1 cup fresh spinach leaves, chopped
-2 medium apples, chopped
-1/2 cup chopped broccoli
-unsweetened, natural apple juice

Place all ingredients in the blender except the apple juice. Add apple juice to cover the ingredients and blend on high speed until liquefied. Add stevia or raw honey if you prefer it sweeter. This juice is also good with a squeeze of lemon juice.