Springtime is the best time to start detoxing and as you begin to be more active during the sunny season, an easy way to stay hydrated and incorporate vital minerals and vitamins is by drinking green juice! Green juice is a longtime trend that we are 100% behind. If It’s not obvious from the term, green juice is made from green vegetables, fruits, or herbs. Many nutritionists, health fanatics, and influencers commonly hype up this drink as part of their morning routines.
In this blog post we will cover some of the basic health benefits of drinking green juice, and how-to get started incorporating it into your diet. We also have three must-try green juice recipes that you will absolutely love to have in your back pocket. Keep reading or scroll to the bottom to give it a try for yourself.
Benefits of Green Juice
Some of the main benefits of green juice have to do with the excellent source of vitamins found in green veggies, fruits, and herbs alike. If you are the type of person that does not like to eat your greens, drinking them might be the perfect way to obtain all the necessary vitamins and minerals your body needs. Especially for children or young adults, this can be a fun and creative way to sneak greens into your body.
According to a study published by the National Institute of Health, consumption of leafy greens can slow down cognitive decline that occurs naturally as we age. This is because most leafy greens have lutein, folate, and B vitamins that promote the health of our cognitive system.
Healthline also published a detailed article about this topic, and gave us a break down of some additional benefits of green juice. They outlined, reduced inflammation, growth of healthy gut bacteria, reduced constipation, improved immune function and weight maintenance, as other improvements that come from drinking green juice. I don’t know about you, but green juice is sounding pretty appetizing.
Of course, just like anything in life, we can’t ignore some of the downfalls that may come from drinking green as opposed to eating them. Lindsay Boyers, a Certified Holistic Nutrition Consultant, brought to light in an article published in Mbgfood, that drinking green juice while fasting can increase oxalated in the body which ends up stressing the liver. Instead, one of the most recommend things to do when incorporating green juice into a diet is to sip on it while you eat a meal filled with fiber.
If you’ve never had green juice before, and you want to start incorporating it into your routine, we recommended spacing it out during the week and allowing your body to adjust to the new nutrients you are feeding it. A well-balanced meal will always be more beneficial than going all in with one thing.
How To Make Green Juice
So, let’s get you started on this new green juice journey! Making green juice is an easy process and you only need one technology, a blender, or a juicer. A juicer is always going to be the most ideal option because it automatically extracts the fiber from any vegetable or fruit, but a blender can also be an option.
The major difference in using a blender is that you have the option of drinking your juice with the fiber mixed in, or you can strain the fiber so that the consistency is more of a liquid. A benefit of making green juice with a blender is that you can mix in herbs and leafy greens like spinach, kale, or cilantro, that you otherwise would not be able to process in a juicer.
What you would do in the blender scenario, is take all your green ingredients, blend them with water, and then strain the juice through a super fine strainer or a fine cloth.
Here are some top picks for strainers, and blenders that we found on amazon that will make your life easy when making some green juice.
Strainers:
- Simple Ecology reusable strainer , $10.95
Made with Organic cotton, this strainer can be used for a variety of purposes, and one of our favorite perks is that it is reusable and ethically made! You get three different sizes with your purchase. Talk about a deal.
- Ultra-fine Mesh Strainer Bags, $10.98-$14.99
This mesh strainer is reusable and can also be used for a variety of purposes. This is also made from 100% Natural cotton cloth, so you can rest assured that your juice will be filtered through safe materials.
Blenders/ Juicers
- Ninja Auto IQ Blender, $79.95
As we mentioned in our previous post about beet smoothie, this is our go-to blender for smoothie and juices. The Blender has advanced technology that pulse through the fruits depending on the texture. It leaves any fruit of veggie super fine and really extracts the juice from each ingredient.
- Dash Deluxe Compact Juicer, $99.99
This Juicer is among consumers! It is on the more affordable side of juicers, which makes it a perfect choice for someone that may be giving juicing a try for the first time. Some key features make this juicer compact, and easy to use!
Out must try Green Juice Recipes
Now that you have everything you need to get started juicing, the knowledge, and the tools, we have some top green juice recipes to get you started!
- Truly Green
Ingredients:
- 4 Celery stalks
- 1 Green apple
- 1 Green pepper
- 1 Cucumber
With this recipe we recommend you using a juicer so that you can get all the juice out of the fruits, and it will feel a lot lighter on your stomach, especially since these are all loaded with fibers. Usually, you should expect to have about two serving worth of juice. Save some for later or share with a friend!
2.Tropical Taste
Ingredients
- 1 Cucumber
- 4 stalks of Celery
- 1 cup of Spinach
- 1 cup of sliced Pineapple
- 2 cups of water
For this blend you’ll need to use a blender instead of a juice extractor. The leafy and the pineapple make it hard to extract the juice, so it’s best to keep their small amounts of fiber in your juice (or strain it though the strainer). The pineapple will add a great balance to the neutral taste of the cucumber and celery!
*This is a top pick*
3. Green Meadow
Ingredients
- Cucumber
- Celery
- Kale
- Cilantro
- Banana
- Spinach
This green juice blend is truly like a meadow. It is the recipe with the most leafy greens and might be the one with the most diverse amount of vitamins. The combination of spinach and kale alone makes this a powerhouse since they both contain B6 and iron. The banana will give it a nice, sweet taste, and will add a nice smoothie texture. You will also want to use a blender for the juice, since it is more of a smoothie.
Did you try one of our recipes? Have you had green juice before?
We would love to hear your thoughts on green juice, if you’ve tried it before or if you’re interested in adding it to your morning routine. Leave us a comment below and let us know what you think.
