Juicer Recipes Now

Acai juice benefits have been hyped up recently for having higher antioxidants and nutrition than other berries like blueberries, raspberry, red grapes and blackberry. The good news is, its not just hype, its science. Studies have shown that the overall antioxidant power of acai is higher than any other fruit or vegetable. Part of this antioxidant power is due to the dense concentrations of the phytochemical anthocyanin. Acai is clearly nutritious!

So what is in the acai berry juice?

Vitamins and minerals:
Acai berry juice is an good source of vitamins B1, B2, B3 and E. It is an excellent source of pro-vitamin A and also vitamin C, depending on the product you are buying. Dried acai can often contain very little vitamin C, depending on how it is dried. Freeze dried acai that has been treated with low heat is the best quality for powders. High quality 100% organic acai juice pulp, will usually contain a good amount of vitamin C, provided it is bottled within 24 hours of harvesting the acai berry.

Potassium is the mineral found with most abundance in acai followed by calcium. Other minerals include magnesium, zinc, iron and copper. The copper content is unusually high for a fruit.

Amino Acids:
Acai contains a variety of amino acids including Isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, valine, arginine, histidine, alanine, glycine, proline, serine, tyrosine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid.

Omega Fats:
Acai berry juice contains a surprising amount of fat for a fruit. Close to half the fruit’s content is fat, and mostly unsaturated. Healthy omega 3, 6 and 9 are present.

Anthocyanins:
A research study conducted in a Korean University in 2009 provided evidence that anthocyanins had inhibitory properties for the development of colon cancer. Other studies show anthocyanins to have antioxidant properties to protect cells from free radical damage. Furthermore, anthoyanins may help reduce the risk of heart disease. Fortunately acai berry juice is the fruit with the highest levels of anthocyanins by a long shot.

Acai and weight loss:
Personally I have not seen sufficient evidence that acai alone can help in weight loss. There are plenty of acai supplements on the net claiming acai can help you lose weight, but most seems sketchy at best. David Grotto, RD, author of 101 Foods That Could Save Your Life says “Acai is a nutrient-rich source of antioxidants, much like many other fruits, but there is nothing magical about the fruit to cause weight loss”. With weight loss being on so many people minds, it is no wonder people are trying to cash in on acai’s possible – but not entirely convincing- weight loss benefits.

One final note:
Be careful when looking for acai products. For instance, most of the acai berry juice on the market today contains a very low percentage of actual acai berry juice. I would recommend doing a little research before buying acai products to ensure you are getting the highest quality and quantity of this nutritious berry.

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In Health
Darren and Veronica

Health Benefits of Apples.
With all the hype these days about the health benefits of fruits like blueberries, goji berries, noni berries, etc – it is easy to forget about apples! They are still extremely good for you!

Apples are a great source of antioxidant vitamins A and C and also a good source of vitamin K. They contain a variety of minerals including calcium, potassium, magnesium and zinc. Furthermore, apples are a great source of antioxidant phytochemicals which fight free radicals. Phytochemicals have anti-cancer properties, help improve heart health, protect us from pollution and help to detoxify impurities from our cells. Phytochemicals in apples include quercetins, catechins, phloridzin and chlorogenic acid.

Juicing Apples
It is always best to get organic apples if you can to avoid the intake of pesticides and other chemicals. If not, then it is a good idea to peel them, loosing some valuable nutrition. Many phytochemicals are found in the apple skins and much nutrition is also found just below the skin.

For the following recipes – always wash the apples well and remove stem. Personally we prefer to not core the apples to obtain more nutrition, but it’s not to everyone’s taste. Either way it’s fine. Some of these recipes will contain other fruits.

Juicing Apple Recipes #1 – Red Apple Juice.
3 large apples
or 4 medium size apples
(use red apples of your choice)

Wash apples and take out stems. You can also core the apple if you like, but I like to put the whole apple in. Juice, enjoy!

Juicing Apple Recipes #2 – Green Apple Juice.
3 large apples
or 4 medium size apples
(use green apples of your choice)

Juicing Apple Recipes #3 – Apple and Carrot Budget Juice
1 apple
4 large carrots

Wash and top the carrots. Carrots and apples are fairly cheap produce.

Juicing Apple Recipes #4 – Cold Remedy
2 Apples
1 lemon
1″ slice of ginger

Use only the flesh of the lemon, the rind will taste bitter. This one is great for colds and supplies vitamin C. You can also heat this one up and add a little honey on those winter nights, mmmmm. In the summer, chill before drinking, or use ice cubes sparingly. So refreshing!

Juicing Apple Recipes #5 – Green Supreme
1 apple
1 cup of spinach
1 cup of kale
1 cup of parsley

Wash the greens thoroughly, juice and enjoy. Adding apple to your greens is a great way to sweeten up their bitter taste and still benefit from their goodness.

In Health
Darren and Veronica

Benefits of Juicing Oranges
Oranges have become synonymous with vitamin C and has taken the throne as the “morning juice”. You will see more variety of orange juices at the supermarket than any other type of fruit juice recipes. Though, I don’t think packaged orange juice tastes half as good as freshly made juice. Furthermore, fresh orange juice nutrition benefits beats packaged juice hands down.

Apart from its high vitamin C content, there’s other nutrients in oranges. It is a good source of folate and fair source of vitamin A. It is also a fair to good source of minerals such as potassium, calcium, phosphorous and magnesium. And that’s not all – oranges also contain powerful antioxidants called hesperidin and tangeritin. Both of these nutrients have been shown to have anti-cancer and heart health properties.

Juicing Oranges:
Remove the peel from the orange, but always try to leave as much of the white skin on the orange as possible. The peel will produce a very sour taste if juiced, but the white skin contains a lot of nutrition. The pith is also nutrient dense, so I would also recommend juicing that. Follow this advice for all the following recipes.

Orange Juicer Recipe #1 – Plain Ole’ Orange Juice
5 oranges

Follow above instructions, stick them in your juicer and bingo – fresh juice.

Orange Juicer Recipe #2 – Breakfast Buddies
3 large oranges
1 grapefruit – red or yellow is fine

Prepare the grapefruit for juicing exactly as you would the oranges.

Orange Juicer Recipe #3 – Citrus Mix with Kiwi
1 orange
1 grapefruit
2 kiwi

Peel the kiwis. Adding some cold sparkling mineral water to this is real nice on a hot day.

Orange Juicer Recipe #4 – Tropical Heaven
1 orange
1 cup of strawberries
1 cup of pineapple

Wash and top the strawberries. Only use the flesh of the pineapple.

Orange Juicer Recipe #5 – Citrus Mix
2 oranges
1 grapefruit
1 tangerine (or mandarin)
1/4 of a lemon

Prepare the grapefruit and tangerine as you would the oranges. Only use the flesh of the lemon. This one will make you stand up straight!

Orange Juicer Recipe #6 – Tropical Storm
1 orange
1 cup of pineapple
1 mango
1 small papaya
1 small guava

Only use the flesh of the pineapple. Peel and remove pit from mango. Peel papaya and the guava. Juice and give it a good stir. Add some ice if you want it nice and cold!

In Health
Darren and Veronica