Anyone juice?

[Disneymom83]

I have a juicer and going to start having my fruit and veggies that way. But buying fresh fruit and veggies is expensive. Especially if you follow the dirty dozen clean 15 for buying organic.

What does everyone else typically spend on their juice "meals"?

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

My husband loves his juicer. We buy big bags of organic carrots at Costco, which is pretty cost effective (if you like carrot juice, which I do not).

 

[Disneymom83]

Well I'm planning on mixing fruit and veggies. That way it taste more sweet

 

[LJSquishy]

Juicing is very expensive and there is no way around it. In my opinion, if you're going to juice you should be using organic produce which makes it even more expensive!

I guess you can try and come up with ratios that include more of less expensive organic produce (like carrots), and less of the spendy organic produce (like berries). Organic spinach or other organic greens (kale, for example) is actually really cheap at Costco if you have one and will bulk up your drinks.

It's so expensive because when eating the whole foods, you could maybe eat 1 carrot, 1 apple, and 1 cup spinach in one sitting -- but when you're juicing you're using maybe 10 carrots and 6 oranges for one beverage.

I'm not a juicer (would love to do a juice cleanse but can't afford it), but I do make green smoothies as a meal sometimes. I use plain greek yogurt to bulk it up and also use organic chia seeds...then I just add my greens, fruit, veggies.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Well I'm planning on mixing fruit and veggies. That way it taste more sweet

Carrot juice is pretty sweet.

Costco sells a number of different organic fruits and vegetables.

 

[trish.]

Juicing is very expensive and there is no way around it. In my opinion, if you're going to juice you should be using organic produce which makes it even more expensive!

I guess you can try and come up with ratios that include more of less expensive organic produce (like carrots), and less of the spendy organic produce (like berries). Organic spinach or other organic greens (kale, for example) is actually really cheap at Costco if you have one and will bulk up your drinks.

It's so expensive because when eating the whole foods, you could maybe eat 1 carrot, 1 apple, and 1 cup spinach in one sitting -- but when you're juicing you're using maybe 10 carrots and 6 oranges for one beverage.

I'm not a juicer (would love to do a juice cleanse but can't afford it), but I do make green smoothies as a meal sometimes. I use plain greek yogurt to bulk it up and also use organic chia seeds...then I just add my greens, fruit, veggies.

I have never used 10 carrots and 6 oranges for one drink. One meal for me might include 3 carrots, one apple, one cucumber and 2 celery stalks.

 

[Disneymom83]

Thank you everyone! I have a BJs membership so I'll check to see what their prices are like. The drink I made today had:

1lime
1 banana
1 pear
2 celery stalks
1 Apple
1/4 cucumber

It was pretty good too. Just added ice after I made it.

 

[pampam]

When I juice, I buy whatever is on sale. I don't follow recipes for juicing, except when I have a specific goal such as if I have a cold, or IBS or whatever. I use copious amounts of carrots and apples, but I buy whatever apples have the best price this week. Some of my concoctions look or taste weird but I juice for the benefits of it and can drink many glasses of fresh juice a day. It is truly one of the best things you can do for yourself, but this time of year it can be very expensive.

 

[jam217]

I absolutely agree that juicing is a great way to get your fruits and veggies. The one thing that I do to keep costs down is to buy fruit when it's on special and then freeze it. I realize that you can't do this for everything. I freeze blueberries, blackberries, kiwis, tomatoes and pears.

What I'll do is slice up the fruit then put it on a baking sheet and put it in the freezer. Once everything is frozen, I put the slices in freezer bags. The night before I'll load up my juicing cup and put it in the refrig. By the morning, everything has defrosted. To that mixture, I'll add whatever is fresh -- spinach, ginger, flax seed.

My local farmers market has a shelf where they move the ripe fruit. Many times I'm able to get a pound of pears for a $1. The other week I got 2 pomagrantes (sic) for a $1. I pulled out the seeds and froze them in jars. Those will last me for a while.

Sometimes I'll also add a spoonful of cottage cheese or greek yogurt to ramp up the protein.

I've found that the organic frozen berries are a better price than the fresh. At Wegmans I can get a 12 oz. bag of organic blueberries for $4.99.

To me, the benefits far outweigh the cost.

 

[Happyjen27]

It's incredibly expensive. Lately I've switched from juicing to smoothies to try and keep some fiber in the drink for me. I juiced and smoothied this weekend, and the volume difference when you keep all the fiber is pretty impactful, getting much more volume from my Ninja than my Juiceman.

I've given up trying to save any money on food. I have just admitted I like whole, organic food, and that is a luxury I'm willing to pay for, even if it means cutting back on other things, like buying used jeans instead of new (saved $160 on my last trip to the rescue mission. Found a pair of Joes and a pair of Luckys for 12 bucks, and the Joes were already hemmed professionally!)

I will still juice, but, right now I'm cheating on Juiceman with a Ninja.

 

[ariel71]

It is truly one of the best things you can do for yourself

Sorry, but I would disagree. I have a degree in Nutrition Science, and unless you are someone who would otherwise not eat fruits/vegetables at all, replacing real food with juice has its own hidden downfalls. It's one thing in moderation, but with juicing, more is not necessarily better.

 

[bearzabout]

I don't "juice", but I make smoothies with my Vitamix. I have figured out a way of saving big bucks. I buy Mountain House unsweeted plain yogurt in large containers at Costco for a few bucks. I also buy my fresh baby spinach there or at Sam's Club. They tend to have good prices and it seems to last longer than the packages in the grocery store. I also always have apples on hand and add one to each smoothie.

I freeze fruit myself in season. I have freezer bags full of strawberries, blackberries and raspberries (the best in smoothies) I picked myself last summer. I buy bananas, blueberries, apricots, peaches and grapes on sale for the cheapest prices in summer. I spread the washed and cut fruit pieces out on cookie sheets and quickly flash freeze them before putting them in Ziploc freezer bags. I freeze enough to last until the next growing season.

I use orange juice and tart cherry juice concentrate for the base and add some water.

Since the fruit is always available, there is no excuse for me not to make these healthy drinks year round. I'll have 3-4 per week. What a treat!

I also add Knox Nutrajoint powder with glucosamine and a little Now spirulina. These green smoothies look horrible but they sure do taste great.

 

[ptlohmysoul]

I have a juicer and going to start having my fruit and veggies that way. But buying fresh fruit and veggies is expensive. Especially if you follow the dirty dozen clean 15 for buying organic.

What does everyone else typically spend on their juice "meals"?

I juice with my Norwalk. Definitely only use organic produce when juicing or don't juice - you don't want concentrated poisons (like pesticides) do you? I only juice carrots and granny smith apples now (usually 3 carrots and 1 apple per 8 ounces). Another juice I used to do was a green juice with a granny smith apple and romaine, red leaf and/or green leaf lettuce, swiss chard, green pepper, and red cabbage (then it turned purple), depending on what was available at the time. You shouldn't eat all your veggies that way, and definitely not much fruit that way, unless you have no teeth or have other serious health issues. Or as another person said, unless you're not going to eat them another way like you should. Also, never drink with a straw as it bypasses your body's first step in digestion that is located in your saliva.

 

[pampam]

Sorry, but I would disagree. I have a degree in Nutrition Science, and unless you are someone who would otherwise not eat fruits/vegetables at all, replacing real food with juice has its own hidden downfalls. It's one thing in moderation, but with juicing, more is not necessarily better.

I respectfully understand your views, and I really don't want to debate this or even go off topic.

A few years ago, I cut the end of my finger off. I nicked the bone of the first knuckle, cutting it off diagonal. I was heavy into juicing at the time, so my digestive system was clean and working well. I had friends who washed and cut my fruits and veggies for me, so I could just drop them in the juicer when I wanted some juice, and like I said, I was drinking copious glasses of juice daily, along with eating a lot of fruit, veggies, nuts, protein, really a good, well balanced diet. To make a long story short, my finger grew back. There is not even a scar, even though the wound got infected a few times. If you look at my finger under a high magnifing glass you will see the finger print was not even damaged. That being said, I am missing part of the cuticle on that finger, and compared to the other hand, that finger is thinner, but noticable only if the 2 are scrutinized together. I firmly believe it is because my body was fed the materials that enabled it to build, repair and heal itself.

 

[The Princess]

I have a juicer and just purchased a vitamix I love them both!!!

 

[LilyWDW]

Sorry, but I would disagree. I have a degree in Nutrition Science, and unless you are someone who would otherwise not eat fruits/vegetables at all, replacing real food with juice has its own hidden downfalls. It's one thing in moderation, but with juicing, more is not necessarily better.

I agree 100% with you. Yes, you get the micronutrients in the juice, but you are also getting rid of a lot of fiber. Also, if you juice in place of meals, then you are not getting enough protein or fats. Juicing is not in any way better or healthier then eating the whole fruit or vegetable or even eating in moderation in general.

Using juice to supplement a diet? This can help.

Using juice to replace meals? Not a good idea at all.

 

[manning]

You should read this. The importance of fiber.

http://www.livestrong.com/article/250289-why-is-fiber-important-in-your-daily-diet/

 

[mistysue]

A few years ago, I cut the end of my finger off. I nicked the bone of the first knuckle, cutting it off diagonal. I was heavy into juicing at the time, so my digestive system was clean and working well. I had friends who washed and cut my fruits and veggies for me, so I could just drop them in the juicer when I wanted some juice, and like I said, I was drinking copious glasses of juice daily, along with eating a lot of fruit, veggies, nuts, protein, really a good, well balanced diet.

I think that was the point, that completely being 100% only juice is not ideal. By mentioning the rest of your diet, you seem to be actually agreeing with the others saying not juice only, you are just saying it in a different way.

 

[OceanAnnie]

I'm glad to see this thread.

I have been thinking about juicing just to supplement. I do believe in getting the right amount of fats and protein along with everything else. If I don't get enough protein I turn into a hungry bear coming out of hibernation!

I don't eat enough fruits and veggies. This would be a good way for me to get them in, maybe.

I was wondering about frozen fruit and veggies. I was glad to see a pp mention using frozen fruit and defrosting prior to juicing. I was thinking about maybe steaming some veggies and tossing them in because I don't have a juicer and I don't want to shred my blender. Would steaming the veggies work? Do you throw nuts or peanut butter into your juice?

Also, what juicers do you recommend? There are so many out there to choose from and the best rated are hundreds of dollars. I don't think I've seen any 5 star ratings on juicers. I may start by getting a better blender and seeing how it goes from there.

 

[The Princess]

The vitamix doesn't get rid of the fiber that is why I got it.