Juicing Art

Carrots offer mom some great health benefits as well as keep babies from experiencing colic. Just make some organic carrot juice fresh and mix with equal parts boiled filtered water. (about 1 oz total can be fed to baby). When nursing moms drink carrot juice, it also apparently helps to develop babies palate and develop a taste for our 2nd favorite vegetable in the USA.  Carrots as everyone knows, helps with eyesight as they are rich in Vitamin A. Here are some other carrot tidbits: Easy to grow, prevent cancer and heart disease, reduce stroke risk, nourish skin, beta carotene helps with anti aging, and lastly your dental health is improved due to their natural abrasive nature. So go out and pick up a 5lb bag today (or better yet pick them from your own garden). Note: I always peel my carrots, as I've found that it removes much of the bitterness. Additionally, I chop off the tips and about 1" below the top.  

This mix had 13 peeled carrots, 2 rings of a red onion, 1/3 bunch of parsley, 3 celery stalks (I peel the outside of each), 1 tomato, 1 peeled lemon, and a whole peeled cucumber. It tastes delicious and should be made often to keep you and your family/friends healthy.  Note: No babies were harmed in this juicing art production - though my newborn son did get the indirect health benefits of having mom drink a tall glass of the orange goodness!

Guacamole is a great tasty treat anytime of the day. I know it is not 'juice'. But being that avocado is technically a fruit, figured that I mine as well share the recipe which gives so much joy (and health benefits).  Most avacado are harvested from Mexico near the equator, so they are in season the entire year.

Roll a lime to get it softer, cut in half and squeeze into a sturdy wide bowl, scoop out two avocado (I choose ones that still have a medium amount of greenish hue, but are also a little brownish) too green or too brown dominant is not optimal. Add in a pinch of cumin and cayenne to taste - then a bit of sea salt (I use the grinder pictured). Mash it up a bit with a potato masher (or other tool) in the bowl, but not so much that it is mush. Add in finely diced clove of garlic and a 1/4 of a small sweet onion and a half of a tomato diced. Lastly, add in a good amount of sliced fresh cilantro. Fold it a couple of times and either eat right away with some tortilla chips, or store in the fridge.

Note: When storing Guacamole, use plastic wrap and press it flush with the top of the guac in the bowl, otherwise it will turn brown on top and not be as delicious looking.

Avocado has numerous health benefits including: anti cancer, anti inflammatory, cholesterol reducing, blood pressure regulating, eyesight bettering, and even prevent birth defects.

Important note: Never put an avocado into a Jack La Lanne juicer, it will clog up the machine and create a mess. If you are making a large qty of guacamole, using the juicer for the limes might be advisable.

1/2 bag Cranberries, 1/3 bunch kale, 3 apples, 8 carrots, 2 kiwi, 8 strawberry, 3 stalks celery, 4 tomato, squeeze of lemon. 

Try this combo, you will like the taste complexity and the health buzz it generates. The cranberry tartness, celery saltiness, tomato acidity, and the sweet carrots/ fruits mix together delightfully.  

Kiwi has some surprising health benefits: Asthma, and DNA mutation coughing prevention. They possess a healthy amount of vitamins and antioxidants. Kiwi also have lots of fiber which helps to prevent colon cancer. 

This "bug" juice is made up of roma tomato, pears, carrot, green pepper, and a squeeze of lemon. Pears are great for nursing moms because they have lots of folate. If osteoporosis runs in your family, pears can help. They have boron, which can help your body to retain calcium. Hydroxycinnamic acid (say it 3x fast) is also in pears which is suppose to prevent stomach/lung cancer. Many people are allergic to certain fruits, but not pears, they are actually a hypo-allergenic fruit! Pears are good for your peepers too by reducing macular degeneration. I peel my pears, but if you don’t - the skin adds some anti Alzheimer's disease agents called Quercetin. So grab yourself two pairs of pears a paring knife & pulverize it into some pretty palatable juice post-haste!

This combo goes to show you that throwing in all the fruit & veggies from your fridge (in the right proportion) can turn out well. Celery, cucumber, carrot, green pepper, garden pepper, strawberry, orange, apple were all the produce we had. They pack a power disease fighting potion that help to keep your body running like a well oiled machine. Cucumber (4th most widely cultivated veggie in the world) is great for anti inflammatory purposes and Bell peppers are chock full of Vitamin A & C w/ a whopping 105% & 291% respectively per serving.  

Pick your own apples! There is an instinctual need to pick apples this time of year, no? Make lots of juice in your juicer with them, make pies, dip them in honey or peanut butter. Just get out there and support your local orchards. We picked some really excellent apples at Tabora Orchard in Bucks County PA the other day. I like how they let the trees grow a little higher so you can climb a bit and reach for those beautiful Red Delicious ones at the top! Neighboring Peace Valley Winery has apples that grow on more bushy type apple trees so the kids can reach for them a bit easier, the yellow ones there seem to be good for pies and such. Real apple juice looks different than store bought but it still tastes phenomenal. For an orchard near you, goto http://www.pickyourown.org Don't forget to bring your own re-usable bags too!

Apple juice has a lot of natural sugar, but it is very heavy on Vitamin C and anti-oxidents. Mix it with some veggies to tone down the sweetness or drink it straight for a great refreshing treat. I remove the stems with a small pair of pliers, cut them in half, and toss them into the juicer unpeeled. For a slightly less bitter taste, peel the skin prior, but you will lose some nutrients. I added some baby carrots and celery to sneak in some veggies.

V8 juice is not bad - but I think that you will find this combo to taste better and deliver a very similar vitamin packed punch.

The tomato and apples are from the bruised fruit rack at the market - only a few minor blemishes. The strawberries give a wonderfully sweet aftertaste. Try to keep fruits to 20-30% of the content, too much higher and you may be on a fruit sugar buzz then crash.

When juicing tomato, always go for the ripe to over-ripe ones, they are a bit sweeter. Wash the celery really well. Lots of critters and dirt like to loiter inside the stalks. I don’t juice the celery leaves, but I suppose you can if you wish.

Choosing your home is tricky, but I encourage you to add one more variable into the mix… a friendly neighbor with a sweet garden.

Take a look at these organic tomatoes that the neighbor is growing. There are so many that they can't possibly eat them all. They encourage us to 'help them out with preventing veggie rot'  so it's tomato, basil, peas, peppers,  and more galore. Make them a cake or some cookies once in a while to keep things right.  Better yet, make them some juice from their own veggies! This plum tomato was so perfect that I couldn't bring myself to juice the poor fella. Salt, pepper, basil, and olive oil make the perfect summer snack. (rip the basil with your hand, cutting it makes it dark and mushy) 

Huge tomato eating benefit is its' Lycopene content. It's is a vital anti-oxidant that helps in the fight against cancerous cell formation as well as other kinds of health complications and diseases.

A few years ago I stopped using toothpaste. The reasons? I did not want to expose my teeth/body to as much fluoride, also it also would sometimes dry out my mouth causing bad breath. I began using Gum Joy Oil and a few other lesser known dental hygiene tools at home. The Gum Joy Oil has many essential oils including Neem which has been used for a very long time in India to treat a variety of ailments both viral and bacterial. It is very popular in Ayurvedic and Unani for treating a wide variety of afflictions - and happens to clean the teeth in excellent fashion.

Flossing has always been the bane of dental hygiene, its time consuming, can hurt your fingers, messy and all in all not fun. Therefore I resort to using the Plackers brand flossers. they are very strong yet thin and flexible. The handles are ergonomic unike cheaper brands. I like the sideways coping saw angle, as it allows you to get into all the tough nooks and crannies of your mouth.

First I rinse off the tooth brush with hot water to get the bristles warm and pliable. Then I place the tooth brush on the ledge bristles up. Next I take the Plackers brand flosser and apply 1 drop of Gum joy to the thread - directly over the tooth brush bristles. (This prevents oil droplets from landing in the sink and essentially wasting your money.)

Once flossing is complete, time to brush those choppers. You can of course use an electric tooth brush or alternate with a manual tooth brush, but regardless. Use a soft bristle compact head. Ensure that you spend about 2-4 minutes brushing then wash mouth out with some warm water. (I use a double canister carbon charcoal filter attached to the bathroom faucet to avoid chemical nasties from the city supply, also can drink/cook with the filtered water when I run out of spring water .)

Next I break out the tongue cleaner - my brand of choice is actually the disposable Oolit paper versions. I've used other versions and they are just not as comfy or effective. I find that tongue cleaning gives you much confidence when having a close conversation. Having a white tongue is not attractive, smells, off gasses bad breath, and dulls your taste buds immensely.

Wash the tongue cleaner before and after use with hot water - pat dry with a towel if you like. Allow your dental tools to open air dry. Keeping them closed up will cause an undesirable bacteria breeding ground.

Finally, I break out the secret weapon to fight cavities. The GUM Stimulator. The soft rubber tip is pointy, yet soft. It allows you to get in between the gum line and the teeth to remove even more food matter. Just allow the rubber tip to barely go under the gum and watch all of the debris it collects. The most staggering accumulation of debris occurs on when using this tool on the inside of your back molars. The amount of debris that brushing and flossing leaves behind is staggering. Rinse off the yuckies onto a washcloth and rinse thoroughly when done.

If you want to brush quickly one more time it won't hurt - especially if you ate sweets that day.

Following this nightly tooth cleaning regiment will make your teeth healthier and your dental hygiene cleanings will be a snap. Bedtime is when the bacterial mouth wars occur, so good hygiene practices then are paramount.

Note: In the morning I just give the teeth a quick brush and a tongue scrape - if I can sneak in a brushing/flossing after lunch it is not a bad thing either.  Keep a few Plackers in your car or purse so you have them at the ready. I also alternate using the Braun electric tooth brush and the Colgate manual version to keep the plaque guessing :) 

Having a cold is no fun - but you mine as well make some juice since you're going to be couped up in the house all day. This combination of vegetables is vitamin and mineral packed to help your immune system defeat the cold at hand. Celery gives your body vital salts, Cucumber helps to relieve inflammation in the throat, Lemon gives you a great dose of Vitamin C, Garlic helps to cleanse your blood, Tomato makes the whole mixture palatable. Enjoy and hope you get better soon!