Green juice and green smoothies are everywhere these days, and it's no wonder since they're such nutrient-dense beverages. So what better way to celebrate St. Patrick's Day than to drink your greens? If you've been wanting to join the green monster movement, try making your own: it tastes fresher, is less expensive, and can be made to your exact liking. Here are a handful of green juice and green smoothie recipes to get you started!
We simply cannot get enough of cold-pressed green juice! It's such a quick and tasty way to get in essential vitamins, phytochemicals, and antioxidants — perfect for those times when you're coming off an indulgent period like Oscar weekend. Since we can't carry our juicers with us everywhere, here are some of our favorite national brands of cold-pressed juice. Each offers a wide variety of green juice to suit your needs. Best of all, you can find these brands in major retailers or online, meaning you never have to go without your green-juice fix!
When I'm on the go or out of town, I turn to trusty Starbucks to pick up my favorite bottled green juice: Evolution Fresh Sweet Greens and Lemon Juice. With that bottle of the slightly sweet, definitely green, and perfectly smooth stuff, I always feel like I'm doing my body good when I invest in a $6 bottle. The back of the bottle showcases the fruits and vegetables used, and on a recent day, I thought, "Hmm, I'd like to try that recipe out at home."
Upon closer look at the ingredients list, I was a little disappointed by the actual amount each bottle provides. While there is a sufficient amount of celery, apple, and parsley, other ingredients have oddly minimal amounts: 1/8 of a cucumber, 2/5 leaf of romaine lettuce, and 5 leaves of spinach? As an avid juicer, I felt a little ripped off.
I tried to stay as true as I could to the amounts listed on the back but did make a few tweaks so each ingredient makes a significant presence in the juice. (My grocer doesn't carry fresh sprouts or wheatgrass, so I didn't include those in the recipe, but that's not to say you shouldn't add them.) I was worried that with so many ingredients, the juice would take a long time to make, but start to finish, it took 15 minutes to chop the vegetables and process them through my Omega Masticating Juicer. Interestingly enough, the juice yields at least twice the amount of juice you'll find in the bottle, if not more.
When I bought the ingredients, I was curious to know if it would be cost-effective, compared to the Evolution juice. When I broke the price down based on the recipe I developed, the total amount of organic ingredients was $5.14, so not much less than the Evolution bottle. For the recipe, and a side-by-side taste comparison, read more.
I start almost every morning with this nutrient-rich recipe for green detox juice, so why not end my week with a sauced-up version? Since tequila pairs nicely with other green goodness like cucumber, cilantro, and jalapeno, it seems the fitting spirit to mix with fresh-pressed kale and ginger juice. The kale gives the drink a clean and subtle vegetal taste, but the ginger and agave syrup balance it out with a sweet and spicy kick.
Ready to healthify your happy hour? Read on for the kale-ginger margarita recipe.
Adapted from The Wayland NYC Ingredients Ice Directions To make this cocktail, you'll need a juicer. If you don't have a juicer, pick up fresh kale and ginger juice at a natural foods market or juice bar. To make the kale-ginger juice, use a 3-inch piece of ginger to one kale bunch. Makes 1 drinkKale-Ginger Margarita
1.5 ounces 100-percent agave blanco tequila
1.5 ounces fresh-pressed kale-ginger juice
1 ounce fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon agave syrup
Candied ginger, for garnish
Whether you're starting out on a new healthy routine or always recovering after an indulgent weekend, detoxing by eating clean and nutritious foods will help you feel less bloated and more energized. It's not all about the food, however; what you drink will also help you feel your best. Here are three detox drinks you should add to your daily routine.
Green tea: Green tea is high in antioxidants, which can fight disease while also helping your liver. And not only that, drinking more green tea will help your body increase the production of detoxification properties.
Lemon water: Start your day with a cup of hot lemon water and it will aid the body in burning more fat. Drinking lemon water will also help your body detox and aid in digestion, so try drinking water and lemon when you first wake up.
A green juice: If you have a juicer, you should be making this green detox juice recipe, which includes ingredients with naturally detoxing properties, like watercress, spinach, lemon, and ginger. Make one every day for a quick, nutritious way to get all your daily greens.
When eating healthfully, a large focus may be on what not to drink: no sugary juices, sodas, or high-calorie cocktails. But many drinks can actually help you live a healthier lifestyle. We all know that drinking enough water is essential, but find out what other drinks should also be on your OK list below, and remember to enter our healthy living giveaway for a chance to win a $500 Under Armour gift card!
Coffee: The hot drink is the perfect accompaniment to a cold morning or a drowsy afternoon, but offering you a warm pick-me-up isn't its only advantage. Coffee has been proven to help improve memory, increase endurance, and ease muscle pain. The list doesn't stop there; read more about the health benefits of coffee here.
Watch for: The benefits of coffee don't always outweigh the risks, especially if you drink too much. Drinking too much java can cause you to become anxious or jittery, disrupt your sleep patterns, develop high blood pressure, or endure regular headaches. Stay attuned to caffeine's affect on your body and, in general, don't drink more than 300 milligrams a day (the average cup of coffee contains 100 milligrams of caffeine).
Red wine: All those studies about the health benefits of red wine makes me feel that much better about relaxing with a glass of Cab after work. Red wine contains a compound called resveratrol, which has been proven in studies to be beneficial to your health — everything from fighting cancer to antiaging, along with other disease-preventing benefits.
Watch for: The benefits of wine stop at one glass a day, so don't go overboard. You may be doing yourself more harm than good, especially since one glass of red wine usually runs around 127 calories. And while scientists have researched resveratrol in many lab studies, there have been few studies in humans — and let's not forget the recent news that a leading red wine researcher actually falsified data in dozens of studies on heart health and resveratrol.
Two more good-for-you drinks after the break!
The Ranch at Live Oak Malibu, a detox spa and fitness resort, created this sparkling green mocktail recipe. Melon and apple add a natural sweetness, celery and ginger add edge and spiciness, and sparkling water gives the beverage a little fizz. Whether you're looking to detox or to replace your 5 p.m. cocktail, here's a simply satisfying mocktail recipe to get you started.
Learn how to make this recipe after the break!
Going on a juice cleanse, or drinking nothing but pressed juices extracted from fruits and vegetables, has been all the rage lately. The idea sounds like a good one — combat the effects of a wild night out or a life of indulgent eating with a few days or weeks of "detox" to rid your body of lurking toxins. Backed by celebrities and celebrity doctors alike, it's no wonder that drinking your diet has been gaining popularity. But is following a juice cleanse safe? Read on to learn more.
What's the Appeal?
Many of juicing's benefits are more anecdotal than scientifically based, but proponents of juicing are enthusiastic about it. Many claim that juicing vegetables and fruits allows you to absorb the nutrients easier than eating them since less digestive work is needed. Proponents also claim that following a juice-only diet can help your body detox, which may lead to more energy, clearer skin, and fewer digestive and other health issues. With high-profile juicing fans like Nicole Richie, Salma Hayek, and Gwyneth Paltrow and filmed testimonials like Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead — a documentary about a man's 60-day all-juice diet and his subsequent healthy transformation — the popularity of going on an all-juice diet has only grown.
Does It Work?
The lack of peer-reviewed studies on the effects of juicing has led to conflicting information about whether it's a do or don't. Most scientists, however, agree that going on a juice fast is unnecessary for ridding your body of toxins. Our liver and kidneys are already effective at eliminating any unneeded waste, so following a liquid-based diet won't help any more than normal.
Find out more about going on a juice fast after the break.
Pork belly, short ribs, and chocolate are all expected to make an appearance at a food festival, but this time I was astounded to find another item added to the regular rotation of palate-pleasing foods: green juice.
These freshly pressed and bottled juices showed up everywhere at the weekend's events, from the grand tasting, where festivalgoers checked out the Blueprint Cleanse booth and the Cooler Cleanse table, to Carts in the Parc, where The Juice Press was passing out free juice samples.
Although the umbrella term "green juice" can refer to any mix of bitter green vegetables, many of these concoctions were a mishmash of kale, parsley, spinach, lemon, cucumber, and celery. And it's not just being targeted to health-conscious diners: the folks at Blueprint told me their cleanse was "targeted toward foodies" with its gourmet lineup of juices, salads, and raw dessert bars.
After days of eating everything but vegetables, I rode the green juice wave like everybody else. Do you think this trend will catch on near you?
After working out it's really important to eat because it fuels lost energy and repairs damage to torn muscle. After my workouts I usually snack on an apple, some yogurt, or a fruit smoothie from Naked Juice. Supermodel Gisele Bundchen knows the importance of a post-workout meal too. Just last week she was spotted sipping on a Jamba Juice smoothie after leaving the gym. While a lot of the offerings at Jamba Juice can be calorie bombs, the chain does offer many low-calorie smoothies that can also be made with the addition of soy protein or nonfat yogurt. And in a new twist, it just started offering low-calorie "make your own smoothie" mixes at grocery stores.
Each package makes two eight-ounce smoothies, totaling 120 calories each — all you have to do is add apple juice. Besides being low in calories, they're made with real fruit, nonfat yogurt, and an antioxidant booster, and contain no corn syrup. So far only the chain's three most popular flavors are being offered: Razzmatazz, Mango-a-Go-Go, and Strawberries Wild. I'm bummed because I haven't seen any at my grocery store yet, but when I do, I am definitely going to try it.
In the meantime I'm going to make smoothies from scratch, like this green smoothie, almond berry banana smoothie, or chocolate-espresso smoothie. Are you a smoothie-holic like I am? What's your fave?
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