In Part 1 I discussed pros and cons of different types of juicers. Now that I have mine, what am I doing with it?

Actually, the first thing I did was break it! My Omega arrived without a “pusher” (designed to safely push items through the somewhat narrow feed chute). The dealer immediately mailed me one, but I was impatient to start. I substituted using a plastic chopstick to push down the vegetables – but pushed too far. The result: pieces of the stick going through the auger before I could shut it off shattered the juice strainer (pictures here).

But now that I have all the necessary parts, here’s what I’m juicing:

Green juice

• Organic kale
• Organic cucumber
• Organic celery
• 1″ piece of ginger (peeled)
• half a lemon (peeled with white inner layer left on)
• Organic apple or pear (unpeeled, but seeds removed)

Orange juice

• Organic carrots
• Organic golden beet (peeled – less messy than red beets!)
• Organic celery
• 1″ piece of ginger (peeled)
• half a lemon (peeled with white inner layer left on)
• Organic apple or pear (unpeeled, but seeds removed)

Google “juice recipes” for tons of free recipes and ideas – this site has a large collection.

Tips:

– Check the Dirty Dozen+ list to learn which items you should buy organic and which you don’t need to worry about as much. If you do buy some on the list that are not organic peel them before juicing.

– You can juice pretty much anything, but if you are doing leafy greens (kale, spinach, chard, lettuce, etc) alternate them in the juicer with non-leafy items like cucumber, celery, carrots, etc. to help the leafy parts go through better.

– Don’t juice lemon rinds – they are bitter!

Storage

– If you are using a centrifugal juicer it adds a lot of air to the juice, so you will want to drink it ASAP before it oxidizes and turns bad.

– If you are using a masticating/cold press juicer you can store the juice up to 72 hours in a covered container that is full to the very top (to eliminate air). Add some water if necessary to fill it. Canning jars are useful for this, are inexpensive and come in several sizes.

– It is possible to freeze the juice for later, but don’t wait too long. If you have a bit left over, use it to make juice ice cubes which you can use to fill up your storage jar to the top.

– I’m making juice at night and taking it to work in the morning in a couple of these Oxo Good Grips Twist Top containers, which seal tightly and have a built-in straw: 

What About All that Pulp?!

When you juice you will have lots of leftover pulp! Since it contains all of the fiber from the vegetables it’s helpful to find some ways to ingest it (though you will have lots for composting no matter what). Some ideas:

– Add some to pasta sauce or mac & cheese or soups/stews.

– Use some in place of shredded zucchini or carrots in a muffin or quick bread recipe. I’ve been using this recipe, substituting unsweetened applesauce for the coconut oil (I found the oil was too “oily”) and 1 cup almond meal plus 1/2 cup flax meal for the flour.

– Use in making veggie burgers.

– Here’s a blog with more ideas

.If you have any questions, leave a comment – happy juicing!