If you’re new to juicing, you’ll need a few easy options to get comfortable with.  Once you get your feet wet, then you can experiment a bit.

It’s only natural to focus on taste at first, but be careful!!   You don’t want too much fruit!  No more that 20-30% fruits – otherwise you’ll be getting too much concentrated sugar.  Keep the rest 70-80% veggies.

AND….always wash your fruits and veggies well before juicing!!

“CORE” RECIPES

First, lets look at a few “core” recipes that you can get started with.  These will have just a few ingredients and will give you an idea of how to mix and match different ingredients.

As a rule of thumb, always juice the harder veggies first.  This depends on the type of juicer you’re using – but mostly for centrifugal style juicers (like the Breville Juice Fountain) – it’s best to do the veggies first (hard to soft) and do the fruits last.  This also helps you stick to a routine that saves you time as you juice more often.

You should expect about 1 liter (32 Oz) from these recipes.

Carrot, Apple, Lemon

Using a carrot juice recipe as the base – and apple and lemon to sweeten – this is a perfect core recipe.  Later you can add more veggies –  especially greens! 

• 3-4 large carrots, or 8-10 small carrots
• 1 inch sized piece of GINGER (optional)
• 1 apple – chopped into 1/4 pieces (core, seeds and skin is OK)
• 1/2 large lemon, or 1 small lemon

Cucumber, Apple, Lemon

Instead of carrots we’re using cucumber juice – less sweet but more liquid than carrots…

• 1 large cucumber or 4-5 smaller cucumbers
• 1 inch sized piece of GINGER (optional)
• 1 apple (core, seeds and skin is OK)
• 1/2 large lemon, or 1 small lemon

The “Next Level” Recipes

From the core recipes we’re adding in more ingredients and even customizing them to our needs.

Carrot, Ginger, Celery, Spinach, Apple, Lemon

• 2-3 large carrots or 4-6 small carrots
• 3-4 stems of celery
• 1 inch sized piece of GINGER
• 2-3 bunches of spinach (be sure to “bunch it up” tightly as you put it through the juicer – this helps to get more juice from leafy greens)
• 1 apple (core, seeds and skin is OK)
• 1/2 large lemon, or 1 small lemon

Carrot, Ginger, Cabbage, Spinach, Apple, Lemon

• 2-3 large carrots or 4-6 small carrots
• 1 inch sized piece of GINGER
• 1/4 of head of cabbage – chopped into small chunks or shredded
• 2-3 bunches of spinach (be sure to “bunch it up” tightly as you put it through the juicer – this helps to get more juice from leafy greens)
• 1 apple (core, seeds and skin is OK)
• 1/2 large lemon, or 1 small lemon

Note: cabbage and ginger are especially good for the digestive tract and stomach – serve as a good recipe for acid reflux and digestion disorders.

Carrot, Ginger, Celery, Kale, Cilantro, Apple, Lemon

• 2-3 large BEETS or 4-6 small BEETS
• 1 inch sized piece of GINGER
•  3-4 stems of celery
• 2-3 bunches of KALE (“bunched” tightly as you put through the juicer – to get more juice from leafy greens)
• 1 large bunch of CILANTRO
• 1 apple (core, seeds and skin is OK)
• 1/2 large lemon, or 1 small lemon

Note:   Cilantro is excellent for detoxing – especially heavy metals!

Beet, Carrot, Ginger, Kale, Apple, Lemon

• 1-2 large BEETS or 2-3 small BEETS
• 1-2 large carrots or 2-3 small carrots
• 1 inch sized piece of GINGER
• 2-3 bunches of KALE (“bunched” tightly as you put through the juicer – to get more juice from leafy greens)
• 1 apple (core, seeds and skin is OK)
• 1/2 large lemon, or 1 small lemon

Note:  Beets are a dark red juice, be careful you don’t splash it on your clothes – wear an apron!

Beet, Ginger, Cucumber, Kale, Apple, Lemon

• 2-3 large BEETS or 4-6 small BEETS
• 1 inch sized piece of GINGER
• 1 large cucumber or 4-5 smaller cucumbers
• 2-3 bunches of KALE (“bunched” tightly as you put through the juicer – to get more juice from leafy greens).
• 1 large bunch of CILANTRO
• 1 apple (core, seeds and skin is OK)
• 1/2 large lemon, or 1 small lemon

General Notes:

• Kale, Swiss Chard, Spinach juice, (leafy greens) are pretty much interchangeable.  You can juice them all together – but to stretch out your supplies – one leafy green will do.
• Cucumbers produce a ton of juice, they can be the core to any recipe – replacing carrots.
• You can skip the apple and use only a lemon.
• You can always skip ALL FRUITS – just stay with veggies.
• Cabbage can be very bitter, depending on the season and especially towards the heart.
• Broccoli stems are great to juice – but tend to be a little bitter.
• Banana, Kiwi, Strawberry produce very little juice – not worth it!
• Watermelons are great to juice – even just the rind can go in!
• APPLE & LEMON together can mask just about any bitterness from veggies.
• Remember the ratio of of 70-80% veggies and no more than 20-30% fruits.

Don’t worry if you can’t do these recipes exactly.  Use them as a general guide and make to your liking!