6 special juice recipes

Special Juice Recipes

“When you think that you can press nearly 2kg of produce into one glass, you start to realise how much goodness you can add to your daily eating routine.” These juices and smoothie recipes go beyond helping you tick the five-a-day (plus) box, by being designed with specific health benefits in mind. 

Here are the six speical juices

• The mind-body cleanser
• The breakfast juice
• The detoxifier
• The Immunity-Booster
• The Post-Workout Reboot
• The Workday Reviver

1. The Mind-Body Cleanser

This fresh-tasting green juice is a DIY version of our best-selling cold-pressed juice and is my default juice-of-choice to keep me buzzing all day. For a formidable list of alkalising greens, the pear and basil give it a very balanced, easy-to-drink quality. Fill your tank up with this good stuff early in the day, and you are less likely to crave unhealthy foods and may even find you don't need a coffee to get going in the morning. My advice is always opt for organically grown ingredients. When you are pressing 1-2kg of produce into one glass, the pesticide levels in conventionally grown produce can be frightening. Buying organic ensures you are consuming less chemicals, but studies have shown that organic foods also deliver four times more antioxidants and nutrients compared to non-organic.”
Ingredients to blend:

½ head of lettuce
1 ½ pears (stalks removed)
1 cup spinach
1 cup kale
4 broccoli florets stems
½ cup of basil
1 cucumber

2. The Breakfast Juice

“Most of us skip breakfast, opting for a coffee instead, using lack of time or not feeling hungry as an excuse. While I don't think everyone needs to eat breakfast, you need good eating habits to remove breakfast from your routine – it’s no good skipping breakfast if you end up binging on sugar and carbs later in the day. I know that not everyone loves the idea of a green smoothies but they can be delicious and such a great way to curb sugar cravings and improve energy.”

Ingredients to blend:

• 1 apple, cored and quartered
• ½ avocado
• ½ cucumber, roughly chopped
• 1 handful of spinach
• Juice of 1 orange
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 tbsp protein powder (I use pea or hemp)
• 250ml coconut water

3. The Detoxifier

“The real benefits of juicing come from the vegetables, not the fruit so I always try to keep the amount of vegetables high. I encourage first time juicers to start with one apple in their green juices, and then cut that down week by week until they are only having green vegetable goodness in their glass. Beetroots are terrific for detoxing if summer is on your mind: add more ginger if you like it spicier, and more lemon if you like it tangy. And don’t get any of it on your clothes!”

Ingredients to blend:

• 1/2 lemon, peeled
• 1 medium apple, cored and cut into wedges
• 2 medium carrots
• 2 large beets, peeled and cut into wedges
• 1 inch fresh ginger
• 2 sticks celery

4. The Immunity-Booster

“This wheatgrass and pear smoothie is nature’s finest medicine. Wheatgrass has twice the amount of vitamin A as carrots and is higher in vitamin C than oranges! It contains the full spectrum of B vitamins, as well as a balanced ratio of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium and potassium. Wheatgrass is a complete source of protein, supplying all of the essential amino acids that are important components for the healthy function of the metabolism. Wheatgrass (which can be added to any smoothie, in fact) also helps reduce inflammation due to menstruation and improves the circulation of iron around the body therefore oxygenating the tissues of organs.”

Ingredients to blend with 400ml of water:

• 1 tbsp wheatgrass powder (can be found in health food shops. Organic Burst do convenient travel tubs perfect for juicing on the go)
• 1 medium pear
• 1 cup of wilted kale (wilt your kale by dousing it in boiling water before you start). Try switching the kale for rocket, watercress or spinach for a multitude of juice options.
• ½ cup of pineapple or ½ cup of frozen berries

5. The Post-Workout Reboot

“This will help you to keep burning fat and keep your metabolism going after you have finished a workout. The cucumber and apple are rehydrating, the spinach has lots of iron and B vitamins, making it good for energy levels, and turmeric is an anti-inflammatory, which should help combat any sore bits. Chilli is thermogenic so will assist your metabolism and the lime will help the alkalinity of your body. This juice is full of antioxidants too, which will help to mop up the free radicals created by all that hard work! Adding different powders to juices can help supercharge them in different ways: acai and baobab would be good for weight management, while wheatgrass or maca will heighten energy levels.”

Ingredients to blend:

• ¼ cucumber
• 1 handful of spinach
• ½ small red chilli (you may need to alter the amount of chilli you add yourself, as they can be very different in the heat stakes!)
• 1 apple
• 2cm piece of root turmeric
• ½ lime (skin and all)

6. The Workday Reviver

“This is 75 per cent green veg, just mildly sweet and has a nice kick of ginger and lemon. Beetroot juice is the emperor of all energisers, shown to increase stamina for athletes, boost brain power and even lower blood pressure (useful when working under pressure). Beetroot is a good source of absorbable iron for energy (especially important for women and non-red-meat eaters). Adding fresh tangy ginger root really revs up the taste buds, as well as adding an antibacterial zing to help keep bugs at bay. A few fresh mint leaves and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice all enhance its refreshing and reviving properties. Stirring in a spoonful of powdered spirulina will turn this energiser into a powerful plant protein shake, adding in calcium as well as stress-busting B-Complex vitamins, zinc and vitamin E.”

Ingredients to blend:

• 1 apple
• 2 carrots
• 3cm piece ginger root
• 1 beetroot
• 1 sprig fresh mint
• 1 slice lemon, to serve (optional)