Until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace.
—Albert Schweitzer, French philosopher, physician, and musician (Nobel 1952)

Friday, September 6, 2013

Juicin'

No, that is not a green beer I am enjoying for my morning snack today...

It is, in fact, green juice--one of my favorite healthy drinks and now a staple in our household. This concoction brings instant energy to your body that rivals the espresso drinks of Starbucks. The good thing about this drink, however, is it is filled with absorbable nutrients and doesn't give you the caffeine/sugar crash that happens when the effects of an espresso wear off.

There are lots of different combinations of fruits and veggies that you can put together to get a great tasting juice but we tend to stick with a base that works for us, randomly adding small amounts of other produce to get the nutrition without losing the taste we like so much. Today's juice included the following ingredients:


  • 2 cucumbers
  • 4 small celery stalks
  • 1 bunch romaine hearts
  • 1 green apple
  • 1 small bunch kale
  • 1 orange
We love this combination and I feel great drinking it. The advantage of having a juice over a smoothie (although a smoothie is great nutritionally in its own right!) is that the juice can be instantly absorbed. There is no fiber for your body to have to break down. Therefore, all the goodness of those ingredients go right to work in your body, making you healthier and stronger than you were before! 

I also like to throw in a small bowl of raw nuts with my snack for added protein and healthy fats. Today that nut mix included cashews, almonds, sunflower and pumpkin seeds. We choose raw nuts because the nutrients in the raw versions of these are more preserved than when they are roasted. In addition to the protein and fat in nuts, this combination serves as a terrific source of vitamin E, manganese, and may even have anti-microbial and cancer fighting effects. 

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