I had such an overall positive experience with my Arden’s Garden cleanse/detox that I’ve decided to try to do a weekly, one-day juice fast. I’ve been making green smoothies (in a blender) and green juices (in a juicer), and so I’ve got enough variety in recipes to have some good and healthful drinks for an entire day.
I’m doing this for several reasons – health, detoxifying the system, the challenge of not eating whole foods, and the commitment to raw foods that I use when coming out of a cleanse/fast. It’s a reset and a preset, all in one!
Here’s what’s on the menu for today (and you can find additional recipes here):
Morning Green Glory Juice
This juice is packed with healthy ingredients and is how I started the day – very refreshing and satisfying.
- 4 – 5 large kale leaves
- 1 large handful of spinach
- 3 romaine leaves
- 1 cucumber
- 3 celery stalks
- 1 green apple
- 1 lemon, peeled (You can leave the peel on but it will taste very bitter)
Put all items into the juicer. Makes about 16 ounces. I know it’s very green in color, but it doesn’t taste grassy at all – at least not to me. I get strong flavors of celery and cucumber, with the slight tang of the lemon. Yum!
My version of The Hari Shake
This is becoming a staple in my routine – I have it about 5 days per week and today I’ll have the full batch – which is around 40 ounces.
I found that I needed a smoother texture, so I add twice as much water as the original recipe. Parsley and cilantro goes bad before I can finish the bunch – even if I use it in cooking – so until spring gets here and I can add it to my garden, I prefer to use the fresh mint that’s growing right outside my door!
- 4 cups Kale
- 4 stalks celery, chopped
- 4 sprigs of fresh mint (I use it right out of my garden!)
- 1 pear, chopped
- 1 apple, chopped
- Juice from 1 lemon
- 16 ounces filtered water
Blend ingredients, starting with kale and water then adding each additional ingredient one at a time.
Carrot and Ginger Juice
The link takes you to “30 days of juicing” which has a variety of recipes – no chance of getting bored! Ginger is not my favorite, but I feel that it will grow on me if I try to use it in my diet more frequently. It just has so many health benefits – it’s even great for easing stomach pains, nausea and cramps.
- 1 green apple
- 3 handfuls spinach
- 6 to 8 kale leaves
- 4 large carrots
- 1 (thumb-size) piece of ginger
This juice tastes just like fresh ginger – you don’t taste the kale, spinach or the carrots much at all. And don’t let the swampy color fool you – it’s very fresh and invigorating – I’ll be having this in the afternoon today.
Since I’m fasting, I’ll be eating raw foods for at least two meals tomorrow to come out of the fast in the best and healthiest way.
I have many more recipes on my blog, take a look!
If you need more information about juicing, check out my posts on Juice Fasting 101: What Is It? and Juice Fasting 101: Getting Started.
So, are you inspired to try green juice yet?