Before having children, my husband and I were juicers. We enjoyed juicing our fresh vegetables and fruits each morning (and occasionally throughout the day when we were home on the weekends). The fruit and vegetable prep, juicing, and clean up was well worth the time spent together. We enjoyed the health benefits of juicing as well.
Then we had kids.
Kids who turned their nose at our healthy yummy juice concoction.
Kids made messes of their own.
Mommy had to clean up their mess… and HER mess.
Juicing took a back seat for a while.
As a mom, I want to encourage and promote healthy eating to my children. Juicing gives the boys loads of great nutrients in one cup. However, sometimes their nose turns up at the interesting shade of color Mommy serves them. Sigh.
From watching all these food documentaries, I am learning that we are essentially what we eat. La Rochefoucauld said, “To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art.” I am no food connoisseur and have shared my struggles with food and proper nutrition. I am learning that I need to feed my body what it needs and craves, which is real food… not junk. I need to eat intelligently… not mindlessly.
I love eating fresh (raw) fruits and veggies. I love to juice fresh vegetables and fruit. However, I do not love cleaning up my juicer after enjoying the freshly juiced vegetable/fruit concoction. I have a standard juicer (now 10 years old) and do not own a Vitamix or specialty blender. The final product is fantastic, however, the clean up is very time consuming.
My juicer has many attachments to take apart, rinse, and wash. Then there is the left over vegetable and fruit pulp. I do not have a garden (at our new house), and I don’t have any yummy meals planned for tomorrow… so I had to toss this nutrient dense pulp. Next time I will plan ahead and make muffins or meatloaf filled with veggies.
I will be getting three wisdom teeth extracted next week. Which is the reason for the big push on liquid nutrition and experimenting in the kitchen again. If the tooth fairy sees this post and wants to bless this mama… she would so love a Vitamix Blender. No biggie. No rush. Just saying. It could help make my poor sore jaw and mouth happy with all the happy creations I could create with my new machine.
Rob says
I can’t say that I have ever juicing but would try if someone who knew how to do it right did it for me because I know I have no clue and if I did it wouldn’t taste very well. LOL.
April Golightly says
I have been dying to try juicing! My roommate in college had one, but I have not used one since. After reading all the information about pasteurized juice, it makes me want to get one.
Rachel says
Awesome! If you do end up getting one, let me know how it goes 🙂
Madeline @ Food Fitness and Family says
I juice using my food processor but am getting a Beville next month! LOVE juice 😉
Rachel says
Oh nice! I never thought of using my food processor as a juicer. Perhaps I can use my extra pulp in the food processor next time… but that would mean even MORE extra gadgets for clean up! 🙂
Cat Davis says
I’ve never tried a drink with a veggies mixed in, unless you count a V8 but those are kinda salty. I could definitely get into making my own breakfast drinks like that if I could control the flavors and ingredients.
Rachel says
Yes, I agree about the saltiness of V8 drinks. The great thing about juicing your own drinks is there is no added salt or ‘junk’ … just pure fruit and veggies. 🙂
Tiff @ Babes and Kids says
I don’t have a juicer, but I’ve heard amazing things about the Vitamix and Blendtec. I don’t know if I would own one if there were a ton of different attachments, but I think the health benefits are great. Good luck with your wisdom teeth next week!
Rachel says
Thanks! I am sure I will keep everyone posted on how things are going with my teeth (or lack there of) 😉
Kelly @ A Girl Worth Saving says
I have a Blendtec and it makes whole juices. I do like that the fiber is in the drink as I have had issues with drinking straight juice since it’s so sweet. I hope you get a vitamix!
Rachel says
Thanks. I haven’t heard of a Blendtec… I will have to check that out. 🙂
Sarah says
I would love to juice too, but the clean up stops me. I do use my Magic Bullet each morning for a smoothie! lol My kids run from smoothies/juice too, but I really need to get them into it.
Rachel says
Yes. I have a cheaper version of the Magic Bullet that I use for smoothies. My boys love smoothies (if they are filled with sweet yogurt/fruit).
I love juicing… it is the clean up that is the hardest part! 🙂
Lynda S says
Wish you well on your extraction (teeth, that is). My cousin started juicing towards the end of last year and loves it. I know it is something that I ought to look into myself, but…. When you come up with some good recipes for juicing, please post! I just might have to give it a try.
Rachel says
Thanks! I will have to tinker around a bit and actually measure what I toss in there before I share on here 😉
trisha (mom blogger) says
Honestly, I think that would freak me out. I have to hand it to you!
trisha
Rich Donahue says
Hi Rachel,
Yeah I would think having something like teeth pulled would be an excellent reason to get the juicer out. I’ve been juicing pretty regularly for a couple of years or more. I find that sometimes it’s difficult to get it out and start, but once I do the energy is back and it really does our bodies good. I’m sure your kids will come around at some point and enjoy juicing too. Thanks and happy juicing!
erin says
We don’t juice – I don’t have a juicer. But it does sound like a great way to start the morning. I am more of a protein shake kinda gal for the mornings. That’s what gets me going!
Kelly @ Texas Type A Mom says
After watching a ton of documentaries on how great juicing is, I’ve been wanting a juicer in the worst way. I’ve done fruit and veggie smoothies in the blender but the consistency is still off.
Denise Jones says
I’ve been juicing for over two years now and it’s totally transformed my life. I used to be fat, sick and nearly dead just like juicer Joe Cross but now i’m in my ideal weight range, exercise daily and have never felt better. Juicing even enabled me to get off prescription meds.
Juicing is something I really enjoy and I can’t wait to juice in the morning. I plan out my week’s juices and that makes it a lot easier. I use an Omega VRT350 vertical masticating juicer which has been awesome. The juice is amazing and a lot better than from my first juicer which was a Jack Lalanne Power Juicer Pro.
I would encourage anyone and everyone to try juicing. You don’t need a super expensive juicer to start. I’ve seen juicers on sale for $24!!! Of course those juicers aren’t the best but they do the job and get people started.
Anyway, I loved your post about your juicing experiences. I’m sharing it with my Twitter followers right now!
Thanks
Denise “Juicer” Jones :o)