A Beginners Guide to Juicing: How to make it fuss free

Juice the grapes (25-30) and then the figs (2) then squeeze in half a lemon to make a glass of sweet delicious juice

It was only after staying with my mum in August that I started juicing. That trip to stay with her inspired me not only to start juicing but also to start growing my own herbs and to start sprouting seeds! These are all things I have read about from all the amazing food bloggers I now follow religiously but also from reading up more about health and the benefits of a raw diet. The reason the trip to see my mum kick started all these things for me was that she showed me some tips on how to make it all really easy and how to do it properly.

When I got home I cleared our breakfast bar (which had become a ‘dump all the post/ paperwork/ cds/ keys/ phone chargers etc etc bar’) and all it has on it now is the juicer, a blender, 2 chopping boards and two big fruit bowls. It is my new pride and joy! Me and Scott now enjoy a fresh raw juice each evening after work for a much needed energy boost and also the breakfast juice bar faces the tv so I can catch up on my cooking programmes whilst preparing our juice.

Here are some great tips to ensure that your juicing experience is fuss free:

1. Have a clear space to make your juice. This will make it easy to prepare your fruits and vegetables, easy to wipe down and it also means your more likely to keep juicing as you won’t have to clear room to even begin.

2. Wash and prepare your vegetables in advance. Before you’ve turned the juicer on make sure you’ve washed all of the fruits and vegetables and topped and tailed any thing that needs it (i.e. carrots). Slice it all into manageable chunks and pile it all onto the chopping board ready to go.

Cut everything into pieces that will fit into the juicer

3. Fill the sink with water and washing up liquid. This was the best tip that my mum gave me and it is the main reason that I have managed to keep up the routine of having a daily juice. Firstly make sure that your draining board is clear then fill the sink ready to wash the juicer immediately. After you’ve made your juice scrape the pulp into the bin (or a tub if you keep it) and wash all of the removable parts then place on the draining board to dry. Later in the evening when its dried I put the juicer back together again and the next day it’s ready to go! I’m quite lazy so if the juicer wasn’t washed when I needed it I’d probably skip the juice!

Ok so now your prepared to juice you have to think about what you are going to juice! Here are some great tips on some basic combinations to get started:

1. Apples and Carrots. These two are the base of 95% of my juices and excellent on their own or combined with other fruits and vegetables such as beetroot, ginger, melon, radishes etc. As long as you have apples or carrots in your kitchen you can make a delicious juice.

2. Herbs. Adding herbs such as parsley adds a high hit of nutrition and also turns the juice a brilliant green colour. I found that pushing the leafier herbs through with a piece of apple helps get the most juice out of the herb. The juice from the apple washes it all through the juicer and into your glass.

3. Ginger. Adding a few pieces of fresh root ginger give the juice a fantastic spiciness, great for keeping away colds and calming a poorly stomach. My favourite is a nice and simple carrot and ginger juice.

4. Beetroot. I love adding beetroot raw into the juicer but Scott finds it a bit earthy, beetroot goes very well with sweeter fruits like apples to tone down the flavour. Also it’s such a pretty colour!

Beetroot and Apple Juice

4. Lemons and Limes. After juicing I sometimes add a squeeze of lemon to the glass for a fresh kick to the juice. You don’t need to put the lemon through the juicer it can be squeezed and stirred in, it adds even more nutrition and another flavour level.

5. Green Vegetables. I’ve tried juicing broccoli, asparagus and celery but I found that mixing them with a sweeter fruit such as melon or apple helps tone down the earthiness of the juice.

Just experiment and have fun! Me and my mum would juice everything into a jug and try a bit each, if we decided we didn’t like it we’d try adding another apple or another flavour untill we liked it.
I don’t think I’ve ever had a juice that’s tasted the same twice!