Juice of the Month

Welcome to 2012!  I want to start off this year with a seasonal choice; fresh fruit juice.  Yes I said fresh fruit juice and seasonal!  Why?  Well the best foods for our bodies are those foods that are fresh and ripened in season.  I know what you’re thinking, its winter, nothings growing at this time -but your wrong! This is the time when citrus fruit hits its peak harvest time.  What could be better to bring in some fresh oranges, grapefruit, lemons, and limes adding not only color to the dinner table at this bleak time of year, but also much needed vitamins and flavor.  The best way to reap the benefits besides eating the fruit is to drink it in freshly made juices.  I'm not talking about making juice in one of those old fashioned mastication devices, but rather with some heavy machinery.  The best choice of course is a juicer.  While not everyone can afford to own a juicer, it is still possible to make wonderful juices with a regular blender (just be prepared for a lot of pulp). 

A great morning pick-me-up, better than coffee, is a fresh glass of orange or grapefruit juice. Freshly made juice, if you have never experienced it, there is no comparison.  That bottle of OJ from the store is dead, there are no living enzymes, or high quality living vitamins and minerals.  Why?  Because, in order for companies to sell their products in stores and make them last long enough to be purchased off store shelves they must go through a process called pasteurization.  While pasteurization is great for shelf life and killing off bacteria the process is also detrimental to tender enzymes and vitamins.  These processes force juice manufacturers to add this fruits natural vitamins back in artificially. 

To create fresh juice at home, pick up some fresh citrus at the store, preferably organic so as not to ingest harmful chemicals.  There are a lot of verities to choose from and each will create their own unique flavors.  If grapefruit is your choice, I would recommend adding some apples to your juice to cut the tartness. 

To make a full 8 ounce glass of orange juice you will need 2 medium sized navel oranges, or 4 Clementine’s.  With a knife peel off just the outer layer of the rind as you will want to keep as much of the white pith as possible as this is where a vast majority of the vitamins reside; it also adds a creamy texture to your juice.  If you are using a juicer just slice the fruit to fit through the hopper, if you are using a blender or a Vita-Mix, you will want to remove any seeds.  For fresh grapefruit juice you will want to peal it the same as the orange, leaving as much pith behind as you can.  Cut and remove the seeds to 2 apples (I recommend 2 small apples to 1 medium grapefruit to cut the tartness)    Blend or juice and enjoy!

Here are some of the benefits of adding in these wonderful seasonal fruits.

Grapefruits; whether ruby reds, pink, or white are an excellent source of vitamin C, calcium, phosphorous and potassium a potent mixture great for combating colds.  Grapefruits are often tolerated more so than oranges as well as having the ability of reducing the incidences of bleeding gums.

Oranges by far make the sweetest juice providing a rich frothy drink full of vitamin C, the vitamin B complex, bioflavonoids, potassium, zinc, and phosphorous.  This makes for a wonderful drink for combating colds and the flu.  When added into a daily diet it is also a great aid in combating heart disease and strokes.

Vitamin C is probably one of the best known vitamins.  Besides being a common remedy for fighting off that stubborn cold and helping through that bout of flu, this power house of a vitamin acts as a natural antiseptic helping to maintain tissues, joints, and ligaments against inflammation.

Pictured white grapefruit with apple