“I’m juicing,” a friend says, explaining her decision to decline a dinner invitation. To which you reply: “Say, what?”
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But when she stops blathering, ask to borrow her juicer. Buy some ripe (preferably organic) juicing oranges, peel them, and run them though the machine for a juice that will blow you away with its sheer orange-ness. Try other combinations: half a pineapple, two oranges and a lime; 1 cup raspberries, an apple and two oranges; one orange, two grapefruits and a lemon. You will be amazed at how tasty these juices are, and how unlike — in depth and intensity of flavor — the “juice drinks” found in the supermarket.
After making some simple fruit juices, you can branch out into vegetable concoctions. One of my favorites is a spicy tomato-juice cocktail — see below. You may start adding protein powder and spirulina to your drinks. And then, pretty soon, you will be lecturing people about hyssop.
When you’ve stopped blathering, you can proceed to the next logical question: Now what? It turns out that juicers are good for making all manner of soups, marinades, sauces and frozen ices, as well as for some solid food. It turns out that all that leftover pulp can sometimes be used as a healthy ingredient. Who knew?
I recently acquired a Breville Fountain Compact Juicer, a powerful device that, mercifully, is a dream to clean and sells at a bargain $100. It also comes with a handy little recipe booklet, which has proved to be the source of inspiration. I share them below, with permission from Breville (www.breville.com), along with recipes from “The Juicing Bible” by Pat Crocker and Susan Eagles (Robert Rose, 2000). Juice on.
Cook’s note: Do read the manual on your juicer before you start. Peel citrus fruits. When you plan to use the pulp, remove stems and seeds when practical. It’s a good practice to wash all produce destined for the juicer — even if organic — in a tub of cool water to which 2 tablespoons of food-grade peroxide or vinegar have been added.
GAZPACHO
4 medium tomatoes, stemmed
4 sprigs fresh parsley
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 small onion, peeled and trimmed
2 carrots, trimmed
2 stalks celery
1 red capsicum or other small chili pepper, stemmed and seeded
1 cucumber
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1 cup crushed ice (optional)
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
hot sauce, for serving
Juice the tomatoes, parsley, garlic, onion, carrots, celery, chili pepper and cucumber. Stir in the vinegar.
If desired, divide the ice among four soup bowls. Pour in the extracted juice, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with the basil, and serve with extra hot sauce on the side.
Yield: 4 servings
Recipe from Breville Juice Fountain Compact; www.breville.com
APPLESAUCE
2 cups apple juice (from 2 to 3 apples, cored and seeded)
2 cups apple pulp (from 2 to 3 apples, cored and seeded)
2 cups water
3 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
In a nonreactive saucepan set over medium-high heat, combine the juice, pulp and water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes or until sauce is thick. Stir in honey, cinnamon and nutmeg. Serve warm or at room temperature. Store in covered container in refrigerator.
Yield: 4 cups
Recipe from “The Juicing Bible” by Pat Crocker and Susan Eagles (Robert Rose, 2000)
CAJUN COCKTAIL AND CAJUN SALSA
3 large and 2 medium tomatoes
3 sprigs parsley
2 celery stalks
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 cucumber, cut into cubes
1/2 lime, peeled
dash of Worcester sauce
1/2 teaspoon prepared horseradish
hot sauce, to taste
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
Juice the three large tomatoes, the parsley, celery, one clove of the garlic, the half cucumber and lime. Pour into a pitcher, and season with Worcestershire sauce, horseradish and hot sauce to taste. Serve the juice as you would V8. Reserve the pulp.
Chop the remaining two tomatoes and the remaining garlic clove. In a bowl, mix them with the pulp and the olive oil. Season to taste with hot sauce, salt and pepper.
Yield: 2 cups
Recipe from “The Juicing Bible” by Pat Crocker and Susan Eagles (Robert Rose, 2000)
PAPAYA MARINADE
1 cup papaya, pineapple or kiwi pulp (juice reserved for another use)
2/3 cup orange juice
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 clove garlic, peeled an minced
Combine all of the ingredients. This makes an excellent marinade for fish or poultry. Place the food in a shallow dish, pour the marinade over, turn to coat, and cover and refrigerate for 1 hour before cooking.
Yield: 1-1/4 cups
Recipe from “The Juicing Bible” by Pat Crocker and Susan Eagles (Robert Rose, 2000)
CARROT PUMPKIN AND FETA FLAN
8 sheets filo pastry, thawed according to package directions
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 leek, finely sliced
1 cup pumpkin pulp (juice reserved for another use)
1 cup carrot pulp (juice reserved for another use)
8 ounces feta cheese, crumbed
3 eggs
1 egg white
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons orange zest
3 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
Preheat the oven to 350 F.
Place a layer of pastry in a 10-inch pie plate or tart pan, and brush it with melted butter. Repeat with remaining layers. You may not use all of the butter. Trim the pastry sheets to within 1/2 inch of the edge of the pie plate.
Combine the remaining ingredients in a large bowl, and pour into the filo shell. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden and set.
Serve warm or at room temperature.
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Recipe from Breville Juice Fountain Compact; www.breville.com
Marialisa Calta is the author of “Barbarians at the Plate: Taming and Feeding the American Family” (Perigee, 2005). For more information, go to www.marialisacalta.com.
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