5 Simple Juicing Recipes for Detoxification

Juicing is a healthy way to get the nutrients in fresh fruits and vegetables without having to eat many platefuls of food. It can be a great way to cleanse and detoxify your body, and summer is an excellent time to do this, as there are so many delicious fresh fruits and vegetables available. (I just got a juicer as a wedding present, and will be trying some of these out myself soon! I'll report back on my favorites....)

Be sure to choose only organic ingredients for all of your juices, so you aren't squeezing pesticides or other chemicals into your drink!

There are no hard and fast rules with juicing, so you can get creative and experimental with your juicing and have some fun with it!

Here are some easy and delicious recipes to get you started:

1. Green Morning Pick-Me-Up

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

For two servings, put into your juicer:

-1/2 a ripe pear
-1/2 an apple
-1 small bunch of kale (you can also use spinach)
-1 small cucumber

2. Citrus Cooler

The pineapple in this gives it a refreshing, sweet flavor.

-1 orange
-1/2 grapefruit
-1 slice fresh pineapple
Serves 1

3. Green Vegetable Juice

-1 small cucumber
-1 small bunch spinach
-1 stalk celery
-1 small apple or pear
Serves 1

4. Red Vegetable Juice

-1 medium tomato
-3-4 leaves of green cabbage
-1 stalk celery
-1 garlic clove
-1 slice of onion, about 1/4-inch thick
-1 small handful of fresh parsley

After juicing the above, add sea salt or cayenne pepper to taste.  A squeeze of lemon juice can enhance this, too. (It's like a home-made V-8!)

5. Melon Juice

For one serving, put the following into your juicer:

-1 slice ripe cantaloupe
-1 slice ripe honeydew melon
-1 slice watermelon

Add lemon juice to taste if you like.

Any leftover juice can be frozen in ice cube trays, then mixed in your blender to make a refreshing, slushy smoothie. Another option is to freeze leftovers into popsicle molds - great for a cool, healthy pick-me-up on a hot summer day!