bananas, too mushy, but you can freeze them and use the blank cap and make great banana ice desserts. Cut the banana into lengthwise pieces before you freeze it.
Barley Grass: Cut sections two inches square out of your growing container and feed into juicer in small bunches with firm vegetables or fruit to help feed them in and get them all through the juicer. Barley grass is very astringent, so only use one two inch square of grass at a time (about 6 to 10 inches tall) until you get used to the taste or decide you want more.
Basil: rinse a handful of leaves and either shake or pat dry. Basil is quite pungent fresh, delicious, but start by adding just a few leaves at a time and add more to taste. Wonderful with cucumber and half a lemon.
Bok Choy: For small heads, separate outer leaves and wash thoroughly as they may have dirt trapped along the base. Inner leaves of the head are usually clean enough for just a quick rinse. Chop lengthwise to 3/4 inch widths. For large heads, cut the bottom half inch of the base off before washing and proceed as above. Very light and refreshing taste, great with apple and celery.
Broccoli: Wash and shake to remove excess water from floret heads. Cut off base of stem and cut whole stalks lengthwise to fit into juicer chute. Great with half a lemon or lime.
Cabbage: Remove outer leaves, usually two or three leaves will get the outer surface fully removed. Cut in half and then cut ‘wedges’ about 1/2 inch thick. Break apart wedges to get slender enough sections to feed into the chute. Cabbages can be surprising – some are super sweet and some are hot and spicy. Taste the cabbage as you juice it to determine which it is and how much of it you want in your juice.
Carrots: Cut off stem ends first, then scrub well with a vegetable brush. For large carrots cut lengthwise to make them into skinny sticks, for small or medium carrots juice whole.
Celery: Cut off base of stalks and trim any wilted leaves, then scrub with a vegetable brush. For larger stalks, break lengthwise by squeezing the outer edges toward the middle so they will fit into the chute.
Chard: Wash and shake excess water off leaves. Remove any wilted or spoiled spots and feed into juicer either leaf tip or stem first. Chard is generally sturdy enough to be fed into the juicer either way. Use a carrot or celery to ‘push’ it through the juicer.
Chives: wash and shake dry, use small bunches at a time and slide into the juicer, use a carrot or celery stick to push them in and help get them through the juicer.
Citrus: All citrus are great in juices. The best way to prepare them is to cut just through the peel in a complete circumference of the fruit, then turn 90 degrees and cut again all the way around so that you have four sections of peel from top to bottom that can be easily peeled off without puncturing the cells of the fruit. Once peeled, simply slide in your finger and separate the sections and juice them whole. This keeps more of the juice in the fruit until it gets into the juicer and wastes less juice which is typically lost when you cut the citrus up into pieces. There is something amazing about a juice of orange, lemon and lime – really complex and delicious tasting.
We like to juice four or five oranges, a lemon and a lime or some combination of them all and then set that juice in its own mason jar and add it to taste to our veggie juices as we drink them.
Cress: Water and land cress are both great powerhouses of nutrition and excellent in juices. They are on the peppery – hot side, so mix them with carrot, beet or yam to mellow the peppery flavor.
Cucumber: Cucumbers are generally available either waxed or unwaxed. If you grow your own or buy from local farmers they are generally unwaxed. Grocery store cukes are often waxed. This matters because if they are waxed you need to peel them. (You don’t want to juice wax and drink it!) If you are unsure, peel them. Cucumbers can also be bitter at their ends. To avoid bitterness either routinely cut off their ends or make sure to taste test before you add them to the juice. Then cut them lengthwise into quarters so they are slender enough to go down the chute. Sometimes if they are really fat and round you will need to cut them again before they will fit. They make a delicious and extremely healthy juice and add a light and delicious flavor to any other produce juice combination. One of our favorites.
Dandelion: Juice the leaves and not the root. The root can be made into a delicious tea, but is best brewed. Wash and shake leaves and insert into chute in small bunches. Dandelion is potent, so use a little bit at a time and taste before adding more!
Fennel: Wash and shake dry. Cut lengthwise from the top, separating out the individual stalks as you go. Some of these will still be too wide at the base for juicing, cut the base bulb down to more slender pieces. Fennel is surprisingly mild and wonderful in a raw juice. It is also incredibly good for you. Wait for it to come into season (winter/early spring) and get it at the best prices. Delicious!
Garlic: Peel and juice individual cloves. Use it sparingly. It is very pungent and powerful when juiced raw. We do not juice garlic often, preferring to add it to cooked foods or to roast whole garlic heads and enjoy the more mild roasted flavor.
Ginger: Cut off a one inch section of root and peel. Juice ginger while juicing carrots, yams, celery, apples or other firm fruit as it needs to be ‘pushed’ through the juicer for the best effect. Ginger is quite pungent and some people ‘feel’ it in their sinuses when they drink it in a raw juice. I personally love it and have no problem with this, but test it for yourself to find the right amount. Usually one 1-inch piece of peeled root is plenty for a juice session for one or two people.
Kale: Wash and shake to remove excess water. For extra large leaves, cut lengthwise and feed into chute leafy top first, using the stem to help to push the rest through. Kale is one of our favorites for juicing. It is astringent, but it is also truly delicious. In the right season (cool weather early spring and/or fall crops, it is incredibly sweet. We find ourselves eating the leaves as we juice so that half of it is eaten during the juicing process and the rest gets into the juice. In late spring and summer kale can become suddenly super bitter if the heat has come on before the harvest, so taste it and temper the amounts if it is bitter. It is still good in the juice when bitter, but too much will really give you that sense of drinking a juice that is good for you rather than good tasting.
Lettuce: Wash and shake off excess water, cut length-wise to make slender strips.
