I have both a VItamix and a juicer and I use it for different things. I only juice things like beets and kale and carrots as I do not like the texture of the fiber when it is blended. Fruit and baby spinach gets blended.

I don't really like beet juice as I think it tastes like dirt, but the health benefits are great. And yes, you use it completely raw. I like to make a large juice that I enjoy and then do a shot of beet juice so I don't ruin the whole thing. Also, um, if you're going to juice beets, don't panic in the bathroom the next day. Just sayin...

One of my favorites is a very green drink with kale, spinach, cucumber, parsley, apples, lemon, and ginger.

Oh, and you can also blend and then strain it through a nut milk bag. I've done that before when I am feeling too lazy to clean the juicer!

I agree with SWMBO on this one.

(Of course you can peel the beet
if you don't want to drink the beet skin.)

Actual 'juicing' seems to no longer be in favor.
Because all the fiber and many nutrients are lost.
Unless you save the 'pulp' and use in in another dish,
a lot of "good stuff" is wasted.

Yes, the possibilities are endless.

Honestly, I've never been sure of exactly why
a liquified fruit or vegetable would be any better for you
Than eating it normally would be.
Maybe because they are not cooked,
so no nutrients are destroyed by heat?

Or maybe just as a change of pace.

Rusty

The main benefit of juicing is that you can consume a lot more produce then you ever would eating it whole or even blending because you don't have all the fiber to deal with. Fiber is of course important so I don't think juicing should take the place of fruit and vegetable consumption but rather supplement it.

Like anything out there, you will find people who swear juicing is a miracle cure while others think smoothies are the thing. It all comes down to personal preference since you have both machines, I would try both and see what you like. I love both my blender and juicer for different reasons but I consume far more via juicing and get a shot of pure clean energy after I drink it.

The recipe I posted above has, it turns out, too much ginger, about 1/3 that amount would be right.

As chi83 says, you can eat a lot more so be careful you don't consume too many calories - fruit can add up!

My husband and I have been using one of those 'megawatt blenders '...a NutriBullet...and we love it. Just about the only limit to what goes in one of the "green sludgies " (as I call them) is your own imagination.

For example, it's recommended that about fifty percent of the volume consist of leafy green stuff...baby spinach, kale, arugula, baby spring mix, brocolli, etc. On top of that goes a combination of fresh fruits, veggies, nuts, grains, yogurt, and a liquid of your choice.

My typical sludgie consists of about a cup each of kale and spinach, a small apple (cored but not peeled), a slice of organic lemon (skin and all), banana, frozen mixed fruit, greek yogurt (a dollop), chia seeds, flax seeds, and water or soy or almond milk.

Pinapple is a favorite, fresh blueberries, strawberries, avocado, and oranges. We tried beets to a resounding thumbs down! Just have to cook and eat those on the side.

Since having a sludgie every morning for about two months, my years of gastrointestinal issues have been resolved, my blood sugar levels have dropped to near normal levels, recent blood work indicates healthy cholesterol numbers, and my blood pressure is about as perfect as it can get.

This has been accomplished by making other smart changes in our eating habits, as well, but the sludgies have been the catalyst.

To be clear...the fiber is one of the supreme benefits of the green sludgies! My brand of blender almost completely pulverizes these foods...whole foods in a drinkable form. The only solid stuff are the seeds, grains, and nuts that don't get liquified.

My advice is to educate yourself. If you have health goals, the foods which you take into your body can dramatically affect you.

The older machine, which removes the pulp, is an actual "juicer" and would be the better choice for your recipe. This recipe won't work in the Ninja.

The Ninja recipes require an additional liquid such as V-8, tomato juice, iced tea, frozen lemonade or orange concentrate, apple juice, mango nectar, apricot nectar, pineapple juice, even carbonated water or soft fruit like tomatoes in order to make a juice blend. Many of the hard fruits or veggies also need to be cooked to work in the Ninja. This is definitely a juicer recipe.

Here are a few Ninja recipes:

Veggie Iron Power Punch

(serves 1)

Use the 40-oz. bowl and blade assembly.

2 c. cold iced tea, sweetened
8 leaves spinach, washed
1 rib celery
1/2 green apple, cut into pieces

Pour the tea into the bowl and add the spinach, celery and green apple. Blend on (2) until smooth. Strain the drink through a fine sieve and serve in a tall glass over ice.

Tip: Start by adding 8 leaves to this recipe and as you adapt to the flavor, increase the fresh spinach leaves up to 1/2 cup packed.
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Apple & Pineapple Juice Blend

(makes about 6 cups of juice blend)

Use the 72-oz. pitcher and blade assembly.

Cooking the apples first allows the fruit flavor to mellow and sweeten naturally.

4 cooking apples, peeled and cored
1/2 c. fresh pineapple, cut in chunks
1/2 t. ground cinnamon
4 c. apple juice

Place the apples and the pineapple in a microwave safe bowl and add 2 T. of water. Cover with plastic wrap and cook on High for 6 minutes, or until very tender. Spoon the mixture into the pitcher and add the cinnamon.

Blend the mixture on (2) until smooth. Depending on your preference, pour the mixture through a fine sieve and add to the apple juice, or combine the apple/pineapple mixture with the juice and serve as is. Refrigerate any leftover juice.
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Fresh Pear & Mango Nectar

(serves 4-6)

Use the 72-oz. pitcher and blade assembly.

6 ripe pears, cored and cut into large pieces
4 c. mango nectar

Place the pears in a large microwave-safe bowl and add 2 T. of water. Cook on High for 3-4 minutes, or until very tender. Remove and cool slightly.

Place half of the pears and nectar into the pitcher and blend on (2) until uniformly smooth. Strain the juice through a fine sieve and pour into a large container or pitcher. Repeat with the remaining nectar and pears. Serve over ice or chill until ready to serve.

-Grainlady

The local stores as well as supermarkets here have mark down fruits and vegetables in bags. They are marked down because they have been bruised and not very good looking, but they are not rotten. They are significantly cheaper.

Totally amazing for juicing and making smoothies.

dcarch

There is a farm-owned vegetable market not too far from me. We stopped by and came home with bulk beets (10 lb bag for $10), bulk carrots, various greens, cucumbers, turnips, radishes, apples, lemons, berries, tomatoes, etc.

So I'm having fun juicing stuff and seeing how it tastes. I haven't broken out the Ninja yet.

This also seems like a good kickstart for healthier eating. Dinner last night was from this veggie bounty, plus a sweet rice risotto. With a side of the beet-carrot-ginger juice mentioned above.

Beautiful, delicious and healthy looking.

Sweet rice risotto, very interesting concept.

dcarch

It is almost cheating, to make risotto from sweet (glutinous) rice.

I've made it from white sweet rice and from black sweet rice. The black rice turns everything black so any contrasty stuff has to be cooked separately and added at service.

Johnilu, my favrote juice recipe is 5 carrots, 1 green apple, 1 beet, and a handful of kale (maybe 1 cup).

I have an Omega Vert single auger juicer and it works well... my best friend has a Vitamix, and I've tried it... prefer juice without pulp. Part of it is a matter of personal preference. Some people say you need the fiber, and others say that removing the fiber gives your body a chance to assimilate the nutrients more easily.

The worst part is cleaning the thing! I think the general rule is to try to buy organic and don't peel, but wash the fruits and veggies because the majority of nutrients lie just under the skin... but if you can't find organic, then do peel, because the skin is where the pesticides are. That's just what I've seen on numerous web-sites and Youtube videos about juicing.

Good for you juicing and experimenting.... the fruits can really hide the tast of veggies that are good for you, but don't taste good. If you haven't tried to juice a watermelon or red grapes yet (especially red grapes), you simply must. There's nothing like it!

Just be careful and know you are ingesting a huge amount of carbs by juicing - especially root vegs like carrots, beets, etc. with fruit. So if you are still trying to lose weight, you may see weight gain instead of weight loss with a lot of juice drinking.

This is something you may want to give it a try:

In the summer whenever there is a sale for seasonal fruits, I will buy a lot of it to make dehydrated fruit sheets and turn them into fruit powder. Watermelon powder, mango powder, strawberry powder, etc.

Whenever I make smoothies or vegetable juices, and if the taste is not right, I just add a few spoons of the fruit powder, which is very fruity and sweet to adjust the taste.

dcarch

Dehydrated watermelon

Dehydrated mango

Interested in the juicing info. I tried juicing and it overwhelmed my system - was very nauseas and lightheaded - I think too much concentrated sugar. I am not opposed to trying again?

I have found tremendous success with green smothies, though. I can not live without it. My fave is Kimberly Snyder's Glowing Green Smoothie which is basically Romaine, spinach, celery, apple, pear, banana, and lemon juice. Sometimes i add parsley or cilantro which are great blood cleansers and one batch makes three drinks for me so I just leave blender in fridge. I have also frozen in mason jars to grab for work which makes like a slushie but prefer the smoothie version. It gives me so much energy and wonderful for skin and digestion.