Use It or Lose It

Most of my juice and smoothie concoctions aren’t really from recipes, but born out of necessity to use up my produce before it gets wasted.  Cleaning out the fridge this morning, I pulled out everything that needed to get used up fast and came across this fantastic medley for a green juice:

  • Kale.  Originally intended for a Mediterranean salad.
  • Kale Stems.  Leftover from my last kale salad.
  • Celery.  Leftover from my last batch of Igor’s Live Flat Bread.
  • Spinach.  Just a tiny handful still good.  I usually keep large container full as a base for green smoothies.
  • Collards.  Actually, just one, perfect leaf.  I saved it yesterday from the juicer to make a wrap.
  • Green Apples.  I was about to juice the entire bag, but then we (especially the kids) would drink it all in less than a day.  I need to get out to the orchards before the season has ended.
  • Jalapeño.  1/2 leftover from ???  Seeds removed.

Juiced and combined it made a drink so energetic my head buzzed – in a pleasing way.  The flavor was nice, but perhaps a little salty, and the jalapeño didn’t come through much.  If this wasn’t a fridge cleanup project, I would have left out the spinach and collard.  Add cilantro.  Substitute cucumber for the celery.  And juice an entire jalapeño, seeds and all.

Ultimately, this served as both breakfast and lunch and I feel satiated and energetic.

Cheers.