Wheatgrass Juicers

Before the common wheat plant grows up, it is a young, fresh grass called, simply, Wheatgrass. Since the 1930s, people in the western world have been cultivating wheatgrass for juicing and powdering. It was popularised by a agricultural chemist who apparently used the wheatgrass to help his sick hens recover form illness, and not only did they recover, but produced eggs at a high rate than before.

According to Wikipedia, proponents of wheatgrass claim that it can:

• improve the digestive system
• prevent cancer, diabetes and heart disease
• cure constipation
• detoxify heavy metals from the bloodstream
• help make menopause more manageable
• promote general well-being.

Bold claims for sure!

Wheatgrass Juicers

There are dedicated wheatgrass juicers available that work differently from most centrifugal juicers in the high street. You feed the wheatgrass down and they chew up the plant to give juice with more enzymes in it. A manual wheatgrass juicer starts at about 29.99 on Amazon.co.uk

Best Apple Juicer

Apple juice is one of the most popular juices that people make with their own juicers, so to be honest, you can pick almost any juicer on the market and you should be able to make apple juice.

But what is the best juicer for making apple juice?

If you plan on making plenty of apple juice, it is worth buying a juicer with a wide feeder, such as the ever popular Philips HR1861 which has consistently shown itself to be the class leader. If you’re looking for something cheaper, consider the Breville JE24 Whole Fruit Juicer.

As you can see in the picture on the left, the extra wide feeder enables you to quickly put whole apples down there. Being able to pop a whole apple down and not have to cut them up really is a time saver.  The Philips juicer shown also has a detachable pulp collector which you can line with a plastic bag and easily lift out most of the pulp, which makes cleaning up afterwards a heck of a lot easier.

What apples to use in fresh apple juice?

Most apples will make great juice, I particularly like the sweetness of a Pink Lady.

Also, you know how an apple goes brown if you leave it? I find that apple juice does too, so if you’re going to drink it straight away, cover it up with clingfilm or add a drop of lemon juice to help stop it turning an unappetising brown.

Find out more about the Philips HR1861

Difference Between A Smoothie Maker and A Blender

Do you know what the difference is between a smoothie maker and a blender? As far as I know, you can make smoothies with a blender, so what is a dedicated smoothie maker for? Is the only difference that that a smoothie maker has a tap to dispense the drink into a glass? Here’s a snippet from a Times article that ponders a similar question:

The Smoothie Maker, to be honest, I consider to be the last straw. A Smoothie Maker is just a blender – IT’S JUST A BLENDER! – but with a tap on the bottom. A small, useless tap which will, on the first day of use, become clogged by a single strawberry seed, leaving you flossing the tiny nozzle with a pin until 4am, weeping. A Smoothie Maker basically marks the UNINVENTING of the blender. It is a negation of progress. It’s like having sex with monkeys. It will do humankind no good.

Whilst Googling the answer, I found that someone had asked the exact same question over at Money Saving Expert – so have a look there for some interesting replies too… the funniest one being “about a tenner”!

Best Juicers for Christmas Presents

Christmas is actually the perfect time to give a juicer, because once the turkey and trimmings are out of the way, lots of people want to start detoxing their way into the new year and a juicer can help.

Whilst cuicers are a great gift idea for Christmas, they often then end up in the cupboard for the rest of the year. So if you’re giving a juicer this year, why not give a recipe book with it too, and a basket of fruit too to help get the recipient hooked on juicing and all its excellent benefits.

Best Juicer Under £100

The Philips HR1861 is stylish, sexy and will deliver glass after glass of fantastic tasting juice. The design of this juicer is safe and easy to clean (which is one of the thing that deter people from using a juicer), and uses centrifugal power to create fresh fruit juice that is full of goodness. This juicer has been priced at about £100 for most of the year but if you look around you can get some bargain prices, sometimes as low as £60-£70. The HR1861 also comes with a recipe book with loads of recipies. Click here to check availability at Amazon.co.uk

Best Stocking Filler Juicer

Our recommendation for a lovely, juicy stocking filler present is a citrus press. The Philips HR2737 Citrus Press costs about a tenner and is a fantastic little gift which will mean the recipient is able to squeeze out fresh juice from oranges, lemons, limes and grapefruits all through 2009! Check availability at Amazon.co.uk

Oh…. It’s a Zumex

Zumex manufacture the most visually impressive commercial orange juicers I have seen. A big basked of oranges sits on top and slow the oranges drop down into the transparent casing and go through the soft cutters which take off the outer skin. Then the process squeezes out the juice and the pulp and skin fall into a bin below. It really is very cool to see this thing in action, and it’s as much fun to watch it working as it is to drink very good quality juice it makes.

Next time you’re out and about with friends and see miracle machine in action, impress by your friends with yoru knowledge of commercial juicers by simply saying, “Oh… it’s a Zumex!”.  Check out the video below to take a closer look

Apple and Lychee

I was in Sainsburys the other day and saw a punnet of Lychees. I didn’t realise that they sold Lychee at Sainsburys, so couldn’t resist getting some, and of course they were delicious. I kept back about half a dozen, which I peeled and destoned and then placed in the juicer.  I then added three apples – I use the Pink Lady variant, which is a lovely, sweet apple.

Pleased to be able to report that Apple and Lychee juice was delicious, with the Lychees giving it a very distinctive taste. Give it a try and let me know what you think! And does anyone have any ideas for a name for this drink??

Jack LaLanne’s Power Juicer Express

First of, who is Jack LaLanne? Jack LaLanne is known in the States at the “godfather of fitness”.  He is an expert on fitness, exercise and nutrition as well being an acclaimed motivational speaker.  Well into his 90s now, he has put his name to a range of juicers, trying to do for juicers what George Foreman did for the healthy grill.

Jack LaLanne’s juicers can typically be found on home shopping channels and informercials, which to be honest is usually enough to be put me off, but I was interested to see that this actually seemed to get good reviews so I thought I’d take a closer look.

Jack LaLanne’s Power Juicer Express is a sturdy white unit which has a heavy duty 3,600 RPM motor with surgical steel quality blade which the manufacturer claims will give you 30% more juice.  It has a wide feeder,so you can get whole fruits down there, and operates at a suprisingly quiet noise level. Cleaning, as always, isnt’ the nicest of jobs but a great tip is always to place a food bag inside the pulp collector so the bulk of it can be lifted straight out and thrown in the bin.

Safety is paramount and the machine will not switch on until all the parts is properly locked into place. The juice produced by the Power Juicer Express is of a very good standard, and of course puts shop bought juice in the shade. Expect to pay about £80 for this juicer, and you will get a quality machine for your money.

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