33 Juicing Recipes for Weight Loss - Part XIII - Creating Delicious and Healthy Concoctions

What’s the best thing about getting into a juicing program? It helps you get the fibers, vitamins, and minerals that your body needs to function and develop. If fruits and vegetables aren’t really part of your daily diet, you’re putting your own body and health at a disadvantage. By juicing fruits and vegetables, you can get most of your dietary needs in one glass – easy to prepare and easy to drink. But to make a well-rounded and healthy drink that will also help you lose weight, you need to learn all about fibers, vitamins, and minerals, and what kind of food can offer them to you.

Fibers

Not a lot of people know that there are two types of dietary fiber in food – soluble fiber and non-soluble fiber. Soluble fiber dissolves is the kind of fiber that dissolves in water, but not completely. Instead, it turns into a gel-like consistency that slows down digestion and helps make you feel full longer which encourages weight loss. Also, it helps maintain healthy glucose levels and lower LDL or bad cholesterol. Some of the food that have soluble dietary fibers include apples, strawberries, nuts, blueberries, cucumbers, celery, and carrots.

The other kind of dietary fiber, insoluble fiber, also has a healthy effect because they pass through your digestive system relatively intact which helps speed up the passage of food and waste. It also has a slight laxative effect that helps prevent constipation. The food that have insoluble fibers are celery, carrots, tomatoes, dark leafy vegetables, and raisins.

Getting your daily dose of fiber is important for a complete and healthy diet and it’s especially helpful for losing weight. Most Americans get only 15 grams of fiber per day but according to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, women need25 grams of fiber per day while mean need as much as 30 to 38 grams per day. Adding food with high fiber content can go a long way in meeting your daily fiber needs.

Vitamins

Have you ever wondered what vitamins really are? Vitamins are small organic compounds that the body requires for normal cell function and development but can’t produce for itself which is why it’s important to get vitamins from our food. And while we may only need small quantities, they’re very important for keeping the body up and running.

The lack of vitamins in your diet can lead to serious deficiency diseases like scurvy which is caused by the lack of vitamin C. Scurvy is a serious disease that is easily prevented by eating food rich with vitamin C like citrus fruits, cantaloupe, mangoes, and papaya. When your body doesn’t have enough vitamin C, your gums will become spongy, you will experience joint pain, and blood spots will appear under your skin. Your teeth will also become lose and you could also experience bad breath. Thank goodness it’s easy to grab an orange or mango and add it to your juice.

There are two kinds of vitamins – fat-soluble vitamins and water-soluble vitamins. Fat-soluble vitamins are stored in your fat tissues and in the liver. They last longer inside your body because they’re easy to store and can stay inside your system for months. Water-soluble vitamins aren’t as easily stored in the body as fat-soluble vitamins and leave your body very fast. Usually they get expelled when you urinate. Because of this, you need to add food rich in water-soluble vitamins in your juices every day.

 There are currently 13 recognized vitamins today. They are vitamin A, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B3, vitamin B5, vitamin B6, vitamin B7, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, and vitamin K. The fat-soluble vitamins are A, D, E, and K while the water-soluble vitamins are vitamin C and all the B vitamins.

Minerals

Unlike vitamins which are organic substances, minerals are inorganic substances that the body also needs for normal body function and development. There are kinds of dietary minerals – macrominerals which the body needs in large doses and trace minerals which we need in small amounts.

Let’s talk about what could happen to the body when we don’t get enough minerals. Potassium is one of the easiest minerals to ingest, thanks to potassium rich food like bananas and avocados, but people still suffer from potassium-deficiency all the time. The disease caused by lack of potassium is called hypokalaemia and it causes a wide range of symptoms that include vomiting, constipation, heart palpitation, fainting, depression, delirium, psychosis, and hallucinations. Some forms of hypokalaemia include an inability to move your muscles and a dark coloring of the nails.

Potassium is only one of the macrominerals that the body needs to stay fit and healthy. Other macrominerals include calcium (found in nuts, tofu, and low fat dairy products), phosphorus (found in dairy), magnesium (found in green leafy vegetables like kale and spinach, nuts, soybeans, and coco), chloride and sodium. Chloride and sodium are important macrominerals but we are rarely lacking of the two because they’re carried in the body through salt.

The trace minerals that we need are iron, zinc, manganese, copper, fluoride, molybdenum iodine, chromium, and selenium. If you’re wondering which ones are the most important, they are iron, copper, zinc, and selenium. You can find iron in most vegetables and legumes as well as whole grain products. Copper can be found in nuts, most fruits and vegetables and legumes. Zinc can be found in most meats and seafood while selenium can be found in whole grains and meats.

Review

That’s a whole lot of information to digest in one sitting, but mind you, it’s very important information. Just to make sure that you’ve got everything pat down, let’s do a quick review of the important parts of this chapter.

There are two types of fibers in your food – soluble fiber and non-soluble fiber. Both help give you a clean gut and make your bowel movements regular but soluble fiber gives you the added advantage of making you feel full longer, maintaining healthy glucose levels, and helping reduce LDL or bad cholesterol. Pay particular attention to the amounts of fiber in your juicing ingredients – it is the key to a healthy weight loss program. If you feel that your juicer is taking out too much of the fiber content, don’t be afraid to scoop some back in, especially in the case of apples or pineapples.

Like fibers, there are also two kinds of vitamins – fat-soluble vitamins and water-soluble vitamins. Fat soluble vitamins (vitamins A, D, E, and K) can be ingested less regularly like maybe once a week since storing them isn’t a huge problem. In fact, they can stay in your system for months. Water soluble vitamins on the other hand (the B vitamins and vitamin C) leave your body the same day you take them in through your urine. That’s why it’s important to eat or drink vitamin B and vitamin C rich food every day.

Minerals are similar to vitamins except they’re inorganic while vitamins are organic. There are also two kinds of minerals – macrominerals and microminerals. Macrominerals like potassium and calcium are the minerals that the body needs plenty of while microminerals are only needed in trace amounts. The most important macrominerals are potassium, calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium. The most important microminerals are iron, copper, zinc, and selenium.

So there you have it; the three factors that make your juice healthy. By creating a balance between the three, you can be healthier, live longer, be more energetic, and lose weight at the same time. In the next chapter, we’re going to look at the common ingredients that you can use for juicing and the different amounts of fibers, vitamins, and minerals they can offer you.

Just to make things even easier for you when you start cranking out those juices, here is a chart of the different vitamins and minerals that you’ll find in fruits and vegetables and what they can do for your health and well-being.

Fibers
Soluble fibers	Makes you feel full longer and helps fight cravings. Helps with weight loss. Helps control blood sugar levels. Helps maintain bowel health. Lowers cholesterol level.
Non-soluble fibers
Vitamins
Vitamin A	Maintains good eye vision and health. Helps with treating acne. Gives you healthier-looking skin. Strengthens your immune system. Inhibits the production of DNA in cancer cells. Gives you a healthier reproductive system.
Vitamin D	Helps with the absorption of nutrients, especially calcium and phosphorus. Strengthens the muscular system. Strengthens the bones. Regulates blood pressure. Helps reduce stress and tension.
Vitamin E	Stops bad cholesterol from being oxidized and from building up in your arteries. Protects from cellular DNA damage that can lead to cancer. Improves blood glucose metabolism and helps with diabetes. Helps prevent heart diseases.
Vitamin K	Protects your heart. Prevents osteoporosis. Strengthens your bones. Keeps calcium in your bones and out of your arteries.
Vitamin C	Prevents cancer. Helps in the maintenance of the body’s immune system. Prevents cataracts. Keeps cholesterol from oxidizing in the bloodstream. Reduces the risks of heart diseases and strokes. Helps maintain good oral health.
Vitamin B1	Helps with energy production. Helps with cardiovascular functions and health. Helps ensure good eye health. Improves brain function. Helps maintain a healthy nervous system.
Vitamin B2	Helps your body break down calories more efficiently. Helps with the production of red blood cells. Makes your skin healthier. Helps maintain healthy eyes for better vision.
Vitamin B3	Significantly reduces the risk of heart disease. Helps lower the level of bad cholesterol. Assists in the energy production of cells. Boosts the immune system. Helps give you a healthier digestive system.
Vitamin B5	Helps synthesize many important components for the human body like amino acids and fats. Helps reduce stress and other mental problems. Helps promote heart health. Helps build stamina. Helps boost the immune system. Gives you healthier skin and health.
Vitamin B6	Helps maintain healthy brain functions. Helps in synthesizing antibodies that fight diseases and sickness. Helps maintain normal nerve functions. Helps in the formation of red blood cells. Helps in the break down and digestion of proteins.
Vitamin B7	Helps in the growth and replication of cells. Synthesizes important components like fatty acids and amino acids. Helps prevent hair loss. Gives you healthier skin. Ensures a proper functioning heart. Helps in the maintenance of muscle tissues. Reduces cholesterol levels in the human body. Plays a role in DNA replication and gene expression.
Minerals
Potassium	Regulates the blood and tissues on a cellular level. Plays a vital role in the ‘sodium-potassium pump.’ Vital in energy metabolism. Important for normal growth and muscle building. Important in maintaining cardiovascular health. Important in keeping the nervous system healthy.
Calcium	Strengthens bones and teeth. Regulates muscle functions and helps with contraction and relaxation. Regulates heart functions. Helps regulate blood clotting. Helps in the transmission of nervous system messages. Helps with enzyme functions.
Phosphorus	Plays a role in energy production. Plays a role in protein synthesis (DNA and RNA). Acts as a buffer to maintain normal pH in the blood.
Magnesium	Plays a role in protein synthesis. Improves muscle functions. Offers relief from symptoms of menopause and premenstrual syndrome. Helps in the absorption of calcium.
Sodium	Used to control blood pressure and blood volume. Needed for your muscles and nerves to work properly.
Chloride	Maintains the proper balance of blood fluids. Chloride is also an essential part of digestive juices.
Iron	Plays a role in the transport of oxygen in the blood. Essential for providing energy. Vital in making sure that the immune system functions properly.
Copper	Helps in providing energy. Helps repair connective tissues and in maintaining elasticity and collagen health. Plays a role in pigmentation of the skin. Acts as a catalyst for a number of body functions.
Zinc	Helps stimulate the activity of more than a hundred different enzymes. Responsible for a number of different functions in the human body. Important for a healthy immune system. Helps in properly synthesizing DNA.
Selenium	Plays a structural and enzymic role. Needed for the proper functioning of the immune system. A key nutrient in counteracting the development of viruses. Catalyst for the production of active thyroid hormones.
Molybdenum	Acts as a catalyst for enzymes. Plays a role in metabolism. Contributes to the antioxidant capacity of the blood. Accelerates the removal of toxic substances. Fights inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.
Chromium	Enhances the action of insulin. Plays a role in metabolism and the storage of carbohydrate, fat, and protein. Monitors the blood sugar. Reduces food cravings. Prevents hypertension. This is a sample from the book 33 Juicing Recipes for Weight Loss--to get the complete recipes you can get the book here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NB0RD8I

The 7 Day Detox Diet - Complete Plan for Wellness, Younger Looking Skin, and Weight Loss

I.                  Introduction

Let’s face it, most of the time we don’t treat our body right. We eat fries, we drink soda, we don’t eat fruits and vegetables as often as we should, and we indulge in a cocktail or two (or four or five) on Friday nights. Most of the time, our body can handle it, especially if we throw in a little exercise like spinning with our friends or running in the morning. But sometimes, at some point, our body just needs a break from all that stress that we impose on it. Sometimes, it needs a break from all the toxins and ‘bad’ stuff that we force into our bodies just to give it a chance to recover back to a hundred

The seven day detox plan that we’ve outlined in this book is designed to do just that – to give our bodies a much needed break from all the bad food, the bad lifestyle, and the toxins that come with it. We’ve not only created a daily outline on the kind of food that you’ll be eating on those seven days, we’ve also prepared a number of easy and delicious recipes for you to follow so that you can still enjoy eating while detoxifying your body. 

And with just seven days, you can give your digestive system, your liver, and the rest of your body a lot of relief and a chance to recuperate and heal. With our seven day detox diet, you’ll have more energy, you’ll lose that tired and lethargic feeling that’s been dogging you for months, and you lose the extra pounds. It’s a great way to restart and reactivate weight loss and healing.

Our goal was to make a doable and effective diet plan that targets specific organs in our body that are often overloaded with toxins based on the lifestyle of an average working adult. Usually, it is the liver that is overworked but the skin, the lungs, the colon, and the kidneys suffer too. Basically, while some organs are the hardest hit with a bad diet and lifestyle, the body works as a unit and is affected as a whole.

With our seven day health plan, you can create a window of recovery or a bit of breathing space if you will.

The seven day detox diet plan is healthy and is designed to jumpstart healing but it is also meant to be unrestrictive. We don’t want you to eat unpalatable food for a week. Instead, we’ve created recipes that are not only healthy and filled with much-needed vitamins and minerals but are also delicious, meals that you would serve your friends and family on regular non-diet days.

It’s healthy, it’ll do wonders for your body, it comes with sumptuous food, and it only lasts for seven days. Try out our detox plan and start reaping the benefits!

This is an excerpt from the book:  The 7 Day Detox Diet

The Ultimate Easy to Prepare Vegetarian Recipes Cookbook - Vegetarian Baked Beans

Vegetarian Baked Beans

Ingredients:

Olive oil                                  1 tablespoon

Onions, white                          ½ cup

Garlic, minced                         ½ tablespoon

Tomatoes, chopped                 2 to 3 cups (fresh or canned will be fine)

Vegetable stock                      ½ cup

Cannellini beans, canned        2 to 3 cups

Brown sugar                            1 to 2 tablespoons

Dijon mustard                         1 teaspoon

Sweet paprika                         1 teaspoon

Rosemary, chopped                1 sprig (stem removed)

Salt                                          Season to taste

Pepper, white                          Season to taste

To Prepare:

Peel, wash, and chop the onion finely. Do the same for the garlic. Wash core and chop the tomatoes roughly if fresh. If canned, just chop into roughly half an inch sized pieces. Remove the rosemary leaves from the stem and chop finely.

On a medium pan on medium heat, add the olive oil. Sauté the onions in the pan until translucent. Add the minced garlic and sauté until you smell that garlicky fragrance; don’t let it brown. Add the sweet paprika and rosemary and roast briefly.

Add the tomatoes, beans, and mustard and sauté briefly before adding the vegetable stock. Allow the ingredients to simmer until the beans are tender but not mushy. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

This is an excerpt from the book: The Ultimate Easy to Prepare Vegetarian Recipes Cookbook

33 Juicing Recipes for Weight Loss - Part XII - Other Fun Tools and Gadgets

If you’ve got a few extra dollars and you want a bit of fun out of them, there are some cool stuff that a lot of juicers would appreciate. One of the things that most juicers have is a tablet kitchen stand so that you can read recipes on the internet or on your kindle (like this book for example) right on your kitchen counter. It makes for easier and hands-free juicing thanks to easy access to your juicing books and recipes!

Another truly useful and fun tool is a scrap trap – a small, plastic bin that you can hang from your kitchen counter or one of your kitchen drawers so that you can just toss those peels and rinds right away and keep your work area clean. I’m a big fan of clean and spacious kitchen areas which is why I’m also a big fan of the scrap trap.

Color coded chopping boards also make for a fun and useful addition to your kitchen and your juicing program. In professional kitchens, color coded boards are a must because it helps prevent bacterial contamination. A green board is strictly for fruits and vegetables; a brown board is for ready-to-eat food, while a white board is for breads and cheeses. Other colors are yellow for poultry, red for raw meat, and blue for seafood. They’ll add a splash of color in your kitchen while also keeping things clean and healthy; and they make you look like a pro!

The next gadget is a juicer favourite – a Shake ‘n’ Go blender! Between a Shake ‘n’ Go and a real, table top blender, I will always encourage juicers to go for the regular blender. It’s because you can do so much with it while a Shake ‘n’ Go is really only good for small amounts and I don’t think they’re as sturdy. That being said, I can certainly appreciate the handiness of just grabbing the same container you blended juice in and tossing it in your bag. If you have extra money to spend and just can’t walk away from a Shake ‘n’ Go then by all means indulge.

But above all else, my favourite kitchen toy for juicers is the Aero Garden! It’s this neat little gadget that’s pretty much a miniature, indoor garden that can grow small amounts of vegetables, herbs, and salad plants (and flowers too but you can’t juice that). The plants get artificial sunlight via CFL or LED lights and liquid fertilizer that’s mixed into the water reservoir. Think hydroponics but on a miniature scale. Can you substitute the Aero Garden with small potted plants of herbs right on your kitchen counter? Absolutely; but it won’t be as fun or as techie!

This is a sample from the book 33 Juicing Recipes for Weight Loss--to get the complete recipes you can get the book here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NB0RD8I

The Ultimate Easy to Prepare Vegetarian Recipes Cookbook - Crispy Kung Pao Tofu

Crispy Kung Pao Tofu

Ingredients:

Cornstarch                               ½ cup and 2 teaspoons, separated

Vegetable oil                           1 ½ quarts

All-purpose flour, sifted         ½ cup

Baking powder                       ½ teaspoon

Kosher salt

Cold water                              ½ cup

Vodka                                     ½ cup

Tofu, extra firm                       ½ pound

Vegetable stock                      ¼ cup

Soy sauce                                1 tablespoon

Chilli paste, Sichuan               1 tablespoon

Vinegar, Chinkiang                 1 tablespoon (can be substituted with cane vinegar or white vinegar)

Sugar                                       2 teaspoons

Scallions, minced                    1 piece (separate the whites and the greens)

Garlic, minced                         1 tablespoon

Ginger, grated                         1 tablespoon

Dry chilli peppers, chopped    4 pieces

Leeks, cut ¼ inch sizes           1 piece

Celery, cut ¾ inch sizes          2 ribs

Roasted peanuts                      ¼ cup

Cooked white rice for serving

To Prepare:

In a bowl, combine the ½ cup cornstarch, all-purpose flour, baking powder, and 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Add the cold water and vodka and whisk until the batter is smooth and thin. If too thick, add a couple of tablespoons of water. It should be just as thick as thin paint.

Heat up the vegetable oil in a stainless steel pan or in a wok if you’ve got one. If you have a thermometer, make sure the oil is at 190°C. You can also test the oil with a piece of bread crust; if it browns right away, the oil is ready for deep frying.

Cut the tofu into rectangular blocks, about ¾ of an inch thick. Coat the tofu in the batter individually; allow the excess batter to drip off. Lower the tofu into the hot oil, dropping them away from your body so that the oil doesn’t spatter towards you. Add more tofu until the pan or wok is full. Agitate the tofu a little with a metal spider or slotted spatula so that they don’t stick together. Let the tofu cook until golden brown. Transfer the tofu to a paper-towel lined plate when they’re done.

Set the tofu aside. Combine the stock, soy sauce, bean paste, vinegar, sugar, and 2 teaspoons of cornstarch in a bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the scallion whites, garlic, and ginger.

Strain the oil you used for deep frying and return about two tablespoons into the pan. Sauté the leeks, and the celery until softened and until the vegetables are tender. Add the scallion, ginger, and garlic mixture and sauté. Add the roasted peanuts, dried chillies, and tofu. Add the sauce mixture last and sauté until everything is coated evenly. Add the scallion greens and give the ingredients a final toss.

Serve the kung pao tofu with white rice.

This is an excerpt from the book: The Ultimate Easy to Prepare Vegetarian Recipes Cookbook