I wish you luck. Every couple of years I think I want to get into juicing for health reasons. Spent 200.00 bucks the first time and ended up selling the unit on E-bay. Bought another one last year, and it was defective so I sent it back. I just don't like liquified veggies as much as I think I should. I hope you like yours, and it was a wise decision to not spend too much before deciding if it was right for you.

Duane

Thanks Duane... I always appreciate your insight (usually get a chuckle out of it too). I think I'll be okay if I mix it with fruit to help sweeten it up. Maybe I'll be the next Jack Lalaine... though I didn't buy his "superior" product! At least you have a basement for all of your unused kitchen toys!

Bobby, get some tastey protein powder to put a scoop in. Or do banana and peanut butter.
I have no clue really..There is a green juice Odwalla does that I like..it's sweet..just looks gross.

I don't use mine cuz I hate cleaning it!

Oh it's called Super Food and tastes really good! If you can get past the look..
Click on a "flavor" and you can then click on an ingredients list..might give you some ideas.

Here is a link that might be useful: Odwalla

"Healthy lifestyle"? I don't know about all that -- my co-worker just busted me looking at a recipe for vegan banana-nut muffins made with spelt flour -- while I happily munched away on a bag of Ranch Doritos!

I'm a bit scattered today, but here's some random thought off the top of my head:

My absolute fav juice is one bunch of celery, two peeled cukes, and two apples. Pick sweet/spicy juice apples, not the bland ones.

Two apples and a handful of strawberries -- vey nice! Or maybe a kiwi or two. (Depending on your juicer, don't even peel, just cut 'em in half!) Apples and ginger, another nice combo.

I may be weird, but I don't rave about straight carrot juice. But I do like it mixed in with other things. Sometimes a little grated ginger is perfect -- sweet and spicy! Try it with an apple or two -- nice and sweet . Some carrots, a tomato, and a stalk or two of celery is a whole different taste. If you like that "savory taste" try some carrots with the greens from a bunch of beets.

Carrot juice doesn't seem to age well in the fridge, but it does well in the freezer. When I get a big bag, I'll juice all of them, then pour the extra juice into ice cube trays, and use them in smoothies I make in the blender. Slushy juice drinks are nice, too!

I don't worry too much about protein, but I do often add spirulina powder to smoothies, and sometimes juice. It's a cultivated kind of blue-green algae that has incredible amounts of protein and all sorts of trace nutrients -- people make a lot of mystical claims for it, but it has some real science behind it. You can get it at a lot of health food stores, and places like Wild Oats and Whole Foods, in the bulk bins. You don't need to use much to get a nutritional punch, and you don't really taste it. Man, does it make things green....

You can juice just about anything; but some things like melon, you can do just as easily in the blender.

I have a blend that I use if I'm feeling ick-ish, that seems to cleanse and revitalize me. It has lots of 'greens': broccoli, kale, etc as well as some carrots and apples -- but frankly, it doesn't taste all that nice and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone for anything but medicinal purposes!

(BTW, I'v been throwing a handful of frozen spinach into my morning smoothies lately -- good vitamin punch and I don't even taste it!)

Hope you get some good use out of the juicer. In my experience it feels like a lot of work if you're making juice for just one person. Don't forget you can freeze the juice -- a little more payoff ofr your cleaning efforts.

I usually have juice in the morning, so I found collecting all the things I'm using and putting them in a bowl in the fridge the night before made it a little easier. You don't want to do too much cutting and cleaning the night before, because fruit/veggies start to dry out once you have an exposed surface, but it helps to be able to pull the bowl out and get cracking. ...

Thanks Terri. I did look at the ingredients.

I have been juicing every day and I'm enjoying it very much. Cleaning it isn't so bad... it takes a lot of time, but I am enjoying the ritual so it's OK. I was doing some research and found a juicing "evangelist" named Tony Vale... what a hunk! He looks great for 38 (he could pass for 25), and the things he says make sense. However, the way he says "vitamins" hurts my hears (short first I sound). I'm eating more fruits and vegetables than ever before, so that can't be a bad thing! I just hope it doesn't inspire to to go completely raw... I wouldn't have very much to say on this forum at that point!

We posted at the same time... I just thought, "Maybe I should bump this up in case Alison hasn't seen it!"

Thanks for your tips... I knew you had experience!. I've read that it's prudent to drink the juice immediately so I do not store it at all. I don't want to let the nutrients dissapate... Centrfugal juicers encourage oxidation so it's best to drink immediately. I may try to freeze it when I get sick of the daily chore, but for now it's still a novelty and quite fun.

So far, I've done celery, carrots(unpeeled), apples (unpeeled), red grapes, watermelon, spinach, kiwi (peeled) and cucumbers (unpeeled) in all different combinations. Going back to the supermarket tomorrow to re-stock.

I read that if you juice too many of the same things you can become allergic... That seems a little scary, but I can't imagine becoming allergic to fruits and veggies.

Thanks for taking the time to write... I appreciate it :o)

I know what you mean about the novelty factor -- when I first got mine, I just stood in front of the fridge looking for things to juice!

I think you would have to really overdose in order to trigger an allergy -- I'd say juice happily!