Is there fresh produce hiding in the back of your fridge looking a bit sad? Don't panic!
First, step aside sparkling seltzer, you can blend a couple ingredients together for a simple nutritious juice that will leave you feeling hydrated and fresh. The best part? A juicer is not essential! All you need is your produce, a high-speed blender and water.
Watermelon Juice: Although watermelon doesn't have a lot of fibre, it's 92 per cent water content makes this juice extremely hydrating! All that water will likely encourage a bowel movement, or two! It is also full of nutrients that help protect your cells such as vitamins A, B, and C, and lycopene, which helps shield you from UV rays.
Slice off the outside skin of your watermelon and dice the fruit into bite-sized pieces. Put in your blender with a squeeze of lemon. If you have extra ginger and some fresh mint leaves lying around, they both go magnificently in this drink as well. Blend everything together until smooth. You can run your juice through a fine mesh strainer to remove excess pulp or enjoy it as is over ice.
Green Juice: I like to think of green juice as a blended-up buffet! You can add as little or as much as you would like/have. Note - this blend may take a few batches to make it all.
Start with an apple base - this is what will sweeten the drink. Remove all the seeds from your apple but keep the skin on and dice into bite-sized pieces. Next reach for that (likely) unopened bag of kale or spinach. I know its back there! Dump the entire bag or bunch into the blender. Onto cucumbers. They will help to increase the hydration level of this juice with their extremely high water content. Do not peel, but rather keep the nutrient-packed on before dicing. Squeeze in the juice from one lemon. Toss in some ginger an any other leftover produce that may be spoiled if you leave it sitting in the bottom of your fruit bowl or crisper for any longer. Add water and blend until smooth. Strain with a fine mesh sieve and enjoy over ice.
Your second opportunity to reduce produce waste is to propagate! This is a process of growing roots from a parent stock so you can plant and regrow for future consumption. Green onion, celery and lettuce are all easy to propagate for beginners. Simply cut off the top of the stock leaving about 5 inches from the bottom of each. Place in a shallow glass of water near sunlight. Change the water everyday and over the course of a week you will see roots beginning to form. Once the roots are about 3-5 inches long, they are ready to plant in soil.
Lastly, donate. There are many in need who would love to receive some unexpected extra groceries. There is no need for food to go in the bin when it could be filling the bellies of our community.
Waste less and enjoy more.
Miranda Morris is a yoga instructor for Activ Life, a leading health and wellness company based in the Cayman Islands. If you enjoyed this article you may also like: Foods that feed the gut and Anti-aging yoga secrets.