Students at Sterling College can now add fresh juice to the long list of summer splendors to enjoy. The Sterling Kitchen juicer, fresh off a kitchen cabinet hiatus, has been dusted off and is back in action on the self-serve raw bar that is featured often at breakfasts throughout the year.
Juicing fresh fruits and vegetables is one of many great ways to relish the bounty of summer harvests. During Northeast Kingdom winters, when fresh local produce is whittled down to stored beets, carrots, celeriac and parsnips, making fresh juice can add much needed variety to the ways we enjoy our veggies.
In addition to delicious nourishment, fresh juicing also provides an opportunity to ask critical questions and initiate important conversations as we make choices with a sustainable future in mind. Tropical fruit like lemons and pineapple can add a lot of flavor but are not grown in Vermont, making the transport distance and fossil fuel reliance something to consider when selecting ingredients. Ginger is equally great but is not grown in abundance in the Northeast, possibly making it only an occasional addition. Yet, come the start of the fall semester at the end of August, produce food miles will be far from the brain as everything we need will be abundant in our own Sterling backyard. And how do we show our gratitude? By enjoying our harvests in every way possible of course!
Below are some of our favorite combinations of fresh juice. Feel free to experiment and create your own favorite!
It’s Summer In A Glass Juice
Yield: 6 – 8oz / 3/4 – 1 cup
- 1 apple
- 1 cucumber (peeled)
- 1/2 lemon (peeled)
- 10 mint leaves
Use Those Stems Juice
Yield: 12 oz. juice / 1 1/2 cups
- 2 cups swiss chard stems
- 2 carrots
- 1 parsnip
- 2 inches ginger (peeled)
Currant Juicy Juice
Yield: 8 oz. / 1 cup
- 4 cups kale (ribs removed)
- 4 small apples or 3 medium apples
- 1/2 cup mint leaves
- 2 cups currants
Lemony Juice
Yield: 8 oz. / 1 cup
- 2 cups kale
- 2 apples
- 1 beet
- 1 lemon peeled
Make your own combination using any of these ingredients: apple, cucumber, carrot, beet, kale, parsnip, celeriac, spinach, romaine, pineapple, mint, lemon, lime, ginger, parsley, garlic, cayenne pepper, swiss chard stems.
