Cool As A Cucumber Drinks For Hot Days
When I first came to live in the Caribbean I was surprised to find so many drinks made from cucumber. It seems the most unlikely thing to use, yet cucumber drinks are refreshing, delicious and health giving.
One of my favorite recipes is for cucumber and ginger spritz. For four people, take four cucumbers, unpeeled, plus an inch piece of peeled fresh ginger and run through a good juicer. Then add a half cup of soda water to the mixture to add that little extra pizazz, chill and serve over ice with a sprig of mint. If you want to sweeten this up, you can add a little ginger syrup, about a teaspoonful for each glass. You might want to add a little green food coloring to perk up the appearance. At around 100 calories per glass (130 with syrup) this is a low calorie long drink ideal for sipping on hot tropical days.
Cucumber has many health benefits, including vitamins A, B and C, which are especially good for the skin, potassium and magnesium which can help reduce blood pressure, and it even contains substances which are said to be helpful in combating cancer. And of course, cucumber contains fibre to help keep you regular, and of course both cucumber and ginger are great for the digestion.
Another favorite of mine is carrot juice. Buy organic carrots if you can (in fact, always choose organic fruits and veg for juicing if you can get them) cut the shoulder and root end off chop into chunks and juice in your juicer. Strain the pulp to produce your juice. You'll need roughly a pound of carrots for just a cup of juice, so I like to add an apple or two to stretch out the carrots and of course to give even more health benefits. You can also add a little ground cardamon, I also like this with cinnamon, especially if I am using apples. An 8oz glass of carrot juice gives you around 90 calories, add the apples and it's around 110 as apples have a higher natural sugar content.
Carrot juice may not look pretty, but it is power house of goodness, and I like to drink a small glass in the morning to get me going. Carrots contain beta keratin, which gives you vitamin A, and is a great source of B complex vitamins. Like many vegetables which send their roots deep into the earth, carrots contain masses of health giving minerals including calcium, copper, iron and magnesium.
I always prefer to get my vitamins in my food rather than take a lot of expensive supplements, and having a juicer means I can always get a quick fix of nutritious and tasty juice packed with goodness.
