Central Florida Green Guide

(c) photo copyright Carrie Boyko

Juicing is a Great Way to Salvage Your Fruit

If you are like me, you hardly ever buy a piece of fruit that is not organically grown. As much as you pay for the good stuff, you know that waste is not an option. It just costs too darn much to toss it!

Once fruit is past the point of eating it as is, there are many ways you can still use it. Today, I’m here to share with you a few ideas that have served me (and saved me) well on my own organic journey:

1. Juice it. You know how expensive organic juice is. If you happen to find yourself with a bag of apples or oranges, or perhaps an assortment of various fruits that will blend well, juice is your easiest option. If you only have a few pieces, you can freeze the juice and blend it with additional juice that you make later. Either way, you win; you’ll bank a bit of juice that you won’t have to buy at the store.
2. Cook it up in a flavorful fruit cobbler, pie, tart or other baked fruit dessert.
3. Stir small pieces into plain or vanilla yogurt.
4. Add it to a gelatin salad.
5. Make jam, jelly or fruit compote for pancakes.
6. Cook up some baby food for the little ones. Freeze it in ice cube trays to create small portions for tiny tummies.
7. Freeze the fruit to bake with later. Here’s my husband’s favorite organic banana bread recipe. No one will ever know your secret.
8. Finally, freeze fruits in small chunks to use in smoothies. I’ll share my favorite recipe below.

Organic Banana Bread and Muffins

Have you got any other ideas? We’d love to hear from you if you can contribute more ideas. The more the merrier.

Carrie’s Breakfast Smoothie (serves 1-2)

1-2 tablespoons frozen, organic orange juice

1 medium frozen, organic banana, sliced or in small chunks, slightly thawed

1/4-1/3 cup frozen organic pineapple chunks, slightly thawed

½-1 cup lowfat, organic milk

1 Tablespoon Benefiber, for extra gusto!

Blend all ingredients together in a mixer or food processor, until evenly mixed and ready to drink through a straw. Enjoy!