How to Make Kale-Aid (Strawberry Kale Lemonade)

by Stacy

Strawberry Kale Aid

Most people, myself included, start out skeptical of green juice. I’ve written previously about my resistance to trying green smoothies, but once I drank the metaphorical Kool-Aid, I was hooked.

Green juice was a harder sell. I don’t even drink fruit juice anymore (Think about how many oranges go into an 8-ounce glass of juice; you would never eat that much fruit in one sitting.), AND I’d have to buy a new appliance?

Though generally sweet, green juice ideally contains mainly vegetables. Normally you want the fiber with fruit to help stabilize blood sugar, but in this case, removing the fiber concentrates the vitamins and minerals. You can fit several pounds of fresh, nutrient-dense produce in one glass. While you wouldn’t sit down and eat a whole head of lettuce, a bunch of kale, three stalks of celery, an apple and a lemon, you can drink it in short order (that recipe coming soon!).

ready to make kale-aid

It’s important that green juice is fresh since commercial bottled juices are heat pasteurized. Pasteurization is important for safety in large-scale food production (salmonella bad), but high temperatures destroy sensitive enzymes and nutrients.

This is a good beginner juice. While kale can taste very “green” in both juice and smoothies, this recipe is heavier on fruit than what I normally make, but is still simple. I like my juices fairly tart, so the lemon/strawberry combo is great for me. Try using the whole apple to increase the sweetness if needed.

strawberry lemon kale-aid

Before you ask, I have the Breville BJE200XL Compact Juice Fountain 700-Watt Juice Extractor. Why this model?

  • The price is right – only $100 at Amazon or in-store at Crate & Barrel.
  • It’s smaller than many other juicers; we don’t have a ton of counter space.
  • While it takes a few minutes, it’s not as tough to clean as some others I’ve heard about.

If you’re juicing for yourself, I recommend it. When my husband and I were doing a juice fast together, I wished I had a bigger juicer. Breville juicers are centrifugal and won’t juice wheatgrass, don’t process greens quite as well, and slightly heat the produce while juicing. “Slow” or masticating juicers are better for those purposes, but also cost more and are harder to clean.

To increase the yield of my juice, I run everything through once, then run the pulp through again. I also dilute my juice with filtered water, or coconut water in warm weather. Tangy, refreshing, and legitimately good for you. Give it a try!

Have you tried green juice? How do you feel about it?

print recipe
Strawberry Kale Lemonade
You may need to adjust the quantities depending on the sweetness and ripeness of your fruit. The key is making it taste good to YOU. Because the juice is raw, organic produce is preferred, and wash everything very thoroughly.
Ingredients
  • 1 bunch (about 6 leaves and stalks) kale
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 pint strawberries
  • 1 (1/2-inch) slice fresh ginger
  • 1/2 sweet apple such as Fuji
  • 4 ounces water
Instructions
1. Peel lemon if not organic. Hull strawberries. Peel ginger. Core apple.2. Run all produce through a juicer. With my centrifugal juicer, I juice the pulp a second time. 3. Add water and whisk. Enjoy within 24 hours.
Details

Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: about 20 ounces

{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }

TreeHgnMma April 8, 2013 at 4:47 am

I love the idea of juicing (minus the wasted food – pulp) but I cannot justify a $300 juicer anymore than I can justify a $600 blender. Both are on my if I ever find myself with an extra $1000 list, but I doubt that will be any time in the near future. I would love to do a juice fast (again with the need to reconcile myself to all the “waste”) but I simply cannot afford a good juicer. This recipe sounds great, I am going to try to blend (with my $20 blender some kale and then soak it (tea style) in water with the strawberry pulp and lemons, I think I’ll skip the apple and add some ginger…
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Stacy April 8, 2013 at 1:15 pm

I agree, that’s why I went with the $100 one I listed. And there is ginger in the recipe!

I just compost the pulp, but many people use it as added fiber in muffins, make crackers from it, or even dog treats! No need to waste it, just find another use. =)

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Brandon @ Kitchen Konfidence April 10, 2013 at 10:11 am

Sounds delicious! I just got my first flat of strawberries, so I’m looking for things to do with them :)
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Stacy April 10, 2013 at 10:55 am

When frozen they also make excellent margaritas!

And I love that your most recent post is also about processing food into small bits, yet somehow…

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Udoka May 25, 2013 at 8:55 am

Girl!!!!! This looks SO good! I am bookmarking this blog post! And will make a youtube video and send it to you 😉

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