Column: A do-it-yourself guide to health juices

From big-box stores to gyms, fruit and vegetable “health” juices seem to be available nearly everywhere.

Some concoctions purport to give consumers more energy without caffeine. Others promise to help boost your immune system. Some simply provide a hearty dose of antioxidants.

Steve Siegelwaks, who owns Green Earth Grocery in Riverhead, has been selling fresh juices since his downtown shop opened in 1980.

“Fresh, certified organic produce is so nourishing and potentially detoxifying,” he said. “It’s wonderful, tasty and just the best of the best.”

Paula DiDonato, owner of The Giving Room yoga studio in Southold, opened a juice bar there business in 2013.

“Juicing is an amazing way to unlock the minerals, vitamins and proteins in whole fruits, vegetables and nuts,” she said. “When you make fresh juice a part of your daily routine, you have increased energy, a better complexion, experience fewer aches and pains and have a stronger immune system.”

If you own a juicer, you can make the same juices Green Earth and The Giving Room sell. Click on the tab below to find out how to concoct the best beverage for your needs. Note: All recipes yield 16 ounces.

Photo caption: Assorted fresh juices at The Giving Room in Southold. (Credit: Carrie Miller, file)

GREAT GREEN

For a nearly sugar-free energy boost, create your own version of The Giving Room’s “Great Green” juice.

“It’s full of B vitamins and antioxidants,” Ms. DiDonato said. “It also has ginger, which gives you a feeling of energy.”

Ingredients:

2 cucumbers

1-inch medallion of fresh ginger

5 handfuls of spinach

2 handfuls of kale

2 cucumbers

4 celery stalks

small handful of parsley

small handful of dandelion greens

half a lemon

Directions: Wash all ingredients and remove the lemon rind. Begin by adding one cucumber to the juicer, followed by the spinach, kale, parsley and dandelion. Then add the ginger and the second cucumber, plus the lemon and celery.

GARDEN OF EDEN

“Vitality. Blood oxygenation,” Mr. Siegelwaks said of this popular drink. “The body receives it well and heals faster and is more resilient in all the right ways.”

Ingredients:

1 beet

half a dozen carrots

1 cucumber

6 stalks celery

half a dozen kale leaves

1-inch piece of fresh ginger

a shot of wheatgrass

Directions: Mr. Siegelwaks said there is no “right” way to make this juice, but it’s helpful to alternate vegetables that are high in fiber, like celery, with the beet and ginger.

FLU SHOT

When you a feel a cold coming on, try boosting your immune system with The Giving Room’s homemade flu shot.

“It has pineapple, which is really good for your lungs, and it has cayenne pepper, which opens up the sinuses,” Ms. DiDonato said. “And it has lemon, which has a lot of vitamin C, and garlic, which is a natural antibiotic.”

Ingredients:

1-inch medallion of fresh ginger

1 clove garlic, peeled,

1/2 medium pineapple (no peel)

3 lemons (no peel)

1 tablespoon honey

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions: Peel the garlic and wash the ginger, remove the pineapple and lemon rinds. Put the pineapple in the juicer, then add the ginger and garlic. Once juiced, add the cayenne pepper and honey and stir well with a spoon.

TURMERIC WATER

Are achy joints giving you agita? Consider soothing them with The Giving Room’s sparkling turmeric water.

“Turmeric is an anti-inflammatory,” Ms. DiDonato said. “It has pain-relieving properties that are on par with prescription drugs.”

Ingredients:

3/4 cup sparkling water

2 lemons (no peel)

2-inch medallion of ginger

2-inch medallion of turmeric root

Directions: Remove the lemon rinds and wash the ginger and turmeric. Add the ginger and turmeric to the juicer, followed by the lemons. Add sparkling water afterward and stir with a spoon.

Have a health column idea for Rachel Young? Email her at ryoung@timesreview.com.