Does Beet Juice Make you Gag? Add More Pineapple

The sight of a fresh glass of juice makes me swoon, but I do admit, I sometimes hesitate when I juice beets.  The crimson juice of a fresh beet is quite potent, and can completely dominate the flavor of anything you mix with it, so I try to mix wisely.

Now, my vegan palate is quite adventurous when it comes to drinking the fresh juice of any vegetable. However, my omnivorous better-half has an involuntary beet gag-reflex.  SHE HATES THEM.

The other day, we wanted juice, and all I had in the fridge was... you guessed it, BEETS.  (I also had two lonely carrots, one (1) green apple, and about one-third of a sliced, fresh pineapple).  

I wonder how much pineapple juice would it take to get L to drink a glass of beet juice?

L's tiny glass. The pineapple worked!

This recipe came about as close as I will ever get:

Pineapple Beet Surprise (for even the worst Beet- Haters)
1 beet, scrubbed and peeled
1 carrots
1 green apple
one-third (1/3) fresh pineapple, peeled but not cored
1" piece fresh ginger

Cut fruits and vegetables into manageable size pieces for your juicer and juice away!  As always, I alternate the pieces of beet and carrot with the pineapple, which is much softer and tends to clog the juicing screen.  The strong fiber of the beet and carrot help to clear that out.

Serve over ice and enjoy the crimson goodness.  The picture does not do it justice!

So, why gag down the beet juice? You can read some facts here, but let's start with the simple fact that beet juice is highly nutritious.  Folate, Magnesium, Potassium, Vitamin C, Iron, Magnesium and Copper are only some of the vitamins and minerals it contains.  Beet juice is also a powerful cleanser of the blood, improves your blood flow, and can lower blood pressure.  Not too shabby ^_^

Iron Chef Challenge: Beet

I see on the Vegan Mofo website, that there is an Iron Chef Challenge this weekend.  And, what luck, the featured ingredient is BEET!  Now beets are one of my favorite vegetables, but alas, they are my dear, sweet L's Kryptonite.  There is no compromise on this one.  The beautiful beet root, to her, tastes like a lump of moist dirt, recently unearthed from the ground.  She has tried: roasted, sautéed, pickled, raw and juiced, and I give her credit, but she can not get past the intensely "earthy" taste.

So, needless to say, I don't buy beets too often, (or ever, actually)  But, sometimes I sneak just one...

And make juice...

I have read that juicing beets is an acquired taste.  And that drinking too much at once, especially if you are not used to it, can actually make you feel light-headed.  They are packed with a super-rich vitamin and mineral content.  Drinking the raw juice of beets actually allows you to take in vitamins A, B-1, B-2, B-6 and C, as well as folic acid, potassium, calcium, iron and fiber, all at once!  That's quite a kick!  Now I have never eaten a beet raw, so for my first juicing experience, I decided I'd go for just ONE beet (many of the recipes I've seen call for two)...  why chance it, right?

So, we have:

1 beet
greens of one beet, washed well
1 apple
2 carrots
1 1" piece of ginger
1/2 of a lemon

Run through your juicer.  We have an Omega 8006 Juicer, and it is one awesome piece of machinery.  It works wonderfully on greens, as well as harder root vegetables like beets and carrots.

Here is the final product:

Check out that gorgeous color! And, please, don't let this drip on anything!

Now, I don't usually get the "earthy-dirt" taste from beets, but let me tell you, drinking one, straight-up  and RAW, I could definitely get a hint of it.  Fortunately, the sweetness of the apple and carrots balanced it nicely.  And, the lemon (one of my favorite additions to any juice) balanced out the green tops.  I think I will leave the greens out next time, though, and just go for the root.  I did feel just the tiniest bit lightheaded.  Perhaps it was all the amazing vitamins and minerals going straight to my head.  One can only hope...

Have any of you raw juicers out there juiced a beet? And, if so, what did you think?