Hello September! And Spicy Liver Detox Juice Recipe

Time flies! September already and I hope all my readers are well. The days are still very hot, but when I look around I already see changes that announce the inevitable end of summer.

A visit to a local farmers' market will tell you the full story: tomatoes, onions, squashes, watermelons, New Mexico green chili peppers, and corn. Vibrant colors everywhere, but it isn't easy to grow anything in a climate like this. My small garden gave us some delicious tomatoes, peppers, and herbs. I am still waiting for the eggplant to produce a fruit.

I met a very nice lady at the farmers' market today. She saw my Passionately Raw! shopping tote and asked me about raw food. As some of you may already know, I have retired three years ago. I truly missed "dispensing" health advice to people, so this encounter made me very happy. The juice recipe that follows is dedicated to her and to everyone out there who wishes to embrace a healthy lifestyle.

Ingredients:

1 pound organic carrots
1 pink grapefruit
1 lemon
2 peaches, pits removed
1 inch thick slice of fresh ginger
1/2 small ghost chili pepper, seeded (use Carolina reaper or some other very hot pepper as an alternative)
1 Tbsp virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp raw honey (optional)

Method:

Wash and peel the carrots. Peel the grapefruit and the lemon, and cut them both into manageable chunks. Cut peaches into quarters.
Juice all the fruits and vegetables. Add a honey and virgin olive oil to the juice and mix well. If the juice is too spicy for you, add a cup of purified cold water or coconut water and mix well.
Pour the juice into chilled glasses and enjoy in good company!

In this juice I combined ingredients to maximize health benefits.

Carrots, ginger, lemon, grapefruit, and chili peppers are very good for your liver and your overall health.
Scientists in Australia found that compounds in chili peppers were able to prevent after meal insulin spikes. This occurs because chili influences receptors on the liver cells that allow excess of insulin to be cleared more quickly.
I added olive oil to aid the absorption of fat soluble vitamin A and carotenoids.
Peaches were added for their potassium, vitamin C, and choline content. Choline is known to support liver health.
Raw honey was added to support your immune system and to improve the taste of this incredibly spicy and slightly bitter juice.

The juice turned out really spicy. My husband joked that the ghost chili is called like that because it will turn you to a ghost if you eat too much of it. This gives me some ideas for Halloween recipes...

I hope that this recipe inspired you to your own creations. As always, remember to use organic ingredients whenever you can and to save the juice pulp. You can use it in your raw or cooked vegan recipes: add it to a soup, bread, or crackers. If this does not appeal to you - mulch or compost it.