What to do With Left-Over Juice Pulp

There's always an excuse to avoid eating healthy, sliding back into the comfort zone and procrastinating on what will move you forward. What I find though, is that if you gently FORCE yourself to make the right choice (for you), and follow through with it, the rewards are much greater than ever expected. Juicing is like this for me and I assume some of you, too. You have to drag that bulky juicer out from hibernation, or even just pull it away from the wall TO you, thoroughly wash and prep all the produce, and anticipate the messy clean-up the entire time. That's one sour way to look at it for sure.

Another perspective is that you GET to have a quiet meditation with yourself, a time of silence in the morning (before you turn on the juicer of course) in full appreciation of the fresh fruits and veggies and all they will give to you in the moments to come, and far beyond. Health is a commitment that pays off in both the short-term and long-term, and without it, everything else means less. We can make excuses to not juice because of inconvenience, time, or clean-up, OR we can do it anyway because we know just how incredibly powerful it is - it's an infusion of liquid vitamins into your bloodstream!

Once your juice is waiting for you with a slight froth on top, what's the best way to proceed with all that left-over pulp? Here are some simple ideas so you can let go of feeling like you're wasting, and that juicing isn't worth the hassle. It is.

These are a combination of my ideas, as well as ones I took from the Encyclopedia of Healing Juices book, by John Heinerman.

1) Give it to your hungry dog. I store my pulp in glass containers in the fridge and feed him a couple scoops per day.

2) Use it for compost! There's tons of info online about the how's and why's, and if you have an organic vegetable garden or small yard, this should be something you research. Then, use that healthy soil to grow your own organic food!

3) Some sulfur-based pulps (cabbage, kale, onion) can be used as an injury remedy, an external poultice for burns to disinfect and promote rapid tissue regeneration (if the burn isn't too extensive or deep). Cabbage has long been used to reduce swelling, especially of joints (if you twist or sprain your ankle) in other parts of the world. Wrap cabbage leaves around the area with a towel or wrap after softening them in hot water.

4) Sooth inflammation with carrot, cucumber, pumpkin and squash. Use the pulp, cover and heal the eczema, psoriasis, shingles, and sunburn. When applied to the skin, these beta-carotene-rich veggies are very cooling. They can be used to help lower fevers and can be placed on the face, neck, chest, and abdomen.

5) Erase wrinkles! Tighten loose skin with fruit and veggie pulp face masques that are bursting with anti-oxidants! Create your own at-home healing spa. Citrus is excellent for older women who would like to get rid of distressful crow's feet around they eyes, sagging in the face/cheeks, and loose skin on the throat area. For younger women, the same application will ensure you age gracefully. Be sure to replenish with a soothing, nutritious moisturizer.

6) Enhance and create new versions of salads! Add onion pulp to bean salad (this one isn't too common, but it's an idea anyhow), grape and pineapple pulp to carrot salad, carrot, date, apple, and celery pulps make an easy coleslaw, and add your leafy green pulp to a potato salad. You get the idea.

7) Save it for upcoming raw food recipes! Check out the multitude of raw food recipe books for yummy ways to incorporate the pulp into your scrumptious dishes.

8) Any excess can be put into your food waste bin and discarded if necessary.