When Monday arrived this week I was very tired from the weekend. We had a pretty hectic and busy weekend, which led to a lot of not-so-great eating or resting and to top it all school started this week too. Although I am sad to see the summer vanishing away, I must admit that I am glad to get the kids back into a routine at home. Feeling as tired as I was and starting another busy week of work and school, I almost felt like I needed a super power of some sort. I opened my fridge and stared at my beautiful beets from the CSA share. It was almost like I could hear my grandma in the background reminding me why I had to finish the last drop of beet juice she made me, along with reciting all the benefits it had.

Raw beet juice is a very common drink in Venezuela. We call it batido tres en uno; which translates to a 3 in 1 juice. Very simple, all it takes is orange juice blended with carrots and beets. There you can find this juice in any restaurant menu. Grandma used to say it was good for blood cells, the heart and to boost your energy. I guess after all grandma knew her stuff. Here is a quote from Dr. Oz about the benefits of beet juice:

“Known for decades as a liver-protective food, beets may not be the newest kid on the superfood block, but mounting research is showing why you should take another good look at this root vegetable in juiced form.
Research is showing that juicing beets gives patients more energy, this may be due to the ability of components in the juice to improve blood flow”

From <http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/benefits-beet-juice>

Since I was in definite need of an energy boost, I decided to whip up a different version of grandma’s three in one juice. Adding apple and ginger made this colorful, sweet and satisfying raw beet juice just the perfect energy booster snack for my Monday morning. Because I can’t just have all of the good stuff for myself here is how to make it 🙂 – I suppose it would work best if you have a juicer, I don’t have one so I used my smoothie blender. Drink up and enjoy!

Ingredients:
(makes about 2 1/2 cups or enough for 2 servings)

1 Cup raw beets, cleaned and peeled
1 1/4 Cup carrots, peeled
1 1/2 Cup freshly squeeze orange juice, (about 3 large oranges)
2 Cups golden delicious apple, peeled and cored
1 Tablespoon ginger root
1 cup water

All the measurements are after the fruit and vegetables have been cut up into about 1 inch pieces.

Add all the ingredients into a blender, blend on high for about two minutes. Add more water if needed. Pass the mixture through a strainer, use the back of a spoon to push down and help you strain all the juice out. Discard the pulp. Refrigerate the juice before serving or serve immediately over ice or just as is.