Confessions of a Juice Head: Breville Juice Fountain Plus changes the game

By April MacIntyre Apr 23, 2011, 18:18 GMT

The Breville JE98XL Juice Fountain Plus is a powerful 850-Watt juicing machine that will have you cleaning out the produce bin and buying bags of carrots and apples in no time.

For years I watched as the late, great Jack LaLanne extolled the virtues of juicing.

Mr. LaLanne talked about how important it was that middle-aged and older people really take charge of their health, as he shared his colorful anecdotes about when he met his wife, and how he got her to kick breakfast stickybuns and other typical American junk food.

Well, middle-age arrived when I wasn't looking, and now I am really interested in preserving health, vitality, and boosting my energy levels and managing my weight, which as so many of you already know is hard to do after 40. Especially when you are working at a desk most of the day.

The Breville Juicer is designed for people like me who want effective, fast and not pulpy, chunky juice (VitaMixer, I am talking to you) that is easy to take apart and rinse clean for the next use.

The Breville JE98XL Juice Fountain Plus is a powerful 850-Watt juicing machine that will have you cleaning out the produce bin and buying bags of carrots and apples in no time.

I wanted to replace my breakfast meal and my dinner meal with a glass of mixed vegetable and fruit combos, and started out timid: Apples, carrots, strawberries, some parsley and a bit of broccoli first. Not bad, but then I remembered I had some fresh ginger that I had frozen for stir-fry, and included that in the next go round.

That was the ticket for me, as the snap and flavor was enhanced as the fresh juice was made in seconds. Ginger took the edge of the green vegetable notes and just sparked the overall taste for me. I do chunks of fresh ginger now in all my juice blends.  I love adding fresh limes too.

If you prefer to start with a balanced, nutrition-rich eating plan, including just one glass of vegetable juice per day will make it easier to reach your weight loss goals.

The biggest plus of a juicing for weight loss program is that it stabilzes blood sugar levels, and adds micro-nutrients with a wealth of health benefits at a minimal calorie cost, and no fat. You will be downing highly concentrated enzymes, vitamins, and minerals necessary for vitality and a healthy immune system.

The Breville model that I tried out has an extra wide feed tube accommodates whole fruits like apples and pears, but I still core them before I put in, it saves a bit of wear and tear and I also hull my strawberries. Beets I scrub but do not peel, same for carrots. There are two speed settings adjust for everything from beets, broccoli to soft berries for the best results.

This is my very first experience with juicing, and the Breville Juicer comes with a recipe book are excellent. Helpful hint: the dry veggie and fruit pulp that is spit out into the pulp catcher can be used in gravies, soups, stews and as an ingredient in muffins and quick breads, so nothing is wasted.

The titanium blade and attached mesh filter comes with a special tool to clean it, and you must clean after every use; the juicing process forms a felt like film over the mesh and has to be properly cleaned to maintain this machine.

Breville Slim-Down Breakfast or Dinner Replacement Recipe

5 carrots
1 apple, cored
1/2 Persian cucumber
1/2 beet
1 rib of celery
1 chunk (1 inch) fresh Ginger root

(You can add a bit of Pineapple, strawberries or other juicy fruit to add more sweetness if desired). If you are retaining water, try a juice combo of fresh celery, cucumber, cranberries, strawberries, and watermelon.

Ginger is a considered a super food and used in Chinese medicine, natural root ginger has been used for centuries to clean the body of viruses and excess mucous from colds and flu. Ginger is loaded with essential oils such as gingerol, zingerone, shogaol, farnesene and small amounts of â-phelladrene, cineol, and citral. Ginger is good for the heart, settling the stomach and for motion sickness or pregnancy and may also help relieve migraine headache and arthritis pain.

Give it a try with any of your juice combinations you create! Talk back and share some of your recipes please!

Filmmaker Joe Cross is an Australian entrepreneur and investor who began his business career as a trader on the Sydney Futures Exchange where he worked from the early 1980s until 1998. Cross's film is a must-see, read some press coverage here

Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead - Official Trailer from Team FSND on Vimeo.