In our health and trend conscious society, everywhere you look is juice, juicing or cleanses. From magazines to Instagram, juicing is the latest health craze to whittle your waist and detox your body. Recently I popped into Peeled Juice Bar to get myself a green juice and give this thing a try.
I ordered the Forever Young juice, an energizer and immune system booster with greens, celery, apple, lime and parsley. While it tasted fresh and I felt healthy after drinking it, the price tag left me a little hurt. How much did they get for a 12 oz. juice? $5.94—with a WildCard discount. While I am all up for a healthy and beneficial product, I wanted to see if I could recreate this juice at home. Keep reading for my juice showdown and see who really is the winner, Peeled Juice or my at-home version.
Convenience/ Time
Ignoring travel times, it took five minutes for my juice to be made at Peeled. At home, it took me 10 minutes to shop for the ingredients, 5 minutes to chop up the veggies and 5 minutes to blend. In total, that was 20 minutes spent creating my juice.
Of course, it is much more convenient to have someone make it for you, as opposed to blending for a bit, then stirring, then blending some more.
Winner: Peeled
Price
As I mentioned before, the Peeled juice was $5.94 with a WildCard. At home I went to Jewel to shop. The ingredients were purchased by the pound and the breakdown is as follows:
-Celery: $1.00/ pound
-Apple: $1.49 /pound
-Greens: $1.00/ pound
-1 lime: 50 cents
-Parsley: 79 cents a bunch
The total price was $4.78, but when I blended up all the ingredients it made a huge portion. There was a total of 36 ounces made, so it was actually $1.60 per 12 ounces.
Winner: At home
Flavor
Because both drinks were made with identical fresh ingredients they had the same flavor profile. The celery and lettuce were the dominating flavors but are balanced out by the sweetness of the apple. The lime added a hint of citrus and parsley added a fresh grassiness.
The flavor of both, although not yummy like a Frappuccino, was very fresh and nutritious.
Winner: Tie
Consistency
This category, besides price, was where I noticed the greatest difference. At Peeled, they use a juicer, so their juice was smooth and a completely blended liquid.
At home I used a blender, so it was much thicker. In defense of this more smoothie-like juice, it is a lot more filling. This at-home blend has the potential to be a meal replacement, but the Peeled Juice is definitely not substantive enough.
Winner: At home
Nutrients
While both the juice at Peeled and the smoothie at home contain vitamins and minerals from the fresh produce, a juicer extracts the juices from the fruits and vegetables but leaves behind the skin. In contrast, a smoothie keeps all of the skin in your drink, which is where most of the nutrients and fiber are located. In the health category, the smoothie prevails.
Winner: At home
Overall
The final tally of this juice showdown is Peeled: 1 v. At home: 3, so the at home smoothie is the winner! If you are looking for an upscale treat, go to Peeled; if you are trying to incorporate greens and healthy living more consistently go with the smoothie. It saves money, is relatively easy to make and can be used as a meal replacement. My consensus: just because celebs spend hundreds on juices does not mean we need to.