Knead Juice in Your Life

Get juiced in the morning with cucumber, beets, ginger, celery, carrots, and an apple!

I love juicing. I don't do it every day, but when I do, a refreshing 10-oz. shot of vitamins and minerals straight to the head in the morning fuels my entire day. It does a better job than coffee at waking me up (gasp!). 

 

What I don't like about juicing is the leftover pulp. All of those fruits and veggies, which in their whole form would have taken me 2-3 meals to consume, are reduced to a few smooth gulps, and their healthy fiber is supposedly destined for the worms? 

That didn't sit well with me, so I started contemplating ways we could use it. I don't make desserts very much, but we constantly bake bread. Seriously, rarely does a day go by when the house isn't filled with the essence of that fluffy, yeasty goodness. So, after perfecting the recipe, Alvaro and I created for your baking pleasure:

Veggie Heady Bready

You'll need:
A food processor
About 1 c. leftover pulp 

2 1/2 c. unbleached, unenriched bread flour
1 c. whole wheat flour
1 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. pure cane sugar
1/4 oz. (this is a rough estimate!) bread yeast
Extra virgin olive oil
1-1 1/2 c. very warm water

1. Blend pulp in the food processor until finely chopped and well-mixed, ya'll!
2. Add dry ingredients: both flours, salt, sugar, and yeast. Allow to mix well.
3. While processor is running, carefully pour a thin stream of olive oil for about three seconds. Don't you dare turn off that processor!
4. Here's the tricky part. I'm giving a range for the amount of water because the water you'll need for perfect dough depends on what your juice ingredients are and how long they've been sitting and drying out. I've made it with fresh juice pulp and only needed 1 c. of water; I've also let the pulp sit out overnight so that it dried out substantially and needed close to 1 1/2 c. H2O.
Anyway, pour a thin, even stream of water into the *running* food processor until the dough ball starts to form and gather the stray bits. Only stop the food processor when the blade actually gets caught a couple of times; that's when you know you've got a sticky, sturdy, well-beaten dough ball!
5. Lightly flour a baking sheet, and pull and shape the dough (with fold/crease always remaining on the same side) until you have your desired loaf:

Pink bread. Take that, green eggs and ham!

 6. Place loaf on sheet, and cover with a cloth napkin or dish towel and let rise for at least two hours. Preheat oven to 350F when it looks like it has risen enough.
7. Get creative and make you some artsy little cuts on top of the loaf. Then, bake at 350F for 45 minutes and BOOM! A beautiful, veggie-speckled, naturally nutrient-enhanced loaf to accompany all of your favorite foods... and all in the spirit of zero-waste.

:)