Blenders can handle some juicer recipes.  One advantage blending has over juicing is that it uses the whole fruit or vegetable, while juicing will discard the pulp.  This way you also get all the fiber in your juicer recipes and there is no chance of discarding wet pulp after you’re done juicing.

Another great thing about blenders is how affordable they are.  Nowadays, you could get a small, single serve blender for as little as $20.  That sure is less than the $100 for a centrifugal juicer, or $250 for an auger juicer.

It is also easy to make smoothie recipes with a blender.  Throw in fruit, ice, yogurt, and whatever else you want, turn it on, and you have your smoothie.  Centrifugal juicers cannot do that.  An auger juicer can, although it is more cumbersome to do so than with a blender.

The problem is that by blending produce without really extracting the juice from the pulp, you are just mashing it up for a thick pulpy drink.  It will be difficult to make the juicer recipes that use tougher produce.  For example, watermelons (including with the rinds) are not really a problem because of their high juice content – though you may need to add some additional liquid.  On the other hand, pineapples can be troublesome, much more so if you want the rinds in your juicer recipes as well.  Greens such as broccoli and spinach are really difficult, and will require you to add a lot of liquid, such as water, to actually blend them.  Worst of all, blending is a more violent action on the produce which traps more air and promotes oxidation, further reducing nutritional content.

I have two blenders – a Back to Basics Blender Express and a Kitchenaid 5-speed blender.  The Back to Basics Blender Express goes for $18 on Amazon.com and is such a great blender.  The container has a handle so it acts as a mug, making it the perfect single serve blender.

The Kitchenaid 5-speed blender is…alright.  It is powerful, but it is a big unit with a big jar that is made for heavy usage.  Its heavy glass jar makes it a pain to clean.  The blade is relatively small compared to the base, and the jar is not optimally shaped for blending.  It was built for very large blending tasks, so it is practically useless for small jobs.  I hate to admit it, but I get a lot more use out of my simple Back to Basics blender.

Chances are you already have a blender.  If you’re open to the possibility of juicing, you can see how blending works for you.  However, no blender can ever substitute a juicer in making your juicer recipes.

One of the most notorious unjuicables is the banana.  Bananas are too soft, and contain little juice compared to other fruits.  It is very difficult for a juicer to separate the little juice in the pulp.  This will cause your juicer to clog, and will leave a bunch of mush that is a pain to clean.  Bananas go great with many fruit juicer recipes, so it is unfortunate that you cannot throw it in your juicer.  However, if you have a blender handy, you can juice all the other ingredients separately, then blend the bananas with the juice.  You may or may not find it to be too much extra trouble though.

Avocados are another troublesome fruit.  They have a buttery texture that is very soft and contains very little juice, which will create a pasty mess to clean up.  Again, you can get around this problem with a blender, but there are very few juicer recipes that need an avocado anyway.

Leafy greens can be juiced, but depending on your juicer, it may not be worth it.  They contain very little juice, so it would take an auger juicer or a gear juicer to get the most out foods like spinach or broccoli.  Centrifugal juicers will have a tough time with leafy greens, though it will suffice for getting some greens in your juicer recipes.

Other produce include coconuts and mangos.  I have not ever tried juicing a coconut, but some sources say that you cannot juice a coconut.  Generally, mangos can be juiced, but it depends on how capable your juicer is.  Personally, I have never had a problem with mangos with my Omega 8005 auger juicer.

If you want to take juicing seriously, then an auger juicer is the way to go, as they are extremely versatile.  They can juice vegetables, fruits, and even wheatgrass to make limitless juicer recipes. They also have other functions, including the capability to make nut butters, grind coffee beans, homogenize foods, and some can even make homemade pasta!

An auger juicer works with a rotating auger that will literally crush and press the juice out of your produce, which extracts an incredible amount of juice.  It rotates at a very low RPM, which generates little heat.  Because there is less heat, there is less oxidation, which means that less nutrients and enzymes are killed off in the juicing process.  Another benefit of a low RPM is how little noise it makes.  Compared to other juicers, such as a centrifugal juicer, an auger juicer creates much heartier and more nutritious juicer recipes.

An auger juicer is the best juicer for “green” foods, such as wheatgrass and leafy greens, whose juice is hard to extract.  Wheatgrass is a popular juicing food known for its high chlorophyll content.  Leafy greens include lettuce, broccoli and spinach.  Foods that cannot be juiced are soft produce, such as bananas and avocados, which will cause it to clog and leave an annoying mess to clean, since they contain relatively little juice.  However, these types of produce are generally not used in juicer recipes.

If you choose to purchase an auger juicer, then expect to spend some money.  Then can range anywhere from $200 and up.  However, it is easy to justify the price with the many uses and the many juicer recipes you can create, though the biggest advantage it has over a centrifugal juicer is the health benefits.  It can press a lot of juice out of fruits and vegetables, while preserving more of the enzymes and nutrients.  The auger juicer that I use is the Omega 8005.  It is an excellent machine and I have never been unhappy with it since the day I got it.

If you want something primarily for juicing vegetables, wheatgrass, or just about anything in the kitchen, and if you don’t mind spending more for a juicer that will really get the most out of your juicer recipes, you should definitely invest in an auger juicer.

Omega 8003 Juicer Review – Part 1 – Watch today’s top amazing videos here

Centrifugal juicers work by shredding the produce inside a cylinder that is spinning very fast.  As it shreds, the high speed the cylinder rotates at forces (with centrifugal force) the pulp along the sides of the cylinder.  The sides act as a strainer, and separate the juice from the pulp.  It does a great job of juicing most fruits and vegetables, from apples to carrots.  However, it is not very effective at juicing wheatgrass and leafy green vegetables such as spinach or parsley, so be wary of what ingredients some juicer recipes call for.

Because it moves very fast (about 3600 RPM), it will be quite noisy.  Also, you will have to stop juicing after about every one quart of juice to discard the pulp yourself.  Yet another downside is that heat generated from the fast moving parts can kill off some important enzymes and nutrients.  However, exactly how much of enzymes and nutrients destroyed in the process are greatly debated.

There are two types of these juicers – centrifugal and centrifugal ejection.  They both operate the same way, with the only difference being that the ejection juicer will…eject…the pulp automatically into a bin which makes discarding it easier.  In order to be able to automatically remove the pulp itself, a centrifugal ejection juicer has to spin even faster, as high as 14000 RPM.  This makes it by far the noisiest.

A good quality model will cost around $100. There are also high-end ones that cost over $200, but I would recommend against them.  If you are willing to spend that much, then you should look into purchasing an auger juicer.  In the end, a centrifugal juicer is well worth the price and is a great addition to your kitchen to get started with some easy juicer recipes!