If you’re a juicing enthusiast and make several batches of juice a week, you probably know the importance of minimal pulp in your juice recipes. Pulp doesn’t contain much more than fiber, and the nutrients from the fruits and vegetables you’re juicing can all be found in the juice itself.
You can drink your juice pulp if you want, but it’ll mean you consume a lower concentration of nutrients per glass of juice. Pulp is filling and takes up space in the glass, leaving less room for the nutritional juice.
Even if you don’t want to drink the pulp, it might seem a shame to throw it away. If you’re trying to cut down on your food waste, there are several options for using your juice pulp that are well worth considering.
Read on for the top ways to use your juice pulp rather than throw it away.
1. Make Popsicles
Popsicles taste delicious with a bit of added texture. If the weather is warm and you want a change from your usual batch of juice, try freezing it to enjoy in popsicle form.
To make your own popsicles using juice pulp, simply make a batch of your favorite juice and pour some of the pulp into your popsicle molds. Fill the molds with juice, then freeze for several hours, or overnight. When your popsicles are frozen, remove them from the freezer for a cool, juicy treat.
2. Dye Your Clothes
Both fruit pulp and veggie pulp can be used as a dye for clothing. If you’ve ever spilled beetroot on your shirt, you’ll know first-hand just how effective certain types of fruits and vegetables can be as a dye.
To make dye from leftover juice pulp, add the pulp to a pan and boil it. You may need to add a little water if the pulp is particularly dry. Strain out the chunks. The remaining liquid is your dye.
Keep in mind that you’ll need to be thoughtful about the produce you’re juicing if you want to achieve a particular colored dye. Juice too much produce at once, and your pulp will end up being brown.
3. Make Dog Treats
Making your own dog treats from leftover juice pulp is a much more affordable, creative alternative to buying treats from the store. Plus, you can dictate exactly what goes into them, so you can be sure your furry friend is eating healthily.
To make dog treats from fruit and veggie pulp, I recommend the following recipe:
Combine two cups of juice pulp with 1/3 cup natural peanut butter, half a cup of gluten-free rolled oats, and 1/4 cup ground flaxseeds.
Some good fruits and veggies to use are carrots, cucumbers, apples, kale, celery, lettuce, spinach, pears, and melons.
Please keep in mind that certain fruits and veggies are toxic to dogs – learn those that are and aren’t in this article.
❗️ Avoid grapes, onions, and seeds from apples. Most dogs don’t enjoy citrus, so keep those out of your fresh juice recipes, too.
4. Use in Homemade Burgers
Adding leftover pulp to your homemade veggie burgers can introduce a new flavor dimension and help bind the burgers together.
Pulp made from spinach, carrots, beet, celery, cucumber and spinach will help your burgers maintain their shape and add more fiber to your dish. You could even add sweet fruit pulp made from beetroot or apple for something a little different.
5. Add to Baked Goods
Baked goods like muffins, cakes and cookies are all delicious, there’s no denying that – but they don’t typically contain much nutritional value at all.
Adding leftover pulp from your juicer will introduce a healthy dose of fiber into your baked goods. While this doesn’t automatically mean you can devour your batch of muffins entirely guilt-free, you’ll at least be fueling your body with something other than simple sugars and fats.
6. Make Pulp Crackers
Raw pulp crackers don’t sound like the most delicious thing in the world, but I would recommend trying them before judging them.
Being both vegan and gluten-free, pulp crackers are ideal for healthy snacking. They’re great when paired with dips like guacamole, hummus and tzatziki.
You can use any leftover pulp to make these crackers, but carrot pulp tends to work best.
Here’s the recipe:
- Combine 2 cups of fresh juice pulp with a quarter cup ground flaxseed, a quarter cup quinoa flour, 1 tablespoon of chia seeds, a sprinkling of salt, and half a cup of water.
- Roll out on a baking sheet, cut into cracker-sized pieces.
- Bake in the oven on a medium heat for up to 40 minutes.
7. Combine with Scrambled Eggs
Looking to fuel your body with healthy fruit and vegetable additions for breakfast? Try combining fresh fruit or vegetable pulp with your scrambled egg recipes in the morning.
Simply add the pulp to the pan with your eggs, then scramble as usual. This should add a unique flavor to your egg recipe, along with a good helping of nutrients.
8. Make DIY Skincare Products
Many of the commercial skincare products available today contain chemicals and preservatives that aren’t ideal for slathering onto our skin. A much safer, cleaner alternative is to make your own DIY skincare products using natural ingredients at home – and the pulp from your juicer can be used for this.
Mix your spare pulp with olive oil or coconut oil, then stir in a teaspoon of honey and apply to your face. Leave for half an hour before washing off. Alternatively, add sugar or oatmeal to the batch to create a healthy exfoliator that can be used as a natural dry skin treatment.
It’s best to use sweet-smelling pulp if you want to get a proper spa experience, so stick to fruit pulps such as strawberry and orange. Ginger is also a good choice, and carrot won’t produce too much of an earthy vegetable smell.
9. Whip Up A Healthy Dip or Spread
One of the simplest ways to use juice pulp is to create a fruit or vegetable dip.
You can be as creative as you want, here – there are lots of fruit and vegetable pulps that are ideally flavored for combining with bread, cheese and biscuits, or even other vegetables like carrot sticks and celery.
10. Turn it into Broth
Bone or vegetable broth is one of the most nutritional bases for soups and other savory dishes. Adding the leftover pulp from your juicer is a great idea, as it’ll introduce more fiber to the dish and add a new flavor to the mix.
Follow your usual broth recipe and stir in leftover pulp from juicing vegetables like carrots and greens. The pulp will thicken your soup and introduce new flavors for your family to enjoy.
11. Add it to Your Compost Bin
A final good use of fresh pulp from your juicer is to add it to your compost bin. The nutrition from the pulp will infuse into your compost, helping to enrich your garden’s soils for high-yielding, healthy plants.
Just be sure to mix the pulp into your compost to prevent bugs and other pests from paying an unwanted visit to your garden.
