Sunshine Happy Juice

Yoo Hoo! I'm nearing the end of a Big Summer Juice Detox. 7 days of juice only deliciousness -and in this heat, turns out it's the perfect way to stay cool, hydrated and well fed. Hooray for Summer. Hooray for Juicey Highs and Hooray for Me!

There is a fully worked out plan that you can follow and if you are interested and fancy a go. I warmly recommend www.juicemaster.co.uk (there's an Australian site too). You don't have to buy the book, although if you are new to juicing then Slim4Life or the 7lbs in 7 Days books will set you up really well. Or you can simply follow along using the app or the wall chart - both are pretty cheap.

This is not the juice you are looking for**

You do need a juicer and a decent blender. Other than that - it's a trip to the fruit and veg shop & you're off! Expect headaches and some detox symptoms if you are a dedicated sugar and caffeine fiend - by day 3 or 4 you'll be over the worst and jumping about like a toddler!

Now then - I'm not as excited by the juices on the 7 Day Plan as I am a fan of Jason Vale's other juice plan recipes  so I have gone off piste with a few of my own - using the fruits and veggies that are good and cheap in my local grocery shops.

(I live on the longest street of independent shops in the UK - so I am a lucky duck. Throw a grape and you'll hit a grocery store. Then there are the deals on at the local supermarket and several local organic box suppliers not to mention the Sunday fruit and veg market! 

Yesterday on my way back from yoga, I scored a huge bag of nectarines and some baby gem lettuces for a song. I don't mind if the nectarines don't soften as they ripen - because I'm planning on slinging them in the juicer!)

To the recipe!

Celebrate Our Independent Bristol Shopkeepers | buy local

I am in the middle of writing a little call to arms, to encourage Bristolians to shop the Gloucester Road this Christmas. Here for the foodies are 5 reasons to venture up Britains' longest independent high street in plenty of time for the Seasonal Scoff-fest!

1. How about plump bangers, organic birds, free-range eggs and cheese as well as more delicious deli items than Harrod's Food Hall? Try M.J. Dalton at No. 409 for locally sourced pasties & pies, W.G. Stutt at No. 226 for more traditional offal, or Dave Giles at No. 170 for organic meat & wonderful ham. If that isn't enough for you, the legendary T&PA Murray also has an amazing cheese & deli counter - stocked with every type of cheese you can think of and some you can't.

Tip | Always check with your local butcher for the best time to put in your Christmas meat order and if you're after cheese from Murray's close to the big day - be ready for long queues.

2. Only two of the best bakery shops in Bristol! The wonderful Joe's - for proper old school baked goods alongside more fancy items like Bertinet bread and seasonal cakes. Joe's also bake proper job pasties and sausage rolls fresh every day and are rammed every lunchtime so get there early. I'll have a couple of bakewell tarts if you're askin'.

Further down you'll find The Breadstore at No. 45. There is almost always a queue outside this shop at lunchtimes and Saturdays - but it is well worth the effort. Our family survey of mince pies last year voted this bakery's mincers the best in town. I promise you we left no pie - uneaten...

3.Then there's The Real Olive Company shop. This Bristol based company have a little restaurant/cafe in town and you can find them at St Nicks too. On Gloucester Road they have a little deli shop chock full of deliciousness as well as wheat free bread offerings. Bonus! Apparently Saint Raymond Blanc himself is nicking their ideas.

4. You'll also find Vietnamese, Japanese & Korean 'supermarkets' selling goodness knows what in beautiful packaging. You'll find noodles and rice of every type and flavour, miso, tofu and specialist ingredients for authentic Asian cooking - along with all the pots, pans and chopstickage you'll need to stage an alternative Turkey free celebration.  Gloucester Road also has a wonderful  Indian sweet shop which some of us would like to keep a secret. You can also find Polish, Turkish and Italian delis too.

5. Finally for this list, which is not exhaustive I admit. There is a very intriguing  new shop* just opened somewhere near the middle of this amazing street, selling wine and all things somelier to the good people of Bishopston. I spotted the perfect pair of wine glasses for my Pa, and Podge's eyes were out on stalks at the great choice of really rather good reds.

*so sorry, forgotten the name and it is waaay too chilly to charge out and check. Will update asap. xx

Don't take my word for it - hop on a 75/76/73 this weekend and come and explore this great street - don't worry about where you'll have lunch - lord we're positively bristling with coffee shops, cafes and restaurants and did I mention that on a Saturday T&PA Murray set up a bbq outside the butchers and sell burgers in a bun with onions and mustard.

You won't find Starbucks, Macdonalds, Costa Coffee, The Gap, Next, Primarni, Thorntons blah blah blandness.

What is not to love?