Baby's first wheatgrass shot
Today, I met with Jamba Juice's director of product marketing to discuss an exciting new line of smoothies debuting on Thursday. As we sipped and slurped, somehow the subject of wheatgrass shots came up.
Now, I'm not a shot girl-never have been. I can't get my throat to open up long enough to let the booze slide back; if I could, you better bet I'd be draining bottles of water in seconds to cure my constant dehydration. But wheatgrass shots - this is one of those things that you always see people do and think, “What? How? Huh? Could I do that?” But unlike, say, bungee-jumping or running with the bulls, this is something I could do - in theory.
So, Kristel and I ordered up two shots of wheatgrass, large orange slice chasers on the side. The manager of the store asked me what I had eaten that day and as I responded, “Watermelon, soup, bread…” I wondered, “Is this stuff actully powerful enough to make me pass out if I haven’t eaten heartily enough?“ But his reaction told a different story:
“OK, nothing too fatty. You should be fine.” Apparently, blenderized grass works like the diet drug Alli in that it can push fattening foods through your system faster than you can say “Immunity Boost.” And before I knew it, out came two cute little grass-decorated plates, two shot cups and two nice-sized orange wedges.
He filled our glasses with pure liquid green - the greenest green I ever did see. I’ll admit, I was a bit scared. OK, I was freaking out. The last time I incorporated a new food into my diet, it was at a raw food restaurant and I wound up head-first in a toilet. But when I smelled the juice, I was pleasantly surprised and instantly transported back to my childhood, rolling around in the fresh cut lawn just after dad had run a mower through it. I touched the tip of my tongue to the shiny surface and it tasted, much to my surprise, a bit sweet. Like grass, yes, but with a sprinkle of Sweet 'N Low.
It was now or never so I swallowed it - about 90% of the cup - and you know what? I was just fine. I didn’t get sick, I didn’t find myself clutching desperately for the orange (though I did grab it a few seconds later and the citrusy juice absolutely cut the Mother Earth vibe going on in my mouth…in a good way). I survived my first wheatgrass shot at Jamba Juice.
And eight hours and one awesome workout later, I actually think I’m craving another one.
Comments
I enjoyed your article! Wheatgrass will make you live until you are 100. Did the product manager mention what line of smoothies will they debut on Thursday?
Not sure if I'm supposed to say yet (make sure to visit your local store tomorrow)...but I can tell you this: I just did a SECOND shot of wheatgrass juice! Am I addicted? Oh no...
looove the wheatgrass shots. i also like to add it to smoothies - talk about a real superfood.
It's a psychologically satisfying drink, but like others embodies a lot of unsubstantiated claims. Would prefer definitely positive drinks like pomegranate because of the antioxidants, and would prefer to leave the grass concottions to the barn animals.
