Recently in Juices Category

To kick off their 20th birthday celebration, Jamba Juice is offering a buy one, get one free deal. Through April 25, smoothie fans can visit their www.jambajuice.com, print out an anniversary coupon and take it in their nearest JJ store to biy any drink on the menu for themselves and get another drink, of equal or lesser value, for a friend for free. Or keep it for themselves for double the juicy fun.

To continue their anniversary celebration, the juice company will launch their weekday "Feel Good Specials", a limited time offer menu.

Here's the breakdown, for those who love fruit and granola, Ideal Meal Monday will offer the protein and fiber rich Ideal Meals for just $3; To get two of your favorite or try something new, there's Buy Two Tuesday which features a special pairing offer of the week. On Wake Up Wednesday, get a dose of slow cooked, steel cut oats for just  $2. Get $1 off all baked goods with a drink purchase on Tasty Thursday. To finish off the healthy week, Jamba gets back to their wholesome, delicious, healthy smoothie roots with All Fruit Friday - buy any 16 ounce All Fruit Smoothie for just $3.  The Feel Good Specials are available from April 25-May 31.

Adding to their All Fruit Smoothie line, Jamba launches their new Five Fruit Frenzy, a blend of blueberries, strawberries, banana, peaches, and mango - a great way to get your recommended fruit per day in one fresh beverage.

Jamba Juice plans to have a celebration for its 20th anniversary in San Luis Obispo, where the company was founded, on April 19th.

Enjoying the first full day of fall in triple-digit weather was not cool (pun intended).

Last week, I sought refuge from the heat with a tropical lunch at La Tropicana Fruits & Juices in West Covina.

Aside from the various fruit smoothies, waters, tropical ices and other cool treats, they also serve sandwiches, salads and tortas.

The sandwiches start at $4.45 with options of chicken, pastrami, ham, turkey, tuna, avocado and a BLT. 

Each sandwich comes with lettuce, tomato, cheese, mayonnaise, mustard, bell pepper and jalapenos. Avocado, extra cheese and bacon cost an extra 50 cents each.

I went with the ham sandwich on a telera bread, a thinner Mexican bread.   

I love these type of sandwiches because they taste homemade, like the ones my mom make. 

I liked that the ham was thinly sliced and everything else on the sandwich tasted fresh. There was a little more mayonnaise than I prefer and the bread wasn't toasted the way I like.

Warning: If you can't stand the heat of the jalapenos, order without or be sure to ask for only a few. In my sandwich, there was one in every bite.

It felt good having something light, but next time I'll try a torta or salad and see if they have more flavor.

I also ordered an extra-large serving of freshly squeezed "agua de mamey," or water-based juice of a tropical fruit that has a slight nutty taste to it.

The mamey really hit the spot - all fresh and cooled down with ice.

The prices for the "aguas frescas," or fresh juices, are $1.95 for a medium, $2.45 for a large and only 50 cents more for an extra-large.

Tortas start at $5.45, green salads start at $2.45 and fruit salads start at $2.75. Fruit party trays are also available.

If this hot weather keeps up, I might have to return for a raspado (snow cone) or chamango (slushed ice mixed with small pieces of mango, chamoy, a sweet and spicy syrup, chili powder and lemon), all enjoyed with a spoon.

La Tropicana Fruits & Juices is at 1324 W. Francisquito Ave., Unit C5, at Sunset Ave. in West Covina. For more information, call (626) 919-1920.

By Claudia S. Palma

I've passed by Tortas Sinaloa plenty of times as I drive through Baldwin Park and it always catches my eye, mainly because of the name.

My mom and many of my family are from Sinaloa, Mexico. Even though I lived there for a few years when I was younger, I don't recall much about the city, especially its food.

I visited Los Mochis, Sinaloa, for a few days a few years ago but mainly ate at my uncle's house and at the neighbors'. It was neat to see how many households set up little shops selling various types of small food plates - such as tacos, rice and beans, tortas and more - right from their front door. No license or grading from any governing body needed.

But tortas as I thought I knew them were not the same in Sinaloa.

It all depends on the ingredients. Tortas are usually made using a telera bread, which is thinner and wider than a bolillo, another Mexican bread. 

In Los Mochis, my aunt would make me a sandwich using a telera and fill it with beans and maybe sprinkle some queso fresco, a crumbly, mild, unaged white cheese. This sandwich was called huaraches or sandals. Before that visit, I would have just thought it was a torta with beans and cheese.

I was very curious to see what served as tortas at Tortas Sinaloa.

The restaurant, situated in a little strip of shops in the Home Depot lot right off the 10 Freeway, had a simple yet roomy interior.

The tabletops are embelisshed with a colorful fruit design and the walls are decorated with beautiful murals.

The counter to the right was lined with a row of large plastic containers filled with agua fresca, freshly made water-based fruit beverages.

The tortas menu had several choices, from the simple ones with meat and avocado or meat and cheese to combos and specialties, each with its own special name.

The Cancun torta ($4.99) was a chicken milanesa (thinly sliced and breaded) with ham, cheese, avocado and a slice of tomato. The Hawaii ($3.99) comes with ham, pineapple, cheese, avocado, tomato, onion and lettuce.

I decided to go all out and try the Sinaloa Especial ($5.99), which came with ham, milanesa, salchicha (sliced and grilled hot dog wiener), shredded chicken, cheese, avocado and tomato.

The soft, grilled telera bread was thin enough not to take over the sandwich and thick enough to hold everything in. 

I loved the combination of meats inside, though the grilled greasy taste of the milanesa and the salchicha overpowered the chicken and the ham.

Next time I think I will try one of the more simpler tortas like the pastor con aguacate, which is marinated pork meat and avocado with lettuce, tomato and onion for $4.75.

I also had to try one of the aguas frescas, sitting there all nice and cold. I had a choice of lemon, horchata, watermelon, a fruit blend, melon, jamaica and tamarind. I went with the refreshing melon or cantaloupe melon. Kid's size is 99 cents, medium $1.99 and large for $2.35. It totally hit the spot on a hot day.

Tortas Sinaloa also offers tacos, burritos, quesadillas, chimichangas, and other side offerings like the molletes I ordered for $2.99.  

Why they are called molletes I don't know, but they are half slices of telera bread grilled and topped with beans, chorizo or sausage and cheese.

There is also sweet molletes, which my brothers and I used to make as kids even though we didn't know what they were called at the time. We would just get some teleras or bolillos, slice them, grill them, smear some butter and sprinkle sugar on top - delish and cheap!

They also offer smoothies, mixed juice drinks and other desserts like flan and banana split.

Tortas Sinaloa has two locations in Corona, another in Fontana and one in Tijuana, Mexico, if you ever travel that way. 

I don't know when I'll make it to Los Mochis again but now I have another point of reference for tortas.

Tortas Sinaloa is at 14510 Towne Center Dr., S-C, in Baldwin Park. For information and to-go orders, call (626) 338-9555.

By Maritza Velazquez

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. But for me, it's almost nonexistent. I enjoy my sleep and I'm not willing to wake up even a few minutes earlier to prepare myself some eggs or even a piece of toast.

On weekdays, I let my stomach rumble for a while before I scurry off in pursuit of a meal. 

The weekends are the only exception, when I occasionally indulge in my favorite breakfast foods - French toast, pancakes or omelets. 

In lieu of the same old dishes at Denny's or IHOP, I've recently opted for Cafe Verona, a quaint bagelry in Diamond Bar. The place is nothing spectacular but it has unique food offerings, as well as a wide selection of coffee and other beverages. 

On some Sunday mornings, I head to the cafe for the bagel omelets, which range from $4 to $5. They have a few choices, including my favorite, the veggie bagel omelet.

For $3.35, it comes with bell peppers, tomatoes, onions and cheese. The omelet is cooked and placed between the toasted bagel of your choice. For me, it was onion. 

Other bagel options include spinach parmesean, jalapeno cheese, cranberry, chocolate chip sourdough and garlic.

If you want to take some bagels home with you, it'll cost you $9.95 for a dozen. 

There's also a special - for $3.95 you get a small coffee and choice of plain, veggie, ham or bacon bagel omelets. 

I also tried the strawbana smoothie for $3.95, made with real strawberries, bananas and vanilla yogurt. 

If you go for lunch, there's a lunch special - a ham, turkey or tuna sandwich with potato salad and dill pickles for $4.25. 

For healthy alternatives, there are pocket sandwiches prepared in pita bread, as well as a good selection of salads. 

The cafe has a great patio with bistro tables and shaded by a verdana. Most times when I come here, I order a coffee and some breakfast and sit down with a newspaper. 

Others do the same and it's a nice place to meet up with a small contingent of friends. 

Cafe Verona is located in the Ralph's shopping center, 1138 S. Diamond Bar Blvd. in Diamond Bar. For more information, call (909) 860-2044.

Dining on a budget:

Craving a fresh lunch one day, I decided to go Super.

Super Bionicos in Baldwin Park is a little shop along a small strip mall on Ramona Boulevard that offers a variety of fresh fruit items, smoothies, sandwiches and, of course, bionicos.

Bionicos are a Mexican specialty dessert that features a mix of fresh cut fruits topped with a sweetened condensed milk and cream mixture, shredded coconut, granola and raisins.

They are made to order if you prefer just one type of fruit, and if you would like cottage cheese or yogurt instead of the cream mixture.

For awhile now I have been waiting for the Jamba Juice (www.jambajuice.com) in West Covina to feature the chain's new breakfast menu, and now it's here! Yay!

I first tried the new breakfast blends at the Jamba Juice in Eagle Rock and fell in love.

I'm not that crazy about yogurt, especially alone, but when it's blended with fruit and juices, and I can't tell there is yogurt inside, it's yummy and adds a nice consistency to the blend.

The new breakfast menu features three granola toppers - blends featuring yogurt, juice, fruit and any other extra add-ins (peanut butter for those pb lovers) - topped with fresh granola, eaten with a spoon, of course.

I have tried the mango-peach topper and the berry topper, but the mango is my favorite. The granola is not too hard and tastes fresh and crunchy.

The yogurt-fruit blend is thick enough to hold the granola on top until the blend begans to melt, but I like to mix it into the blend to get a good amount of granola with every scoop.

And because it's made thicker than the usual drink blends at Jamba Juice, you might find bits of what I like to call little treasures - chunks of fruit.

Of course, even though these are listed under the breakfast meals, they make a great healthy snack anytime.

A 12 oz. serving is 390 calories with 7 grams of fiber, 10 grams of protein, and a healthy dose of vitamins A, C and calcium.

I already had some for breakfast this morning at the West Covina Jamba Juice but I may just have to go back to the Eagle Rock location tonight after work!