Sangria

I absolutely love Sangrias and finally was able to make this at home. The ingredients are simple and you may choose your favorite red wine to go with it. Sangria is named after the latin word for "blood" - "sanguis " because of its typical dark-red color. Feel free to adjust the alcohol and sweetness as per your taste.


Ingredients:

•  750 ml red wine
• 1/4 cup brandy (optional)
• 1/2 apple, cut into small diced pieces
• 1/2 pear, cut into small diced pieces
• 1/2 an orange, seeds removed and cut into chunks
• 1 small peach cut into small diced piecess
• 2-4 tablespoons sugar
• Juice of half lemon
• 1/4 cup apple juice

Method:

Mix all the ingredients, refrigerate for 1-2 hours and serve cold in wine glasses.

Pineapple Shikanjivi

An ideal summer drink. This recipe will serve 2 people.

Ingredients:

• 1 large lemon 
• 2 teaspoons powdered sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1/4 teaspoon roasted cumin powder (bhuna jeera)
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed black peppercorn (kali mirch)
• pinch of black salt ( kala namak)
• pinch of salt
• 250 ml pineapple juice
• few fresh mint leaves (optional)
• 250 ml soda

Method:

• Squeeze lemon juice in a big bowl.
• Add powdered sugar, salt, roasted cumin powder, crushed black peppercorns, salt, pineapple juice, a few ice cubes, soda and mix well.
• Pour into a tall glass and serve immediately. Garnish with lemon slices and fresh mint leaves.   

 

Papaya Mango Smoothie

 Rich in Vitamin A and C - mango and papaya make a great combination. This recipe will serve 2-3 people.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup papaya chopped
• 1/2 cup mango chopped
• 1 cup yoghurt
• 3-4 teaspoon sugar ( adjust depending on how sweet the fruit is)
• 1/4 cup finely chopped mango and papaya for topping

Method:

• Blend all the ingredients till a smooth texture is formed.
• Pour in a glass and top with chopped mango and papaya bits.
• Chill for 20-25 minutes and serve. 

Tulsi ( Holy Basil ) Ginger Tea

My Tulsi plant is doing very well at this time of the year and I've been enjoying it's flavor in my tea. Tulsi has been used for thousands of years in Ayurveda for it's diverse healing properties. Ginger works wonders in the treatment of everything from cancer to migraines. 
This recipe is for 2 people.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 inch whole cinnamon stick
• 2 green cardamoms, crushed
• 2 teaspoon tea leaves as per taste(I use Indian Red Label)
• 8-10 washed tulsi leaves
• 1/2 inch washed and grated ginger
• milk and sugar to taste

Method:

• Bring the water to a boil in a saucepan along with cardamom, cinnamon stick, tulsi and ginger.
• Once water is boiling add tea leaves.
• Add milk and sugar as per your taste and boil tea for another few minutes.
• Strain tea and enjoy.

Aam Panna ( Green Mango Drink )

Aam Panna is popular Indian drink renowned for its heat resistant properties. This recipe will serve 6 to 8 people.

Ingredients:

• 1 raw green cooking mango or 2 cups peeled and sliced
• About 1 cup sugar adjust to taste
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt adjust to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon black salt
• 1 teaspoon dry roasted cumin seed powder
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Method:

• Peel the mango, slice them in large pieces and remove the seed.
• Boil the mango slices in about 2 cups of water till the mango slices are cooked well. It should take about 15 minutes.
• After mango cools off, mix all the ingredients with the mango.  Add sugar and salt slowly by adjusting to the taste. Some like to have this drink sweet while others prefer the sour taste so please adjust the salt and sugar as per your taste. I prefer the sweeter version.
• Blend the mango mix and make a puree.
• Strain the mango puree and add about 5 glasses of 8 oz cups of water.  Panna's consistency is similar to orange juice.
• Serve over the ice and put fresh mint leaves as garnish. You can keep the undiluted panna concentrate (without adding water) in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Mango Milkshake

Come summers and we all love to indulge in everything mango. My all time favorite and super easy to make.

Ingredients:

• 3 small ripe mangoes (or use 1 large mango). You can use frozen mangoes for this recipe. You can vary the amount of mangoes/puree depending on how strong you prefer the taste of mangoes in your milk shake.
• 1/4-1/2 tsp cardamom powder (start less and increase as per taste)
• 2 tbsp sugar (depends on the sweetness of mangoes)
• 1 cup milk (fat free/low fat also works)
• Ice cubes
• 1 dollop of vanilla/strawberry ice cream (optional)

Method:

• Peel the mangoes (if using fresh) and add the pulp to a blender.
• Add the milk and cardamom powder. Start with the minimum - since some may find the flavor of cardamom too overpowering. You can skip using it too.
• Blend it well until frothy along with ice cubes. Taste and add sugar if needed and give it another whirl if adding.
• Pour into glasses, top with ice cream of your choice and enjoy. 

Watermelon Agua Fresca

This refreshing drink is popular in Mexico and is perfect to quench your summer thirst. "Aguas" in Spanish means "water" and "Frescas" meaning "Fresh".

Ingredients:

• Approx 4-5 cups of watermelon (seeded and cubed)
• 1-2 cups of water, as required
• sugar/honey/agave nectar to taste
• 2-3 tbsp of fresh lemon juice (I used the juice of one large lemon since I love the taste)
• few mint leaves for garnish
• crushed ice to serve

Method:

• Pulse watermelon using little water in batches.
• Add water - you may adjust water content to make it thick or thin in consistency as per your taste. Also adding ice cubes tends to water it more later when it melts.
• Filter this using a sieve. Add the rest of the ingredients according to taste.
• Serve chilled. Using sweet watermelons makes it possible to add less sugar and enjoy natural goodness more.