Creamy Crunchy Muskmelon Smoothie

The muskmelon or cantaloupe,is the perfect fruit for people who want to lose weight because it isn't high in calories or sugar, and can work as a great snack for those in-between-mealtimes when hunger tugs you towards unhealthy food items.

Cantaloupe is one of the most common fruits often taken for granted. It is rich in Vitamin A which is required for healthy skin and fibre that prevents constipation and also commonly known to reduce body heat. However there are many additional health benefits which may not have been fully understood

Anti-coagulant:A unique compound in cantaloupe helps decrease the viscosity of the blood, hence preventing the abnormal formation of blood clots in the cardiovascular system.

Arteriosclerosis:Regularly consuming vitamin C retards the development of hardening of the arteries.

Cancer prevention:The high vitamin C content acts as a good anti-oxidant that protects cells from damages by free radicals.Regularly drinking juices high in anti-oxidants keep cancer at bay, especially against intestinal cancer and melanoma.

Cataracts:The natural vitamin A from beta-carotene in this juice lowers the risk of cataract and generally helps improve your vision too.

Cholesterol:Drinking juices high in anti-oxidant has been proven to fight the oxidative stress that is the main culprit in oxidizing the LDLs in the blood.

High blood pressure:Potassium in this rockmelon helps excrete sodium, thus bringing down high blood pressure especially in those with salt-sensitive hypertension.

Immune system:The strong content of vitamin C stimulates white cells to fight infection, naturally building a good immune system.

Insomnia:A special compound in cantaloupe relieves the nerves and calm anxieties.A help for insomniacs.

Menstruation problems:For women, drink this wonder juice around the time of menstruation and it will help reduce heavy flow and clots.

Muscle Cramps:A deficiency in potassium can cause muscular cramps and greater susceptibility to injury.Drink cantaloupe juice to prevent these.

Pregnancy:The high content of folate (folic acid) prevents neural tube defects in infants.

Quit Smoking:The natural nutrients and minerals found in this juice provides a synergistic combination that helps the body recover from nicotine withdrawal of one who is trying to quit smoking.Smoking also quickly depletes the vitamin A in a smoker, but cantaloupe juice can help replace it with its beta-carotene.

Stress:When going through a stressful period, keep this musky melon on the side and drink its juice regularly.The potassium content helps to rebalance and normalize the heartbeat. This in turn sends oxygen to the brain and regulates the body's water balance.

Water retention:Especially in pregnant women.Muskmelon juice helps your body excrete excess sodium, thus reducing water retention.

Source:http://www.juicing-for-health.com/cantaloupe-nutrition.html

This smoothie serves 4 glasses

Ingredients

• 2 cups diced musk melon
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 cup ice cubes

For toppings

• 4 finely chopped almonds
• 4 finely chopped pistachios
• 1 tbsp chopped red cherries

Procedure

Remove the skin of musk melon completely and cut into half and scrap the seed out and dice it into medium size cubes.

In a blender make a smoothie with all the above ingredients. Pour it in a serving glass and garnish with the nuts and serve immediately.

Note: 

1.Grinding the ice cubes with the musk melon makes it a perfect chilled smoothie.

2. Adding nuts is optional however it gives a wonderful nutty texture to the smoothie

Flavorful Carrot Rice

If you are looking for a colorful and tasty rice at short notice this carrot rice would make a meal wholesome.I prepared this for my hubby recently and his friends were raving for the recipe.

The trick to make this carrot rice more flavorful is to use shah jeera also known as caraway seed which used in biryaani and some other mughlai dishes for taste and fragrance.So here is the recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup uncooked basmati rice
• 1 cup grated carrot(aprox 4 medium size carrots)
• 1/3 cup chopped onions
• 3-4 green chillies
• 1/2 inch cinnamon stick
• 2 cloves
• 4 whole black papper
• 1/2 tsp shah jeera
• 1 tbsp + 1 tsp oil
• 1 tbsp ghee(clarified butter)
• salt to taste

Procedure :
Soak rice with enough water for 30 min then drain water completly,add 1.5 cup water and 1 tsp oil to the rice for non stickiness .Pressure cook it for 3 whistles and 3 min ,switch off the flame .Once pressure release open the lid ,spread the rice on large plate.

Heat ghee and oil in a pan,then add all the spices and once it starts to splutter add onion and green chilli,once onion starts to become translucent add the grated carrot and salt ,mix nicely and cook till carrot become soft.

Once carrot done add the cooked rice to it and mix nicely till rice blends nicely with carrot and spices,let it sit on the gas with low flame for 5 more min ,stir occassionally ,now your carrot rice is ready .Serve hot .

Note:

1.Transferring  the rice to large plate prevents over cooking and makes it more non sticky   

2.You can adjust the spice according to your taste .

3.You can add veggies like peas ,corn to make it more colorful n crunchy.

Jiffy Curly Tomato Pasta

It is very common to find this pasta discs nowdays and cooking pasta with cooker was new to me, and it was one of my little surprises when I cooked it.The basic recipe was shared on the pack but I added my own dimension.

The pasta is quick to prepare and feels more filling as it is easy to pick with your spoon and a lot of pasta sauce gets embeded within its curls to make every bite more delightful. It is made with durum wheat making it a healthy alternative to a regular snack or meal.

Ingredients

• 1.5 cup pasta discs
• 1/2 cup sliced onions
• 1 cup chopped tomatos
• 1/2 cup diced baby corn
• 1/2 cup chopped spinach
• 1/4 cup green peas
• 1 tbsp garlic ginger paste
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• 1/4 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp corn flour (optional)
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 cube grated cheese
• a pinch of turmeric
• salt to taste

Procedure
Mix corn flour with two tbsp water and keep aside. Heat oil in a pressure pan ,add onions and fry till its translucent,add garlic ginger paste,turmeric powder and fry for a min ,now add all veggies and fry for 2 minutes then add tomatoes and fry till tomatoes become soft,add chilli powder, salt, garam masala and fry till oil saturates,now add water ,for every cup pasta add 1.5 cup water.

Once water starts to boil add pasta curls mix and cover the pressure cooker with lid without the weight.After 1-2 minutes when the steam starts coming reduce flame to sim and simmer for 7-8 minutes.Switch off the gas.

Open the lid  and check if pasta is cooked else cook for another 1 minute. Add the corn flour mixture mix nicely and let it boil,add grated cheese and garnish with coriander leaves. serve hot.

Note: 
1. The cooking time of pasta may vary depending on the heat of your cooking range.

2. Feel free to add more veggies like mushroom, sweet corn , capsicum if you want to make it more colorful.

3. Without adding any veggies with just onion and tomatoes it tastes awesome.

4. Adding cornflour helps to thicken the sauce, you can replace it with tomato soup powder which will add more flavor and taste to pasta.