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.

Exotic Jackfruit Seed Curry With Curd Rice

Sometimes we learn a dish from the most unexpected sources. Recently my house maid who is a good cook herself taught me this dish. I told her we normally fry the jackfruit seeds with salt and pepper but she mentioned we could make a special dish that compliments with curd rice. So she taught me this dish and it seemed pretty good to have with curd rice. You can give it a try too ...

Ingredient

• 20 jackfruit seeds
• 1/2 cup diced potatos
• 1/2 cup sliced onion
• 1/2 cup chopped tomatos
• 4-5 crushed garlic pods
• 1 tbsp coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/4 tsp cummin seeds
• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
• 1 tbsp oil
• salt to taste 

Procedure
Peel the soft outer flesh of the jackfruit seed,cut the seeds to 3 parts,heat oil in a pan ,add cumin seeds ,once it splutters add onion and garlic and stir ,once onion becomes translucent add jackfruit seeds,potato,turmeric ,salt and mix nicely.
Now add  water to just submerge the veggies,cover and cook on low flame,stir occasionally till jackfruit seeds become tender,then add tomato ,coriander powder,chilly powder and stir till tomato become mushy,add chopped cilantro ,mix it and serve with curd rice.

Note:
1.To make this curry instantly you can pressure cook the seeds n potato before itself.
2.Some time we face difficult to remove the outer flesh of the seed hit the seed with the pestle and it will loosen up and can tear the skin easily.

Curd Rice

Ingredients

• 1 cup raw rice 
• 3 cups water
• 3 cups milk
• 1 tbsp curd 
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 2 tbsp grated carrot
• 1 tbsp chopped cashew nuts
• 1 sping curry leaves
• 2-3 chopped green chillies
• 1 tsp oil 
• salt to taste

Procedure
Wash the rice properly and pressure cook the rice with 3 cups of water with 4 whistles on high flame  and 5 mins in low flame.Once it cools take the rice out and mash it with spatula as soft as possible in a large bowl,now add the milk and mix nice till rice and milk blend nicely.Then add the curd,carrot mix again.
To prepare the tempering heat oil in a small pan ,add mustard seeds,cashew nuts and fry in medium flame till mustard splutters then add green chilli,curry leaves and fry for 30 sec and add to curd rice. Let the curd rice sit for 1-2 hours

Note:
1.If you can make the curd rice in the morning itself and serve it at lunch time ,it will taste awesome as you made it fully with milk
2.If you have lack of time then in place of milk you can directly make it with curd but have to serve immediately otherwise curd rice will become sour    

Himalayan Salt The Real Salt We Should Use

Today I was at Nilgiris for my regular weekend shopping and I came across this himalayan rock salt with a characteristic pink color. I usually buy the iodized salt but when I researched a bit I am amazed by its nutritional benefits. I am sure you would want to consider to use this salt after reading the below information. 

Table Salt Vs Himalayan Pink Salt
Your table salt is actually 97.5% sodium chloride and 2.5% chemicals such as moisture absorbents, and iodine. Dried at over 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit, the excessive heat alters the natural chemical structure of the salt causing the potential for a myriad of health problems in your body.

Most of the western world thinks of salt as sodium chloride -- a highly refined, processed white substance that's devoid of nutrients. Salt is so devoid of nutrients, in fact, that in the early 20th century, doctors noticed that people who ate white table salt started to suffer chronic degenerative diseases such as goiter. This was caused by the lack of iodine in the salt.

Iodine deficiency, by the way, is the No. 1 most preventable cause of mental retardation. Eating processed salt that lacks iodine, in other words, can cause your offspring to be retarded.

Now what's really interesting about processed table salt is that it's missing over 80 minerals. But they only put ONE mineral back in -- iodine. That's because iodine is the one mineral that causes the most obvious disease (goiter is sort of hard to not notice).Iodine is a naturally occurring mineral in the ocean. It's abundant in seafood and in real sea salt, but it's completely missing from refined white table salt.

So they started adding iodine to table salt, creating "iodized salt.

"But why would you want to eat salt that's been artificially enriched with ONE mineral when you could be eating salt that naturally contains eighty-four minerals?

If you want your body to function properly, you need holistic salt complete with all-natural elements. Today’s common table salt is poison that has nothing in common with natural salt.

This Salt Is Over 250 Million Years Old
When you use pure Himalayan Crystal Salt, you receive 250,000,000 years of accumulated sunlight and energy, plus all the natural minerals your body needs for restoring balance and life force. Containing all of the 84 elements found in your body,(Chemical Composition of Human Body Vs Chemical Composition of Himalayan Pink Salt)

The benefits of natural Himalayan Crystal Salt include:

• Regulating the water content throughout your body.
• Balancing excess acidity from your cells, particularly your brain cells.
• Balancing your blood sugar levels and helping to reduce your aging rate.
• Assisting in the generation of hydroelectric energy in cells in your body.
• Absorption of food particles through your intestinal tract.
• Help in clearing mucus plugs and phlegm from your lungs – particularly useful in asthma and cystic   fibrosis.
• Acts as a strong natural antihistamine and helps clear up congestion in your sinuses
• Prevention of muscle cramps.
• Making the structure of your bones firm – osteoporosis can occur when your body needs more salt and takes it from your bones.
• Regulating your sleep – it is a natural hypnotic.
• Maintaining your libido.
• Preventing varicose veins and spider veins on your legs and thighs.
• Stabilizing irregular heartbeats – in conjunction with water it is actually essential for the regulation of your blood pressure

Source: http://www.perfecthealthnow.com.au/products/himalayan-salt-products/the-truth-about-table-salt/
Natural News: http://www.naturalnews.com/028724_Himalayan_salt_sea.html
The Miracle of Himalayan Pink Salt : http://godsblessing.com/SaltBook.pdf
Excerpt from the book Salt and Water:
http://www.himalayancrystalsalt.com/pdf/WSpgs96-105.pdf 
http://www.saltcave.us/salt_benefits.html

Blissful Cream of Sweet Corn Soup

The temparatures are falling fast in chennai with the onset of monsoon.There isnt any better way to celebrate this moment than having a wornderful soup that will warm your spirit with a wholesome taste of sweetcorn with a creamy flavor. This is one of my favorite soups so far ...
Ingredients

• 1 cup sweet corn kernels
• 1/4 cup finely chopped carrot
• 1/4 cup finely chopped beans
• 1 cup milk
• 3 cups water
• 1 tsp corn flour
• 1 tsp butter
• salt and pepper to taste

Steam the sweetcorn in microwave for 4 minutes. Take 1/4 cup sweet corn, make a fine paste and keep aside.Dissolve corn flour in 2 tbsp milk and keep aside.
Heat butter in a sauce pan, add carrot and beans saute nicely for 2-3 minutes in high flame. Now add the corn kernels and fry for 1 minute, now add milk and water, once it starts boiling add the corn paste, salt n pepper and mix nicely and let it boil for ten minutes in low flame. Now add the corn flour mix and let it boil to thicken the soup.
Serve warm with your choice of accompaniment.

Ragi Masala Dosa With Cauliflower Filling

In a fast paced lifestyle with all the junk entering our system the only solution is to start your day with the healthiest breakfast. And there is no better grain like ragi to have. Its nutritional benefits makes me wonder why we indians are moving away from this wonder grain.This dosa has a earthy and nutty flavor unlike a regular dosa but a lot tastier. You must try it to believe it !!
Ingredients

• 3 cup ragi flour
• 1 cup rice
• 1 cup urad dal

Filling

• 1 cup finely chopped cauliflower
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onions
• 1/4 cup finelt chopped tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tbsp oil
• salt to taste.

Procedure
Soak rice and urad dal for 4 hrs. Make a smooth paste with enough water. Add the ragi flour to it. Mix ricely with a spatula until all lumps dissapear. Ferment it overnight. Your dosa batter is ready for the next day.
For stuffing heat oil in a pan, add onions and fry till they become translucent. Then add cauliflower and sprinkle salt and cook till the cauliflower becomes soft.Add the tomatoes, keep stiring till it becomes soft. Add the chilli powder and chopped cilantro , mix well and switch off the flame and keep aside.

Heat tawa on a low flame , add one cup batter in the center and spread it nicely in a circular motion and spread one tbsp of  filling over it.Then increase the flame to medium and let it become crispy. Increase the flame to high for a few seconds for a golden crust, fold and serve hot with your choice of accompaniment.

The Iconic Black Forest Gateau

Do you want to make someone special to really enjoy a delicious cake.A cake filled with whipped cream and luscious red cherries for that perfect celebration ?
Yesterday was my hubbys birthday and I made this cake for him.It was a moment to cherish ... here is a recipe that can make any girl win her man's heart ...

Ingredients for the cake

• 125 gms all purpose flour
• 150 gms powder sugar
• 6 eggs
• 3 tbsp cocoa powder
• 2 tbsp cornflour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 pinch of salt

Baking
Preheat oven 190 C .Grease the baking pan, I used a 9 inch dia pan. Sieve the flour,cocoa powder, salt, baking powder and corn flour 3 times together.
Beat the eggs and sugar well with a beater approximately for 10 min or till it becomes fluffy. Add vanilla essence and beat for another minute.Now gently fold it with sifted flour and mix softly so that air does not escape. Now shift this batter to the baking pan.
Bake first ten minutes at 190 C and and reduce to 180 C.Bake for 30-35 minutes, check with a toothpick till its done. Once done let it sit for 5 min then remove the cake from the pan to a cooling rack to cool completely. Cut horizontaly into 2-3 layers.

For filling

• 1/2 tin canned cherries
• Juice of one lemon
• 1 tsp corn flour
• 600 ml whipped cream (I used 3 packs of Blue bird whipped cream)

Whisk the 3 packs of blue bird whipping cream with cold water as per instructions. Refrigerate it. Reserve half of the cherries for decoration and the remaining half can be finely chopped.
Mix 1 tsp of corn flour in 2 tbsp of cherry syrup and keep aside.Bring a  half cup of cherry syrup to boil and the above corn flour mix and boil till it thickens. Remove from the flame and add the add lime juice and keep aside to cool.

Assembly
Reserve half of the cream for icing the top, take the remaining half add the chopped cherries and mix nicely.
Place the bottom most layer of sponge cake on the serving plate, sprinkle 1/3 of prepared syrup and spread 1/3 of the cherry mixed whipped cream over it.Repeat the same with the remaining layers. Spread the remaining cream with the cherries on the top and sides.

Decoration

• 1/2 cup grated semisweet chocolate / dark chocolate
• reserved cherries

Sprinkle and pack the sides with the grated chocolate.Fill the whipped cream in a piping back with your choice of tip.And make small swirls on the edge with a 1/4 inch gap.Top it with cherries.Sprinkle the remaining grated chocolate on the center. Chill well before serving.Note: Adding corn flour to cake makes the cake texture lighter.
And the special midnight celebration when I wished him with the cake : )

The Unbeatable Chittoor Sambar

Sambar is an authentic dish in south india.Sambar is prepared with different vegetable combinations for different purposes. Also the sambar which we serve with idli or dosa is different from the sambar which we serve with rice.This chittoor sambar is best to serve with steamed idlis. It has a unique blend of ingredients and a unbeatable flavor that is a perfect accompaniment for idlis but can also be had with rice.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup toor dal
• 1 cup pearl onions
• 1/2 cup diced radish
• 4 diced baby corn
• 1 cup 2 inch long sliced drumsticks
• 1 cup diced tomato
• 2 green chillies cut length wise
• 1 medium lemon size tamarind soaked in hot water for 15 minutes.
• Remove the pulp and keep the tamarind paste aside.
• 2 tbsp grated coconut
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 2 tbsp sambar powder
• 1 tbsp rasam powder
• 1 tsp poppy seeds(khus khus)
• a pinch of sugar
• salt to taste
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 6 fenugreek seeds
• a pinch of hing (asafoetida)
• 2 tbsp coriander leaves
• 10-15 curry leaves
• 1 tbsp oil

Cooking Procedure:
Pressure cook the toor dal with 2 cups of water and once it is done then beat is nicely to make a smooth paste and keep aside.
Make a smooth paste of sambar powder,rasam powder,grated coconut and poppy seed with some water and keep aside
Take 2 cups of water in a sauce pan then add radish ,corn ,drumsticks and onion and cook till they become tender.
In the mean time add turmeric powder,salt,sugar and the grounded paste to the above .
Once the veggies are cooked add tomato,tamarind pulp and bring it to boil.
Now add cooked dal and add extra water according to your consistency and bring it to boil and let it cook for 5 more minutes.
Heat oil in a pan add mustard seeds,methi seeds, hing and when musterd seeds starts to splutter add the curry leaves and add this to the above sambar.Your sambar is ready and you are ready to serve it with steamed hot idly

Evergreen Methi Rice

Everytime I go the to store I always pick greens and methi leaves are one of my favorite choice.Methi is a wonderfull leafy delight,  this simple methi rice preparation is very aromatic tasty and quick to prepare too...adding corn kernels makes it very colorfull and little crunchy. Hope you will enjoy this recipe 
Ingredients

• 1 cup tightly packed methi/fenugreek leaves
• 7 medium size garlic pods
• 1 tsp jeera/cummin seeds
• 1/2 cup sweet corn kernels
• 2 green chillies
• 1 cup basmati rice
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 tbsp ghee
• pinch of tumeric
• salt to taste

Procedure
Soak rice with enough water for 30 min,drain the water and then again 1.5 cup water and pressure cook it for 3 whistles.Boil the sweet corn in a microwave by adding enough water for 4 minutes, drain and keep aside.
Make a fine paste of methi leaves, garlic, cummin seeds and green chillies and keep aside.
Heat oil and ghee in a pan and the above grinded paste and fry nicely on medium flame till oil begins to saturate.
Add the sweet corn and fry for 1 minute and then add the rice,salt,turmeric and stir nicely till it blends nicely.Switch off the flame and serve warm with your choice of raitha.