Aam Panna or Raw Mango & Mint Mocktail

Raise your hand if, like me, you too look for a healthy thirst quencher (apart from water) in the scorching summers! Juicing the watermelon, preparing fresh nimbu pani is something we do over and over to keep us hydrated in the hot summer months.

Who doesn't love to return home to a chilled healthy mocktail prepared with fresh and seasonal fruits? Growing up I would so look forward to reaching home after school to drink up my glass of mango milkshake, Roohafza water or rose-flavoured milk. Even today I love treating myself to glass of something fruity, fresh and chilled.

I often find myself thinking of different mocktails to prepare, apart from the regular ones such as shikanji (spiced lemon water). Lucky to have born in India, I can never run out of ideas to expand my everyday kitchen menu. Check out some more healthy options to make a chilled drink for the kids or for guests this summer here. Indian food is just so varied.

My father always says - just like the language changes, at every 100 kms you move away from Delhi,  similarly changes the food, ingredients and flavours.

 And I guess food is one of the many things that binds all us Indians together. Being a proud North Indian, I admire the delicacies from the South and North-East alike.

Aam Panna is a delicious sweet and sour drink mostly prepared before the onset of summers when the mangoes are beginning to ripen and green raw mangoes are in abundance. It is a squash made by pulping kachchi ambi or raw mango and can be prepared in so many ways.

Some like it spicy and like to add rock salt and roasted cumin powder, while some like to keep it tangy retaining the sour taste of the raw mangoes and add very little sugar, and others sweeten it with jaggery or sugar. In this version I have added mint leaves to make this sweet and sour summer cooler.

Kachchi Ambi or raw mango is loaded with Vitamin C, niacin and Vitamin B. It is just so good to keep yourself from getting dehydrated when the mercury soars.

The mint leaves lend a refreshing and cooling taste. Weight watchers can do away with the sugar and instead of using raw green mangoes choose the riper ones as those are naturally sweet. Another healthy way to sweeten this drink is by using jaggery. Just cook jaggery with some water in order to make a thick sweet liquid and add it to the squash. Jaggery is rich in iron.

This is a simple recipe and hardly takes 20 min to get done with and yields 10-12 glasses of Aam Panna. Just get a couple of green raw mangoes (3-4), wash and pressure cook them. Upon cooling peel the mangoes and scrape out the mushy pulp off the mango seed. Now using a blender or a mixer, blend together a cup of mint leaves along with the mango pulp and 4-5 spoons water, 4-5 tbsp sugar. Now add roasted cumin powder and your Aam Panna swquash is ready. Store in an air tight jar in the refrigerator for a week.

To prepare a serving of Aam Panna, in a glass add 3-4 tbsp of the squash, add chilled water, ice cubes and 1/2 tsp rock salt. Mix and serve chilled.

Have you tried this Indian drink?

How do you like to make your Aam Panna?

How did you find this recipe to make the Aam Panna squash?

Tell me all, I'd love to know what you think!

Thanks for reading! :-)

Sweet Lassi

Lassi, chhaas or buttermilk is must-have drink in most Punjabi households. It is a very popular drink in North India and is had during winters and summers both, normally after eating breakfast or lunch as it aids digestion. It is a simple beverage made with yoghurt that tastes good either ways - salty or sweet and can be combined with fruits to give it a colourful and flavoursome variation. Mango Lassi and rose lassi are two such variations. The salty versions of lassi are equally delicious. It is mostly seasoned with salt and roasted cumin seeds ground to a powder and devoured chilled.

This sweeter version of lassi has been a regular drink after our late brunch on most Fridays. Little M and his dad love to stir up this simple drink which is creamy, sweet and every bit refreshing on a hot afternoon.

Makes 2 glasses

Ingredients:

1 cup thick yoghurt
1/2 cup cold milk
1/2 cup cold water
Sugar, to taste

Method:

Blend together until creamy soft peaks of yoghurt surface.

Add lots of ice cubes to an empty glass and pour in the lassi.

Provide spoons to scoop out the creamy yoghurt peaks and laugh off at spotting a white mustache of cream forming on each others mouth. :-)

Do you like your lassi sweet or salty?

Tell me how you enjoy this drink. I'd love to read your ideas.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

See more such simple summer coolers here!

Thanks for reading! :-)

Summer Coolers

Summers are upon us. Its April and it gets hot during the daytime in the UAE. My throat itches to gulp down something chilled around noon and I am often found looking for ingredients in my fridge to make a cold something to drink down.

Back in Delhi while I was growing up afternoons used to be scorching hot. After school hours, I and my siblings would look forward to reaching home just to drink our glass of chilled roohafza or rose syrup water, nimbu paani or lemoade or Rasna. When we used to go for school picnics we would pester mom to fill our water bottles with chilled Roohafza instead of plain water. And night time post dinner would mean another yummy cold surprise in the form of a glass full of chilled mango milk shake. Such delightful were summers in those days that we barely complained about the scorching sun and would love to play outdoors for hours altogether. The best part used to be chilling ourselves in front of the cool air rushing out of the cooler.

Nimbu paani or lemonade is sold on every corner and devoured at all homes in India during the summer time. Rose water or roohafza is another favourite of all Indians. Other cold beverages slurped commonly by Indians are aam panna, falooda milk shake, mango milkshake, badam thandai, lassi, sugarcane juice, jaljeera, kaanji.

So keeping in mind the basic juices and lemonades I try to tweak and recreate with whatever ingredients are available in my pantry. These are the six beverages that were made, stirred and blended along with Little M and slurped hurriedly on our couch during the recent spring break.

 1) Watermelon Slush

Slush is something that continues to brighten up my eyes ever since I tasted one as a child. It makes me excited even now. I love how easy they are to make and such a wonderful way to eat fresh and seasonal fruits.

See the super simple recipe for this Watermelon Slush!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2) Strawberry Mint Lemonade

This is a colourful and refreshing take on the regular lemonade. It is a perfect drink for summer parties and can add colour to any evening or afternoon along with a beautiful smile to your guests' faces. You have to try it to believe how yummy it is!

See the recipe for this lemonade with a twist of strawberry and mint!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 3) Banana Milkshake

Is there anyone who has never had the good old calcium booster banana milkshake? Everyone has tasted the banana milkshake. This one comes with a pinch of cinnamon to add a beautiful aroma to the milkshake. Perfect to serve to our kids after school or after an hour of play at the park and this one is simplest and easiest of them all and always gulped down ecstatically by children.

See the method to make this super simple banana shake with a pinch of cinnamon!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4) Strawberry banana smoothie

This one is simple with banana adding its natural sweetness and thickness and strawberries balancing it with their sweet-tangy flavour. I added some honey as I needed it to be more sweet than it was. This pink drink is my go-to breakfast these days.


See the method to make this easy strawberry banana smoothie made healthy with a drizzle of honey!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

5) Sweet Lassi

This one has been a regular drink after our late brunch on most Fridays. Little M and his dad love to stir up this simple drink which is creamy, sweet and every bit refreshing on a hot afternoon. Provide spoons to scoop out the soft and creamy yoghurt peaks and laugh off at spotting a white mustache of cream forming on each others mouth. :-)

See the simple sweet lassi recipe here!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

6) Banana Oats Smoothie

Don't want to eat your oats? Well, why do that if you can simply drink them up! :-)

This one is another snack or breakfast option on busy mornings. Easy to whip up and full of goodness of banana, oats and milk. Sweetened naturally by peanut butter and honey, this beverage will not make you feel guilty at all. One healthy drink to devour this summer!

See the super simple method to make Banana Oats Smoothie here!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hope you enjoyed these six drinks that are keeping us cool this summer! I promise to come up with more of such simple beverages that you can make within minutes using regular ingredients always available in the kitchen.

What are your summer favourites to drink up?

Tell me all that delights you during the hot summers!

I would love to read about them!

Thanks for reading! :-)