Mint Lemonade

“Talk about turning lemons into lemonade!”

― Catherine Hapka

 

         I doubt if there would be anyone in the world who haven't had a lemonade in his or her life. In fact it is one of the universal drinks which you could find anywhere on earth. And yes! There is nothing more refreshing than a fresh lemonade..

         While in college, we used to have compulsory social service camps under National Service Scheme(NSS). We used to make roads, clean the water resources and do everything we could to help people in remote villages, as part of these NSS camps. And the one thing which hangs in my memory about these camps were the refreshing lemonades which were served in between the works, apart from the joy of working together, enjoying everyday of hard work and at last seeing the fruits of our labour and the smiles on the villagers' faces. It was overwhelming and fulfilling to know that you had actually did something for the unprivileged which is going to be useful for them for a long time.

              You never know how much we had counted on those lemonades to refresh us and how much it did. When you are literally tired, exhausted and thirsty, there is nothing more refreshing than a fresh lemonade. So whenever I feel tired nowadays, after the house chores, I always find time to make a fresh lemonade and the kids too love it. I usually add mint leaves in it. The flavour of mint blends well and compliments it that you hardly know if it's the mint flavour or lemon flavour you are enjoying in the drink.

    Here is my simple recipe for Mint Lemonade..

Kiwi Smoothie

          There is nothing more refreshing than a cooling smoothie made with fresh fruits, when the temperature climbs up the Celsius scale. Actually, you cannot do with out one every day as the weather squeezes all the water and vigour out of your body. That constant fatigue which you feel and the lack of enthusiasm in every deeds in hot weather can be better alleviated with nothing more than a fresh juice or smoothie. I often make this kiwi smoothie whenever the kiwis become over ripe and the weather is not very soothing..

      Now, to tempt you better, here are a few benefits of fresh Kiwi fruit. Kiwi fruits are rich in many Vitamins, flavonoids and minerals. In particular, they contain a high amount of Vitamin C (more than oranges), as much potassium as bananas and a good amount of beta-carotene. They are also excellent sources of fibre and has great anti- oxidant property. It is found to have great benefits in fighting respiratory diseases, if consumed regularly. So there! Are you game for a refreshing Kiwi smoothie? Here is the recipe..

Kiwi Smoothie

3 or 4 ripe kiwis, peeled and chopped
juice of half a lemon
1 cup of ice cubes
honey or sugar to taste

Method:
   Blend all the ingredients in a  blender until smooth.Pour into glasses and serve decorated with kiwi slices.

       Sending this chilled delight to CC-Splash into Summer event at Srav's Culinary Concepts

Avocado Smoothie

          Juices and smoothies are in vogue now. As the temperature starts climbing again after a stagnant state at low, thirst quenchers and cool drinks are in favour again. Simple iced drinks to nourishing and energising smoothies has begun hitting the screens of blogs recently.

           When I was in college, I used to visit a nearby cool bar with friends amidst tiring and boring sessions of OP on my internship. The drinks which always cooled our souls were Avocado smoothie (which was called Butter shake there) and Chickoo shake. It had such a soothing cooling impact on our body and soul that, I feel a sense of hugging coldness in my throat whenever I think about those super yummy milk shakes.

Needless to say we were frequent customers at that tiny, crappy coolbar.

          

            Those milk shakes were made with frozen milk cubes which were smashed with a hammer like thing and blended with fruits. They were too cold and we felt like it froze our food pipe on its way down. And more often we felt difficulty to talk with numb tongues just like after eating super cold ice creams. Yet it was a pleasure and we never stoped visiting the cool bar for those ultra cold thick milk shakes and smoothies.

           Lately Avocados have hit the market from different parts of the world and there are lot of varieties to choose from like US, Kenyan, SriLankan etc.. We take our share of Avocados every week and mostly use it for smoothies. Avocado smoothie is a favourite in my place and I make it the way we used to get it from the coolbar, but I don't use frozen milk. Instead I use plain milk and ice cubes. Here is how it is....

Avocado Smoothie Recipe:

(Yields 4 cups)

Things you need:

1 ripe Avocado

2 cups milk (full fat or low fat)

1 cup ice cubes

Sugar or honey to taste

Mint leaves(optional), to garnish

Method:

1.     Check the Avocado for ripeness. It should yield slightly to touch but should not pit excessively. If not properly ripe it would be rigid to touch and taste kind of bitter. Now cut the avocados horizontally and remove the seed.

                                 

2.    Scrape the flesh with a spoon into the blender and discard the skin. Now add the remaining ingredients and blend in a blender until thick and with out lumps.

3.   Pour it to tall glasses and garnish with mint leaves or avocado slices. Serve.

Banana Strawberry Smoothie

                
          I know it is not the time for a cool drink or smoothie. But the weather is not like it used to be over here. December is the month which is supposed to be freaking cold… when your feet and hands would go numb, not knowing if you are holding a hot thing or cold one. It is the time of the year when you dither on doing anything without getting into the sanctity of your sweater or woolen jacket or a fleece around your neck. And a cold smoothie is the last thing you want on earth. But it is not at all as it used to be. No doubt the global warming has its impact on every single place on earth. The weather is actually not cold at all. When the dust wind brought the coldness with it last week storming into our lives, everybody thought it was going to be a flipping cold December. But nay… it went as it came after two days and the winter clothes everybody had enthusiastically purchased still dwells in the remote corner of the closets unable to display their flying colors. Now what shall I describe the climate lately? Well, pleasant… not at all cold, sometimes sunny… sometimes cloudy… anyway far from daunting cold. So why not a slobbering smoothie to refresh you after a hard time with homely chores or when your husband returns home after work…?

Here is the recipe…

Things you need:

Yields three cups

2 ripe bananas, peeled
4 ripe strawberries
4 tbsp sugar
1 cup of milk
1 cup of ice cubes
½ tsp vanilla essence

Preparation:

       Slice the bananas and strawberries into small pieces and blend well in a blender with all the other ingredients until a smooth and thick juice is formed. Pour into glasses. Decorate with sliced strawberries and serve immediately.