Refreshing Summer Drinks – Beverage Recipes

Refreshing Summer Drinks – Beverage Recipes

Summers are at their peak and the scorching heat is taking toll on everyone. The ever burning sun seems to sip out last drop of energy inside and the hot conditions add to the extortion. In this killing heat, look out for some chilling drinks to refresh yourself. Here are some summer drink recipes to help you stay cool and healthy.

Shikanji

Enjoy the traditional refreshing drink of India. Prepared with lemon, salt & sugar, Shikanji has been the favorite summer drink of Indian masses. A sip of freshly prepared Shikanji at the roadside corner provides immense sensation to the senses. A glass of chilled Shikanji in parching heat will surely refresh you for rest of the day.

Jal Jeera

Jal Jeera is an extremely popular summer drink of north India. Its peppy taste and crunchy flavor kicks off the heat around. Due to its cooling properties against extreme heat, it is preferred as a refreshing drink in summers. Jal Jeera is generally served with appetizers before a meal, but is also drunk between meals. Its other benefits like no sugar, no artificial flavors and healthy drink makes it the first choice in summers.

Lassi Patiala

Nothing can be better and nutritious than sweet or salted Punjabi butter milk to beat the scorching heat. An extremely feeding and refreshing drink made with curd has two variations, that of salty & sweet. Lassi Patiala with a layer of cream on top gives a tempting sensation. Enjoy chilled Lassi Patiala as a hot weather refreshment.

Soda Nimbu Paani

Nimbu Pani is considered as the lifeline for intense summer heat. Together with kicks of soda water, the tang of lemon makes Soda Nimbu Pani the most refreshing summer drink. The sensation it provides on a steamy day does wonders to your energy levels. Take a glass of Nimbu Pani with soda to beat this brutal heat wave.

Cold Coffee

Cold Coffee is cool beverage recipe for summers. There is no need to sacrifice your cup of coffee just because of warm weather. Rather opt for iced versions of world's most popular drink. The relishing flavor of coffee and chill of ice sums up to be one of the most preferred summer drinks recipe in India.

By : Saranjeet Singh

Diwali Recipes

The Delicacies One will Love to Make in Diwali

The gala celebrations of Diwali festival – 17 Oct. are on its zenith and there is already a sense of stimulation, enthusiasm and excitement amongst the people of India. Every nook and corner again bustling with lights and fabulous decor, shopping malls and arcades festooned with lustrous gifts and the sweet shops well stuffed with tempting and Diwali dishes. Also the preparation of Diwali Recipes at home, make an integral part of the merriment. In fact Diwali Celebrations are incomplete without food preparations and making of special delicacies at home.

On this festive occasion, this time I have buzzed up with some of the special lip-smacking dishes and recipes of Diwali. During these five days long festivity of Diwali, starting from 15th Oct. there is no end to the Diwali cooking. People start their cooking preparations well in advance by shopping for items required in making Diwali snacks, sweet dishes and Diwali cuisine. Normally called as “Chappan Bhog” – means 56 food items, is an essential in Diwali Cooking. It is a custom that whatever is prepared at home is first offered to God and then distributed among the family and friends.

One can well plan in advance what items can be prepared before and what on the day of Diiwali. Normally dry snacks like Kachori , Pittha, Khandvi, Churma, can be prepared, as these items can be stored for longer time. Normally sweet preparations are prepared a day before Diwali. Try out special Diwali Sweet Dishes like Cashew Barfi, Rassogolla, Gulgula, Moon Dal Halwa, Malpua, Suji – Ladoo and Shrikhand . The sweet dishes are the simplest to make. On this festive day there is no routine or normal cooking. There is a special cuisine for Diwali aswell.

Morning Churma is cooked along with sweet dishes of your choice for puja. There is elaborated cooking for Diwali cuisine. Normally the food items are all deep fried using rich pure oil and Ghee. Puris and Kachoris, Thalipith, stuffed with dal or potato;s are the normal breads well tried with other ingredients like fenugreek leaves or spinach leaves. Under rich vegetables Shahi Paneer, Chole, Potato Cauliflower Veg. are supreme. Then the mouth watering Kheer prepared with milk and dry fruits is well on top chart and its apart of every festival in India. Dahi Bhalle and Dhokla work as appetizers. In evening the entire family along with friends and relatives who have specially come from far and wide to celebrate Diwali are together for a grand Diwlali feast.

The celebrations continuous for another two days till Bhai Duj and the kitchen cooking is still live with ready appetizers spreading its aroma in the air.Learn and prepare popular Diwali dishes at home through a detailed list of Surfindia Diwali Recipes provided online : http://www.surfindia.com/recipes/diwali-recipes.html
Labels: Food

Food for Thought: Are you Home Alone?

How many times it has happened with us when we are home alone for long and have no one to cook for us, are tired of eating out or ordering food from outside. It is during these times we often wonder had we learnt the fine art of cooking healthy food we wouldn't have been so dependent on outside help or compromise over the quality of food.

Well we can certainly help ourselves over here if we make a beginning. Cooking delicious food is definitely no Rocket Science if one gets guided properly. A recipe is an easy way to start cooking on your own.

An excellent online Recipe website such as Surfindia Recipes comes handy when one needs access to a wide variety of recipes. Surfindia Recipes is a vast collection of many different recipes from the different parts of India. So if you love Indian food the recipe section of Surfindia will most definitely not disappoint you. There are recipes under this section sub-categorised into different types such as Vegetarian Recipes, Non-Vegetarian Recipes, Festival Specials, Most Popular Dishes, etc.

The instructions available under these popular recipes are easy to follow and will turn you into the excellent cook that you always wanted to be. So what are you waiting for?? Go on and impress everyone with your new found skills :-)

Happy Cooking!!

Transforming Indian Street Foods

For all those who always believed street food to be a part of Junk – think again. I am set to transform the image of Delhi's street food from Junk to Lip smacking delights.

Delhi besides the usual food, offers a new list of cuisine that will make your mouth water. Savour the mouth watering street foods that are a must try in Delhi. The flooding Bengali markets are famous for their iconic chaat that is capable of delivering a wide range of tastes and sensations to your taste buds. Do not miss trying tangy Pani Puri, Bhalla Papri, Tikki and the most exotic Raj Kochari and Laccha Tokri, ranging from soft to crunchy, tart to hot and sweet to sour, they are a not to be missed at any cost.

To add to the popularity of snacks the list doesn't have any end to it, the most spices potato filled samosas, lentils stuffed kachauris, breads pakoras, chole bhatoore, chila and the name continues. The variety of street food in Delhi also have lot of place for the sweet toothed, that includes the freezing Kulfis (condensed ice cream), pipping hot jalebis and gulab Jamuns at the Jalebi wala in Chandni Chowk.

To complete the menu there are some addition foreign flavors, Indian style Chinese chart, Tibetan momos, chowmein that are growing in demand from the road side wanders. Among the non vegetarian, there is no comparison for succulent seekh kebabs, tandoori chicken, chicken tikka, gulati kebaba, fish fry and everything that come out from the red hot skewers. The best place to enjoy these non vegetarian delicacy is Karim's in Old Delhi. The paranthe vali gali in Chandni chowk also serve some legendary Mughalai paranthas.

Appetizing Delicacies for Monsoon

Monsoon to some people might be the most romantic weather as far as climate and ambiance is concerned... but there is more to monsoons than just romanticism and pleasant weather! One cannot miss mentioning the monsoon foods that increases the excitement of the tip toeing rain, double times. Following are the list of some very important liip smacking foods that you cannot miss having in monsoons -

1. Try the popular 'Souraca'. A concoction of coconut mil, garlic, chillies, onions and tamarind and a few spices are boiled together to make this gravely that tastes best with the Konkan rice.

2. An absolute must to gorge on this monsoon are the Pakoras made of onions, potatoes, even chillies, stuffed or plain, paneer (cottage cheese) too can be added.

3. The pride of Lucknow Kebabs are not only restricted to Lucknow now. Try the boti kebabs, ulte tawe ke paranthe and keema methi. To add on there are rich rogani rotis cooked on flat griddle that will simply make you crave for more and more.

4. A delicious Indian specialty of India are the Malpuas that are pancakes dripped in sugar syrup. Interestingly, a large serving of rich reduced milk or rabri, makes it an exceptionally swett and tasty dish.

5. Freshly made Badam Halwa that is made by a gruel of hand pounded almonds, slowly cooked with oddles of ghee (clarified butter) cannot be missed. To add the flavour cardamom powder is sprinkled on the halwa.