Balance - sweet, salt & sour. Day 5 Juice for Radiance

Today's juice is a perfect balance of sweet, salty and sour and probably thats the reason it is so satisfying! Celery, carrot, apple, amla is a really yummy combination.

Celery has natural salts which make it an ideal veggie to use while creating juices that are not too sweet. And it does bring in a huge profile of nutrients that have a host of health benefits - it regulates the body's alkaline balance which improves digestion, reduces acidity etc. The magnesium in celery acts as a stress reliever and also provides better sleep. It helps reduce bad cholesterol and lower blood pressure. It is rich in Vitamin A and is great for eye health. It also has cancer fighting antioxidants!

Amla or Indian gooseberry is a local superfood! It is a rich source of Vitamin C ( has more Vitamin C than oranges!). Amla helps strengthen the liver and flush out toxins, which helps detoxification. By aiding digestion, it also helps better absorption of calcium, which in turn positively affects bone health, teeth and hair! It is especially known to promote healthy hair growth!

Balance - sweet, salt & sour

10 carrots
1 slim bunch of celery
4 apples
3 amlas

De seed the alma. Wash everything well. Juice!

Ruby Warmth - day 4 of Juice for Radiance

A perfect juice for a cold winter morning, this juice literally warms your insides and puts the pink in your cheeks:). This beet, bottle gourd, sweet lime juice with turmeric and ginger is especially great before your workout and may actually enhance your overall physical performance and heart functioning during exercise, thanks to the red beets! 

Beet roots are one of the richest dietary sources of antioxidants and nitrates that improve blood pressure and blood flow throughout the body, including the brain, heart and muscles. They are great for maintaining lower blood pressure and a healthy heart.

Sweet Lime or musambi is rich in Vitamin C and is also amazing for digestion. With its high flavanoid content it is great for ailments like indigestion, irregular bowel movements and other gastrointestinal issues.

Fresh turmeric and ginger provide warmth and immunity benefits and add just the right kick to this perfect juice for this weather!

Ruby Warmth

3 large red beets

1 medium/small bottle gourd

6 sweet limes

1 piece ginger

1 piece fresh turmeric

Wash all the ingredients. Peel the sweet limes. Juice and head to the gym!

The Classic - day 3 of Juice for Radiance

'The Classic' is a perfectly sweet way to start your day! This carrot, apple, ginger juice provides the  right amount of sugar and gingery kick to wake your senses and get you ready to face the day, believe me, you wouldn't even miss the coffee!

Apples are one of the fruits with the highest antioxidant activity and are specifically responsible for a decreased risk, for chronic disease like cancer, coronary heart disease and type II diabetes. Apples are also known to protect brain cells against oxidative stress induced damage, providing protection against diseases like Alzheimer's. For diabetics, its a great fruit to include in one's diet - as Apples, lessen absorption of glucose from the digestive tract, stimulate beta cells in the pancreas to secrete insulin and also increase the uptake of glucose from the blood by stimulating insulin receptors.


The Classic (5-6 glasses)

10 carrots
4 apples
a piece of ginger

Wash, chop and juice!

Green Goddess - mother of all juices!

Dark green leafy vegetables should have their own spot on the food pyramid, considering how nutritionally potent they are. In fact they have one of the highest nutrients per calorie ratios!

So, as the name suggests, the star of the show is a dark green leafy veggie, and a popular one at that - Spinach! Bursting with Vitamin K, its great for bone health and also provides anti inflammatory benefits and host of antioxidants. Oranges are a great source of Vitamin C, as we all know and protect our DNA from free radical damage (includes the damage that causes signs of ageing)! Bottle gourd or opo squash is great for liver health and helps detoxify.

So, here is the recipe which makes 4 glasses.

Ingredients

3 bunches of spinach

1 bottle gourd

5 oranges

1 piece of ginger

1 small piece of turmeric (optional)

Process

Wash and juice! 

Juice for Radiance Day-1

A glass of freshly made vegetable and fruit juice is like a pure, natural energy drink, with a shot of anti ageing , immunity boosting, skin brightening antioxidants, vitamins and minerals! Adding just one glass of fresh and natural juice to our daily diet can greatly benefit our effort to consume more nutrients and eat healthier.

In this 5 day "Juice for Radiance", I will share a recipe for a fresh juice every day. This will help you add a big portion of veggie goodness to your day and will also give you a chance to experiment with juicing different vegetables and combine different fruits and vegetables.


Immunity Booster Day 1
Our juice for the day contains broccoli, which is one of the most nutrient dense veggies available and is great for boosting immunity and is rich in calcium. Turmeric root is a perfect addition for improving your metabolism, for supporting healthy bones and joints and for the added protection against colds, coughs etc. The carrots add a big punch of Vitamin A, and are spectacular for protecting the heart against cardiovascular diseases and great for our eyes! Cucumbers help with detoxing and all of these ingredients also provide anti cancer benefits!

Ingredients (for 4-5 glasses)

half a pineapple
5-6 red carrots
2 small broccoli heads
1 large cucumber
1 large piece of fresh ginger
1 piece of fresh turmeric

Process

Thoroughly wash all the ingredients. Remove the tough skin of the pineapple. Chop everything into the size that fits your juicer head. Juice and drink.

An Asian Feast - Lotus Stem in a sweet, sticky, sesame sauce.

When I was working for a stock broking firm in another life, working crazy hours, having no sense of balance, taking pride in being a workaholic, if someone had asked me what I liked to do, I wouldn't be able to think of anything, except work! But, I have realised that  to be happy, I needed more, more of a connection - spiritual, creative, with other people, with the environment!

Over the years, I have had a chance to pursue some of my interests and it has been absolutely wonderful to meet with people who shared this passion. Whether it is a shared interest in literature, sports, music or Food!

Recently a couple of my friends and I got together to make vegan sushi and the result was a massive Asian feast - Miso noodle soup, Vietnamese rice paper rolls, Lotus stem in a sticky sweet sauce and Sushi. The preparation involved only slicing and chopping some beautiful and colourful vegetables and cooking the most flavourful sushi rice and taking a ton of pictures (well, the credit for that goes to my friend Dipti Jain!). The real experiment and surprise of the lunch was the lotus stem preparation, simple, quick and yummy with a surprising texture. I am eager for all of you to try this recipe, its really great!

 

Lotus Stem in a sticky, sweet, sesame sauce

Ingredients

3 lotus stems
5-6 dried red chillies
1 tbsp (or more) sesame seeds
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar
11/2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp (or lesser) olive or sesame oil
salt to taste (although its probably not required)

Process

Soak and wash the lotus stems well. With a knife scrape the skin away. Now thinly slice the lotus stem in a slant fashion, this helps increase the cooking surface and decrease cooking time.
In a hot wok, pour in the oil, red chillies and sesame seeds. As they begin to pop and splutter, add the sliced lotus stems. Fry them for a couple of minutes and add the vinegar, sugar, soy sauce and salt if required. Stir, and the liquid will quickly become a sticky sauce. Let it cook for a few more minutes and  take it off the heat. The lotus stem should still be a little crunchy.
Enjoy hot!

Peanut butter Cookies

As a person with such a connection with food, a lot of my happy and feel good moments are related to food. And I have passed this love on to my family as well! With my daughter at home for vacation, we are creating fun and easy to make goodies everyday and enjoying them together. It is a real highlight of her day to be cooking and making healthier versions of the traditional fare, it makes her feel responsible for her health and have fun while doing that!

Peanut butter (the kind which has organic peanuts, no hydrogenated oil, salt and sugar), is a great addition to your diet, a good source of protein and good fat, which can help lower cholesterol. We are both (my daughter and I) big fans and are constantly trying peanut butter with anything from our raw oatmeal to a bowl of fruit, vegan ice cream or a humble toast. Even our vegetarian golden retriever, Bheem is a big fan. So today, I am sharing not one but 2 peanut butter cookie recipes - one for people and one for dogs!

Peanut butter cookies - for people

Ingredients
3/4 cup peanut butter (hydrogenated oil free)
1/4 cup extra virgin coconut oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp water
11/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt (use only if your peanut butter is unsalted)

Process
Mix the peanut butter, coconut oil, sugar and water until smooth. Combine the dry ingredients and add to the wet ingredients. Beat until well incorporated. Roll into equal balls on a silicon sheet or a greased tray and flatten with a fork (1/4 inch rounds). If you prefer, chewy cookies with a soft centre, like me, leave the cookies thick, as you can see I leave mine pretty thick. And if you prefer them thin and crispy, flatten them further.

Preheat the oven to 180*C and bake for 7-10 mins or until golden brown.
Let it sit on the baking sheet for an additional minute before transferring to a cooling rack, otherwise they tend to break or crumble.

Peanut butter cookies - for dogs

Ingredients


3/4 cup peanut butter (hydrogenated oil free)
1/4 cup extra virgin coconut oil
2 tsp sugar
4 tbsp water
11/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt (use only if your peanut butter is unsalted)

Process
The same as the recipe above.