Aam Panna Recipe | Indian Raw Mango Cooler

Learn how to make Aam ka Panna ~ Sweet and sour Indian raw mango cooler flavoured with spices, black salt and mint

It’s officially summer in my neck of woods and for the last two weeks the heatwaves have swept across the nation. I am not very active on social media these days as it will be considered sin to spend time within the four walls. The windows and doors are wide open, and I spend most of my time pottering around the garden, laying on grass and snoozing under the perfect blue skies. My morning walks have become longer as I enjoy the company of mother nature and her children like tweeting birds and wild life, walking in the woodlands under the protective canopy of giant trees. The kitchen is the last place on my mind as simple salads, quick coconut-yogurt based curries and ice creams have officially become our meals and washing them with gallons of water to quench the thirst and to keep the body cool.

It's time like this when I sift through my handwritten recipe diary in search of recipes that has been tried and tested for centuries. The recipes for scorching summer months to keep the body cool due to excess hear from the sun. One such recipe is a very popular raw mango recipe from the northern part of India called Aam Panna, a very refreshing raw mango cooler flavoured with spices and good helping of fresh mint. It is this Aam ka Panna, with its sweet tangy flavor makes it extremely rejuvenating and its health benefits make it a go to drink and a must try recipes for the summers when the mighty mango season arrives. Aam Panna is consumed in the summers as it acts as a coolant, rehydrates body and provides the essential electrolytes lost during the hot weather. A glass of this drink in a summer afternoon can combat fatigue and energize a person.

Dum Aloo Kashmiri Recipe | How to Make Kashmiri Dum Alu

Learn how to make Dum Aloo Kashmiri ~ A traditional Kashmiri dish of deep fried baby potatoes cooked in creamy almond and cashew gravy, no onion-garlic recipe

After a month of sultry hot summer days, the skies have opened their doors to cool showers. The welcoming sight of rain drenched plants and trees and the pearly rain drops on a window pane is what exactly we needed after a days of heat waves. As the temperature dropped couple of degrees, our cravings for some spicy delights just went up a notch! Another reason to love the pittar-patter rain!

Husband had come home with a bag of baby potatoes from market and dropping few hints about the Dum Aloo Kashmiri he had had couple of years ago! I pretended not to hear him as the last few attempts of making the famous Kashmiri Dum Aloo were far from being a success story! And the triple sin of not just cooking the potatoes, but also deep frying them before dunking in a rich cashew-almond gravy was something I wanted to avoid when I am on a path of eating healthy! Well, I don’t have to say who won in the end! Interestingly I am not even ashamed to have had committed this triple sin! Ha…

Kashaya or Kashayam Recipe | A Herbal or Ayurvedic Drink from South India

Learn how to make Kashaya or Kashayam ~ Sweet and spicy herbal drink made using selected aromatic spices based on the ancient Indian health science of Ayurveda

I grew up in a joint family for the first 6 years of my life. When I was born, my first cousin was in his mid twenties while the youngest one was in his late teens. So it was not difficult for a chubby baby girl with jet black hair and cheeks that resembled a generous sized Idli to make every other person in our family to dance just by shaking my little fingers. I was pampered and a spoilt brat who had many people falling on my chubby feet for the first 22 months of my life. And then my exclusive control on everyone’s attention and being centre of everyone’s universe came to sudden halt!

Achari Baingan Recipe | Eggplants with Pickling Spices

Learn how to make Achari Baingan ~
Baby eggplants cooked with aromatic pickling spices (No onion and garlic, vegan recipe)

When the cold months of winter arrive, it also brings along the desire to eat food that not just nourishing but is also comforting and warming. The focus shifts from a plate of cold salads and tall glass of chilled drinks of summer to the bowl of hot soups and spicy curries. And then there are pickles… Spicy, astringent, tart and oh-so-comfortingly-delicious pickles!!!

Bharwan Mirch ka Achaar | Stuffed Red Chilli Pepper Pickle Recipe

Bharwan Mirch ka Achaar

We Indian’s LOVE our pickles. Period.

I know I should stop here but I just can’t stop leave it when the topic in question is one of my most favourite things. Given a choice, I am among those who can rant on for hours and also end up writing PhD thesis on the subject of pickles. My love for pickle is talking point among my loved ones who know my weakness for this irresistible treats. When God created me, he forgot to give me sweet tooth. Instead I was blessed with a taste bud that swirls around doing Tango when it meets its love, irresistible spicy pickle. I know that there are many people out there who are just like me, who love pickles more than any sweet desserts and delights.

Spicy Tomato Chutney/Relish Recipe for Tomato Lovers

Spicy Tomato Chutney/Relish

I know, I know, I know!!!

I know it’s been raining “Tomato and Tomahto” here in Monsoon Spice but I did warm you well in advance! With baskets after baskets of tomatoes coming from our little veggie patch, I am left with no option but to cook and enjoy them as much as we can. I have made few jars of pickles and chutneys which we can enjoy in coming winter but there are yet more to be preserved in a form of jams and purees for quick fix curries.