Watermelon & Strawberry Juice

Looking for healthy way to quench your thirst on a hot summer day. Try this easy, breezy delicious juice. With the goodness of vitamin C & A rich watermelon and few strawberries. This juice not only tastes great but is good for you too. Both the strawberries and watermelon I used were very sweet so I added some lime juice and a dash of salt and black pepper. Perfect accompaniment to the park or good to go along with a bike ride on a hot summer day.But once again even though this fruit juice is all natural and rich in vitamins, this is not recommended for people with diabetes because of the high fructose content.Preparation Time - 5 MinutesCooking Time - NilServes - 2 IngredientsWatermelon pieces - 3 CupsStrawberry - 2 ( I just 2 over...

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Orange Ginger & Honey Juice

 The weather is warm outside and the kids are on a vacation from school. So many places to visit and lot of things to explore. No time to cook an elaborate meal, but lot of quick healthy snacks, juices, smoothies and shakes and that's how things go. So you will see lot of simple and quick healthy beverage ideas in the coming posts. A few weeks back, my elder one wanted to make a banana milk shake all by himself and tried to search for the recipe in my site. That's when I decided to post these simple juice, shakes and smoothie recipes which will be helpful for kids and novice cooks. Stay hydrated and have a happy, healthy summer.Preparation Time - 5 MinutesCooking Time - NilServes - 1IngredientsOrange - 1Ginger - 1/2 inch piece (skin peeled)Honey...

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Hello Chennai my first restaurant review & a Happy Winner of Sukham Coolers event

 Hello friends and my readers, I hope you are all having a wonderful summer. I am back in home town and enjoying every bit of it. With all the travel scheduled for next 3-4 weeks, I don't know how much time I will be able to visit all my favorite blogs or do the likes in face book. I have scheduled couple of posts to be automatically published, so don't be surprised when you see my posts but not visiting your blogs.Now coming to this post, I normally don't do any restaurant review in my site. But just wanted to share the information about this very interesting and healthy Naturopathic style restaurant(Sanjeevanam) located in heart of Chennai, India. If you are looking for a very healthy spread of balanced food with lot of vegetables, protein,...

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Chocolate Truffle Shake

 Craving for some cold chocolate shake but are scared about the sugar in it. If you are like me and count the carbs and sugar in the milk shakes then this drink is definitely for you. Made with no cavity causing xylitol, unsweetened 100% Cacao dark chocolate and raw milk. These are much better choice than the sugary chocolate drinks. Try it out and I am sure you will like it.Preparation Time - NoneCooking Time - NoneServes - 2IngredientsRaw Milk - 1 1/2 Cups (Chilled)Chocolate Truffles - 3Xylitol - 1 Tbsp or per tasteIce cubes - few (optional)MethodBlend the raw milk, truffles, xylitol till smooth. Add few pieces of ice and give another whiz and pour into tall glasses and enj...

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Coconut Chocolate Truffle and a Vacation

It's almost midnight, really feeling tired after all the packing. Yes heading back home for the summer vacation tomorrow. Will catch up with my blogger buddies in a few days. If you see posts being published and I am not visiting your blogs don't be surprised because I have scheduled couple of automatic posts. So good bye and will be back in action soon. Now getting on to this post.Are you a chocolate lover and then you should be happy to know about this. Chocolate contains flavonoids, which act as antioxidants. Antioxidants protect the body from aging caused by free radicals, which can cause damage that leads to heart disease. Dark chocolate contains a large number of antioxidants (nearly 8 times the number found in strawberries)....

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Mini Ragi, Mung & Kala Channa Sevai/Idiyappam( Finger Millet & Bean String Hopper)

Are you looking for more ways to loose weight. Then try to cut down on your Grain, Sugar, Starchy vegetable & fruit consumption and slightly go towards pseudo grains like Ragi, Quinoa etc. Both these are seeds but actually used as grain and are gluten free. Ragi  is very rich in calcium and iron. Dark brown in color and with a sweet taste, nutty flavor and with complex carbohydrates. Gluten free and easy to digest ragi is good from Infants to Old aged people. Here I have used Ragi flour along with protein rich Black Chick Pea flour and green mung  bean flour. Both these beans are rich in protein, iron and very low in glycemic index. I served this with Tomato Kurma (Tomato & Coconut Curry with Spices). An unbeatable combination,...

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Almond flour Pancake (Egg free, Gluten free, Grain free, Sugar free but not Taste free) & Blueberry strawberry syrup

My husband is gluten free and kind of grain free. He is on diet where Quinoa & Ragi (pseudo grains) are the staple and rest of them are made up by legumes, nuts, vegetables, dairy etc. Even though me and my kids don't have any restriction, we are slowly moving towards this diet because how many different kinds of food will I cook and this kind of diet is good for every one even though it is little difficult to follow. In our house almond flour has taken over the gluten flours for making cookies, crackers etc. So when my elder one asked for Pancake, I had only almond flour in hand. I set out in search of recipes for pancakes.There are so many innovative recipes I came across but most of them had eggs in them. But we neither include...

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Instant Khaman Dhokla (Vegan Gluten free Savory steamed Cake with Split Chick Pea flour)

Looking for a gluten free, high protein, low carb savory snack. Then this one will perfectly fit the bill. Made with split chick pea flour and seasoned with spices, these are steamed snacks. Easy to make, tastes great and good for you. What more is needed to curb those cravings. If you haven't tried this out do try it now and let me know.Dhokla is a gujarati(Western Indian Dish). My introduction to Gujarati cuisine happened few years back, when I was working full time and I used to have Nanny(nannies I had 3 of them) to look after my kids and do cooking at home. This went on for few years but the time lines, dead lines demanded more time away from my kids. I quit my full time job and switched to part time one. One of them was a very versatile...

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Sugar free Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream using Coconut Milk & Cashews

Coconut is the new darling of the health food Industry. Ignored and tainted suddenly people are reinventing the wheel and you see articles running in news papers on the health benefit of Coconut, Coconut Oil, Coconut Milk.  Whatever said and done, these products have been in certain cuisine for centuries and people didn't run into any problem. In between there was no much negativity going about the coconuts and suddenly there is a lot of awakening on including coconuts for skin benefits, for thyroids, to loose weights.In my every day cooking I use a lot of coconut and coconut oil. But haven't really tried them in making ice creams, until I saw a Coconut Milk Ice cream in one of the health food stores and also came across lot of recipes...

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How to make Coconut Milk

Have you heard of the term BPA - bisphenol? BPA is a an industrial chemical that has been used to make certain plastics and resins. Epoxy resins can be used to coat the inside of metal products, such as food cans, baby formula cans etc. This chemical is really dangerous and the cumulative effect of being exposed to even minuscule amounts of BPA from cans, bottles, plates and all other sources over the years can eventually spell serious trouble for your child. Now do you understand what I am coming to? Yes instead of grabbing a can of Coconut milk next time try making it at home. So simple and easy to make, 100%  all natural without any "EPOXY RESINS". You can add Coconut milk to vegetable dishes, milk shakes instead of milk, ice creams....

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Brussels Sprouts & Radish Onion Stir Fry

Do you like these miniature cabbage like vegetable, do you buy them, how often do you include these in your daily diet? If not then next time you go for vegetable shopping, don't forget to buy them because Brussels sprouts are one of the best vegetable to include in your diet. High in Vitamin K & C, antioxidants and dietary fiber, low in carbohydrates, a very low GI vegetable. Also these are very easy to cut and cook on a time pressed day.  Radish is another highly nutritious vegetable with hosts of vitamin c, folate, potassium, magnesium etc. A very easy to make and a high nutritious stir fry can be done in few minutes.Try it out and let me know, what you think about this one.Preparation Time - 10 MinutesCooking Time - 20 MinutesServes...

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Peanut Sundal(Boiled Peanut Snack)

Peanuts contrary to their names are not nuts but belong to the legume family peas, lentils, chickpeas etc. Peanuts are a very good source of protein and ideal for growing children, weight and diet watchers. Boiled peanuts also contain resveratrol(the one found in red wine), which is a type of polyphenol. Resveratrol is extremely beneficial for maintaining healthy cell growth and preventing malignant growth of cells that leads to various types of cancer.  Protein rich, gluten free, grain free, tasty and easy to make, these are perfectly  healthy snack.Preparation Time - NoneCooking Time - Around 20 - 30 MinutesServes - 2IngredientsPeanuts - 1 Cup (Raw peanuts with skin, soaked Over night)Salt - 1/2 Tsp or to tasteCoconut Oil -...

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Tomato Quinoa

Looking for high protein, low carb, gluten free grain. Then Quinoa is a very good choice for you.  Quinoa is a highly nutritious pseudo grain ( a seed which is treated as grain) originating from South America. Quinoa contains complete  protein meaning it contains all the essential amino acids required by the body. Apart from protein it is a good source of iron, calcium, potassium, copper and magnesium. Next time you get that migraine think Quinoa because diets rich in magnesium are good for people suffering from migraine, child hood asthma etc. If  you think healthy food doesn't taste good. Try this out and let me know.If you looking for quick one pot dish this recipe will be really handy for you. Soak the Quinoa for 30 minutes...

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Sugar free Strawberry Ice Cream using Xylitol

It's blazing hot here in the East Coast and tomorrow is going to be even more hotter reaching record highs of over 100 Degrees Fahrenheit. In event of the heat wave the schools are having half a days and that means Kids will be early home. With the Ice Cream truck hovering around in the development tempting and kids and adults equally to scream for Ice Cream, the best option is to go for home made Ice Cream. I used Xylitol instead of sugar to sweeten this ice cream and some fresh strawberries. Made with raw milk, raw cream and half and half, anytime this is a much better option than the store bought one and without any additives or preservatives.If you are concerned about sugar high or sugar low or tooth cavities, Xylitol or stevia are the...

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Red Bell Pepper Juice

 Drinking at least one glass of low sodium vegetable juice daily may help overweight dieters lose moreweight. But when talking about vegetable juices most people think of carrot, beets or tomato. There are lot of other vegetables that can be juiced too. But when making juice using carrots and beets you have to understand these two vegetables are high in carbohydrate and sugar. So if you are diabetic or overweight avoid these too and go for low carb vegetable juices like Bell Pepper, Cucumber, White Pumpkin, Spinach, Tomatoes etc. Now coming back to this recipe, red bell pepper is loaded with vitamins like A & C and eating it raw and juicing it makes the body to absorb the nutrients even more easily. To spice up I have added whole black...

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Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies (Egg free, Gluten free & Grain free)

 Cookies and milk, what can be a perfect snack after school?  I wouldn't boast chocolate chip cookie as a super health food.  But how much can you restrict kids not to eat this and that. For my kids I no longer give any store bought treats like cookies or bars. Everything is made at home, so when my elder one wanted me to make chocolate chip cookies. I didn't have the heart to deny that. So I came up with this recipe using Almond flour which is high in protein, no gluten and grain, maple syrup at least doesn't cause cavities. Almond flour gives such a nutty taste and texture to the cookie and are so good for people who are on gluten and grain free diet. So try this out and let me know how you like it.If you are diabetic, this...

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Kovakkai(Tindora/Ivy Gourd) Pickle/Salad

Have you seen this small green colored, baby cucumber kind of vegetable before? If you haven't then when you get a chance to go to your nearest Asian Indian store check it out. I love the crunchiness of this vegetable and tastes great in stir fry and also as a salad/pickle. I am calling this as pickle because I added little bit more of red chili pepper and added coarsely ground fenugreek seeds. Which is normally done for a pickle. This not alone tastes great but Tindora is a very low GI vegetable and in alternate medicine the Doctors in fact recommend to include this vegetable more in the meals to lower diabetes.  So there is no reason not to try this and do let me know if you did.Preparation Time - 15 MinutesCooking Time - 2 to 3 MinutesServes...

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Mixed Cabbage Stir Fry (Curry)

 Red(purple)  cabbage is one of the most nutritious and best tasting vegetable around. Cabbage in general helps in lowering the cholesterol and has lot of cancer preventive properties. Cabbage is a low GI vegetable and can be included as part of daily meals even for people with weight issues and people with diabetes. This is one of the simple curry that can be done in a jiffy, do not over cook as lot of enzymes are lost in the procedure.Preparation Time - 15 MinutesCooking Time - 15 MinutesServes - 4IngredientsPurple Cabbage - 6 Cups(Shredded, Chopped into thin pieces)White cabbage - 2 Cups(Shredded or chopped into thin pieces)Dry red chillies - 2 to 3 or depending on tasteSalt - 1 Tsp or to tasteAsafoetida powder - pinch (avoid this...

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Mixed Nut Energy Ball

 Craving for something sweet but easy to make and not loaded with empty calories. These mixed nut power balls are just right for you. Made with Almonds, Cashews, Pumpkin Seeds, Chia and Coconut they are rich in protein and perfect for little tummies for an after school snack. But the only thing you have to make note in this snack is this uses dates as the sweetener and dates are not good for people with diabetes. People with diabetes and weight issue have to watch the amount of fructose content in their food. Even if the fructose comes from whole fruits or dates or raisins, anything more than 15gm of fructose might cause problems in such cases.  And just 2 dates alone have 15 gms of fructose.Try this out and let me know how you like...

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