Wordless Wednesday ~ Grey Sky!

Wordless Wednesday

Mango Mania ~ Mango Lassi/ Mango Smoothie!

Lassi is a yogurt based drink from Punjab, India. It can be either sweet or salted or flavoured with fruit. It is usually served chilled as a refreshment during summer days. Mango being in season, this Mango Lassi is currently at the top of my drink list. It is best to use ripe, sweet Alphonso mangoes when available or you can use canned mango pulp as well. I prefer to use fresh mangoes.

Mango is a nutritionally very rich fruit. Read this to know the benefits of this exotic tropical fruit. Coming back to the recipe, here is what you will need to blend a yummy Mango Lassi.

Ingredients:

Flesh of 1 ripe mango chopped.

150 ml low fat yogurt.

150 ml water

2 cardamom pod seeds freshly powdered.

Sugar to taste.

Ice cubes (Optional)

Process:

Add all the ingredients in a blender and churn till smooth. Sieve it to remove any fibre and adjust the sugar as per your taste and the sweetness of mango. Serve chilled. It like it reasonably thick, add more water if you like thinner.

Linking it to Fun N Sun , Seasonal Indulgence Series- Summer Coolers , Only Mocktails and Coolers . The 'Only series' is a brain child of Pari Also linking it to Healing food Sukham Coolers, this event is the brain child of Siri

Thanks for stopping by! Cheers!

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

When I saw this book in the library, I instantly picked it up. I had a vague memory of knowing it being into a movie and probably, I had seen one of its trailer. But, I wasn't really sure what to expect from it.

I read a couple of reviews on Goodreads and found that many people classified it as a science fiction. After reading it, I really won't agree to that. The book indeed has a scientific backdrop, but overall it is a story about 3 friends Kathy, Ruth and Tom who were boarders at Hailsham. It is the story of their friendship, how it bloomed and survived the test of time and the haunting realities of life.

Hailsham is a fictional elite boarding school in England where children are brought in a supportive environment with a special emphasis being given on creativity and health. The students are treated special and told that they are going to be very vital to the world after they are done with their schooling and leave Hailsham. The seemingly idyllic boarding school seems like an ordinary school at first, but soon the readers get an idea of what exactly it is. One of the few things I noticed was that none of them talked about their home or their parents and infact said not to have an idea how the world was beyond the boundaries of the school.

The story starts with Kathy, now 31 years old, working as a carer reminiscing her school days at Hailsham. She reflects on her life and charts a slow progression of her growth, her friendship with Ruth and Tom. She tells how the knowledge of what lies ahead in life for them and what role they have to play in the outside world affects their life and personality. The readers get to know the story through the voice of Kathy through out the novel. The deep introspection in Kathy's narration leads to a monotonity in the story. I am not really very enthusiastic how the novel reveal itself to the readers. Despite, the fact that book has won apprecation and accolade and have been loved by many, I found it rather slow, inconsistent  and unengaging after a point of time. Having said that, I did love some parts of it, like when the narrator tells about her school and friends, I was transported to my own school days. Once Kathy, Ruth and Tom completed their schooling at Hailsham and left for the outside world, there wasn't much apppeal for me in the rest of the story.

This book was a bit too heavy for my taste and the ending left me a bit too uneasy. I didn't really get well with the whole scientific idea behind it and in the end found it a bit disturbing.

Kazuao Ishiguro is Japanese born British author. Never Let Me Go was nominated for 2005 Man Booker Prize.

Fruit Salad ~ Fruit Chaat ~ Colourful and Healthy!

 If you followed the few recipes I have posted here and I am sure you must have noticed they are mostly on the higher side, if you count calories and also higher if you count the indulgence and taste.

Well, that does not realy mean I love only high calorie food. Let me tell you a little secret of mine.. Well! not really a secret.. I am a fruit-o-holic!! I absolutely love fruits and can have lots of it. So, today I am sharing the recipe of a fruit salad. I won't really call it a recipe ~ it is simply a few fruits, spices and lemon juice. Toss it and ready to serve. Yeah really that easy and looks pretty colourful. Did I say super healthy? Let it bring little bit of sunshine to your day!

Ingredients:

Any fruits you like, I have used grapes, apple, banana, oranges, preferably cold. You can also add kiwis, pineapple, pomegranate pearls

Use 1/2 cup of each.

1/2 tsp chaat masala

a generous pinch of freshly ground pepper.

1/2 tsp sugar (optional)

1 tsp lemon juice.

Serves 2

Process:

In a bowl add all the fruits and other ingredients. Toss well and serve immediately!

Note:

If you don't have chat masala, add black salt/sea salt and pepper to taste.

Linking it to Fun N Sun & Kid's Delight -Heathy Meal Ideas.

Thanks for stopping by. Cheers!

Wordless Wednesday ~ Eiffel Tower at Night