Floral Drink of Rose-Jasmine and Basil (गुलाब मोगरा और तुलसी का शर्बत)

Rose-Jasmine-Basil Cooling Drink

In my garden I had plentyful bloom of fragrant red roses, Indian basil and Mogra. Once I thought of making good use of all these and experimented to make a drink out of them. This unfermented drink was too tasty, cooling and full of fragrance. The goodness of flowers and basil added to the look and flavor of the drink. It was instant hit with my children. 

Now both my children are grwonup, having their families. Few days back the rose, mogra bloomed aplenty and basil(Tulsi) was flourishing in my pot plants. It brought the nostalgic memerois back and I decided to make the floral drink with rose, mogra and basil. 

I share this recipe with all sweet memories of good old days with my kids.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Making Time: 2 hrs (Soaking time)

Servings: Makes 6 glasses of cold drink

Ingredients Required For making Floral Drink:

• Rose Petals (Of fragrant rose, I use American Rose): 50 gm
• Leaves of Indian Basil: 25 gm.
• Jasmine Flower (Mogra Flower): 20-25
• Sugar/Honey as sweetener;2 teaspoon /glass of juice or as per taste
• Freshly squeezed lemon juice: 1 Teaspoon /glass of juice

Directions for Making Floral Drink:

• Take freshly plucked rose remove the stalk, sepals, ovary and leaves. Save the petals and rest flower part. Basically all green part should be removed and rest flower parts should be kept for making the drink.
• Remove Green aprt (Sepals and stalk) from Jasmine flower (mogra flower) and give good wash in flowing water. Mix these washed flowers with cleaned roses.
• Remove the leaves of basil from stalk and wash them nicely.
• Mix the basil leaves with rose flower petals in a deep bowl or french press. 
• Boil 250 ml. water and pour it over the mixture of rose and basil. Cover and let it soak for 2 hours. The colour of water will start turning pink. If the basil leaves are of dark colour rather than green then the colur of water will look more like green tea extract.

Flowers and Basil Soaking In Boiling water

After two hours of soaking

• Decant all liquid and discard the solid.

Left over after draining liquid 

Store this decoction in fridge. It stay without spoiling for months together in fridge.

Bottled extract of Rose-Jasmin-Basil 

• Take ghalf glass of the decoction add:
• Chilled water
• 1 Teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Sweetner (sugar/honey) as per taste
• Mix well and enjoy the cooling chilled floral drink.
• Once the lemon juice is added the color of decocotion changes to beautiful pink.

Floral drink after and before adding lemon juice

After adding lemon juice and honey 

• The heavenly smell, taste and cooling effect will force you to make it again and again.

Tips:

• Make sure the water is boiling when it is being added to flower-basil mixture.
• Cover the container in which flower-basil mixture is being soaked tightly to ensure the aroma of flowers and basil is seeped in water nicely.

Alternate Suggestions;

• For those who use sugar as sweetner:
• Boil 300 ml. water. Add 50-60 gm sugar and dissolvesugar in water.
• Give one boil to the sugar water solution and pour it over flower-basil mixture and allow to soak.
• This will give the stweetned concoction only lemon juice will need to be added when you want to have this amazing aromatic floral drink.

Basil Pesto sauce

Basil Pesto Sauce

Topping up Pesto before Storing

Fresh homemade pesto from freshly plucked Basil leafs has great flavor and color. I had grown a Basil plant in a pot in my balcony, and the seeds were transported to other pots by wind thus it was like basil basil every where filling my balcony with fragrance. I used it in salad, mushroom baked sandwiches, pasta etc. They would start making appearance in abundance so I decided to make Pesto. After using bottled pesto from market I realized the difference between homemade pesto from garden fresh Basil and the bottled one from market. The addition of few walnuts gives a wonderful earthy taste. I just love this Pesto.

Preparation Time: 5-10 minutes

Making Time: 10 minutes

Makes 400-450 gm of Pesto

Ingredients Required for Making Pesto:

• 100-120 Fresh basil leafs.

Fresh Basil Leafs

• 8-10 pods of Garlic.

Garlic

• 10-15 Almonds.

Almonds and 

• 4-5 Walnuts.
• 1 Teaspoon Salt (or to taste).
• 100 ml. Extra Virgin Olive oil for Pesto sauce.
• 10-15 ml. Extra Virgin Olive oil for topping up.

Directions For Making Basil Pesto:

• Remove the stalk from leafs.
• Roast Almonds and soak them in water.
• Once almonds are soaked remove the peel (Brown covering) from roasted, soaked almonds.
• In a mixer-grinder take Basil leafs and grind them thoroughly.
• Add
• Garlic
• Almonds
• Walnuts
• Salt
• Grind. If required very little amount of water can be added to make a fine paste.
• Add half the amount (50ml) of olive oil slowly to the paste along with pulsing the paste in mixer. Do not run the mixer at high speed. Otherwise the color of Pesto will become foamy and whitish.

Thick Pesto Paste

• Remove the paste in a big bowl and add the remaining 50 ml of olive oil along with mixing with the help of a spoon.

Pesto After Adding Olive oil

• Fill the container in which you wish to store the Pesto with your freshly made Pesto sauce and top it up with 10-15 ml of olive oil.

Topping up Pesto before Storing

• It lasts for months in freezer and in fridge at least for 6 months, but I bet you it will finish before that long. For experimenting I kept some amount in a little bottle but after 6 months my patients gave way to polising it off.

Tips:

• Make sure the smallest stalk is removed for best texture.
• Garlic can be adjusted according to taste and the size of pods.
• More Almonds can be added if one wishes but do not add more walnuts, they may leave a little bitter taste if added in excess.
• Do not add excess of water, else the Pesto sauce will become runny and no one wants runny Pesto. One or two teaspoon will be enough.
• Suggested Variations: None.

Spiced Indian Herbal Tea

Spiced Indian Herbal Tea and Snacks

Black Spiced Indian Herbal Tea With Lemon and Honey

Tea is the refreshing drink taken in the morning and when tired or stressed out what better than a hot cup of tea. All over the world tea is taken in one form or other. In India tea with milk and in some places tea made in pure milk is preferred. I love black tea or tea with lots of herbs and spices. My creation of this tea is not only refreshing but has medicinal values also. In normal cough and cold, headache it works wonder. My daughter in-law loves the flavor of this tea prepared by me. All ingredients are easily available in market and most of them are available in every kitchen. This tea can be taken only as herbal tea or tea leaves can be added to have black tea with a dash of lemon or with tea leaves and milk added as we Indians are normally used to.

Preparation Time: 5 min.

Making Time: 10-15 minutes

Servings: 4 cups of Tea

Ingredients Required For Making Spiced Indian Herbal Tea:

• 4 Tea cup water
• 1 Lemon Grass (Gawati chai)
• 10-12Holy Basil leaves (Tulsi)
• 1 inch Ginger (Adarak)
• 2 Black Cardamom (Badi elaichi)
• 2-4 Cloves (lawang)
• 1 Inch Piece of Cinnamon (Dalchini)
• 1 Teaspoon Fennel(saunf)

Material For Spiced Indian Herbal Tea

Directions For Making Spiced Indian Herbal Tea:

• Pound the black and green cardamom so that the seeds are crushes and the peel is split.
• Grate ginger
• Wash the basil and lemon grass.
• Cut lemon grass to pieces.

All Herbs and Spices Ready for Tea

• In a kettle take 4 cups of water.
• Add
• Black and green Cardamom
• Fennel
• Cloves
• Lemon grass
• Basil leaves

All Herbs and Spices Added to Water

• Cover the kettle and keep the kettle with water and all ingredients on heat.

Water With Herbs and Spices Kept For Boiling

Herbs and Spices Boiling in Water

• When water starts boiling lower the flame and let the water with all herbs and spices boil for 5 min.
• The water will reduce by one cup and three cups of liquid will be left.
• Add two tea spoons of your favorite tea leaves and let it stand for 10 min.

Tea Leaves Added To boiled Water with Herbs and Spices

• Boil one cup of milk.
• Add milk and sugar according to your taste and liking and herbal tea with milk is ready. My personal preference is tea without sugar.
• Get refreshed with Indian Herbal tea.

Spiced Indian Herbal Tea and Vada 

• Tips:
• Do not remove the peel of cardamoms as they impart good flavor and have lots of medicinal values.
• Do not cut the basil leaves.
• Do not boil after adding tea leaves as the tea will become very dark and bitter.
• Never add cold milk and then heat the tea it spoils the taste of tea.
• Correct practice is adding milk to tea not tea to milk this way the amount milk can be regulated without spoiling the taste of tea.
• To get the complete flavor of herbs and spices boil the water for at least 5 min.
• Amount of water should be 1 cup more than finally required amount in the case of herbal/black herbal tea as no milk is being added.

Suggested Variations:

• Filter the liquid in a cup add one tea spoon of honey and take hot piping refreshing herbal tea.

Spiced Indian Herbal Tea With Honey

• Heat the black herbal tea and filter in a cup.
• Add one teaspoon of fresh lemon juice and 2 teaspoon of honey/ sugar to taste. Serve with a wedge of lemon.

Spiced Indian Herbal Black Tea With Honey and Lemon

• Stir and have wonderful herbal black tea with lemon and honey taste.

Paneer Tikka (Cottage cheese cooked with spices)

Juicy Paneer Tikka with salad on the sides

Cottage cheese is one of my favorite milk products. When it is made to Tikka it takes the subtle flavor of the herbs put in the marinade yet maintains the classic taste of its own. Though Paneer Tikka is made in different manner I write this recipe on the demand of my daughter-in-law’s sister Amrita. She liked it especially because it is literally oil less. Paneer Tikka can be had as snacks as well as side dish to the main course. I love it so much that for me every time is paneer tikka time.

Preparation Time: 45 min. (Including marination time)

Cooking Time: 10– 15 min.

Servings: 10- 12 Medium servings

Ingredients required for Paneer Tikka:

• 250 gm. Paneer (cottage cheese)

• 50 - 100 gm.  Cream (Malai)

• 100 gm. Thick Curd

• 1/4 Tea spoon Turmeric Powder

• 1 Tea spoon Amchur Powder (Dry raw mango powder)

• 1 Tea spoon Red chili Powder

• 1 Tea spoon Kasoori methi (Dried and powdered green leaves of methi)

• Salt to taste

• 2 Tea spoon Olive oil.

Direction for marinating Paneer:

• Cut paneer to 2cm.x2cm. pieces.

Cottage Cheese (Paneer ) cut into pieces

• Take Paneer pieces in a bowl.

• Add Turmeric powder, salt, chili powder and amchur.

Turmeric powder, Salt, Chili powder and Amchur added to Paneer pieces

• Add malai(cream).

Cream and curd added to Paneer pieces

• Add kasoori methi and mix well.

Mixed after adding Kasoori Methi

• Keep aside for at least 30 min.

Direction for Making Tikka

• Take a nonstick Tawa and keep it on high flame.

• When hot lower the flame and spread one tea spoon of olive oil on it.

Hot non stick tawa with one teaspoon of oil

• Place marinated paneer pieces on Tawa and let them cook for 3-4 min, without disturbing.

Marinated Paneer pieces placed on hot Tawa and being cooked

• The side of paneer which are in touch of tawa directly will become brownish pink.

• Carefully turn them upside down.

Turning Paneer pieces upside down to cook from both side

• Cook the other side also till brownish pink in color

Paneer Tikka with salad

• Serve the tikka with coriander mint chutney, 
•  http://jyotsna-pant.blogspot.com/2011/10/green-coriander-and-mint-chutney.html

• http://jyotsna-pant.blogspot.com/2012/06/hariyali-chutney-raw-mango-chutney.html

   

Tips:

• Do not make the paneer pieces very small.

• Tawa should not be smoking hot when you place paneer on it, because paneer will get burnt spoiling the taste.

• Curd should be thick and not too sour.

Suggested Variations:

• Kasoori methi can be replaced by oregano/ parsley/ basil to change the flavor of paneer tikka.

• Malai (cream) can be replaced by curd to reduce the fat content due to malai.

• Paste of green chili and coriander can be added to marinade instead red chili powder and methi, this gives very good flavor and color to tikka.