So, how have you all been?  I know I often do a peek-a-boo when it comes to my blog!  but, I won't abandon it for sure and I promise you, you will be seeing more here soon.   I am in India enjoying my holiday! well, this was a very surprising holiday actually and it got extended as well and I will be going back soon l!  I have been running around visiting all my family and friends it's a blessing to have people around you who love you right?  I feel I am blessed that way!

Here is a quick recipe for you all to enjoy! When you get your favourite Alphonso, pineapple and the fresh coconut which is very different from what I get in UK!  Then this Tropical Vegan smoothie is all I wanted to indulge. Put this bowl in the fridge and you would love it as is so cooling in a warm climate.

These Tropical fruits Pineapple, Mango, Coconut are blend to make a smoothie bowl which is just scrumptious and also a powerhouse of nutrients.

Smoothie Bowl Ingredients
1 Cup of Pineapple Juice from 1 cup of fresh pineapple
1/3 Cup of fresh Coconut
4 tbsp of Porridge Oats
½’’ Ginger
1 tbsp of Omega mix (A mix of sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, Pumpkin, Linseed)
¼ Cup of Agave Nectar / Sugar

Toppings
1 small Banana
¼ cup of Pomegranate
4 slices of Mango
Shavings of Coconut to garnish

Directions

1.  Blend Pineapple chunks with ¼ cup of water, filter the juice out of it.
2. Combine everything under smoothie bowl ingredients in a blender jar and blend until smooth and there are no chunks remaining.
3. Pour into a bowl and add all toppings. Slice the Bananas, top it with pomegranate, Mango and coconut to make it more scrumptious and tasty.

Notes and Tips :  

The Oats which I have used here is Quaker Rolled oats.

I have used fresh coconut, to get a fresh coconut, break open a coconut, using a knife or scraper I take out the flesh chop into little pieces and blend them in a mixer. You can also buy fresh coconut in Asian Grocery shops or online.  If you cannot find fresh coconut you can use tinned coconut milk/ cream instead.

If you use fresh coconut, when you break it open you get coconut water in it, filter the water sometimes there will be remnants from the coconut skin, you can even use this water to blend with the pineapple chunks to get the fresh juice.

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Vegan Tropical Fruit smoothie bowl

A simple yet delicious smoothie with all the tropical fruits in one bowl and is also vegan!

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 2

Ingredients

• 1 Cup Pineapple juice (1 cup fresh pineapple)
• 1/3 Cup freshly grated coconut
• 1/3 cup Porridge Oats
• 1 tbsp Omega 3 & 6 mix seeds
• 1/4 Cup Agave Nectar / Sugar
• 1/2'' ginger

Toppings

• 1 small Banana
• 1/4 cup Pomegranate
• 4 slices of Mango
• Few Shavings of coconut to garnish

Instructions

• Blend Pineapple chunks with ¼ cup of water, filter the juice out of it.
• Combine everything under smoothie bowl ingredients in a blender jar and blend until smooth and there are no chunks remaining.
• Pour into a bowl and add all toppings. Slice the Bananas, top it with pomegranate, Mango and coconut to make it more scrumptious and tasty.

Notes

The Oats which I have used here is Quaker Rolled oats.

I have used fresh coconut, to get fresh coconut, break open a coconut, using a knife or scraper I take out the flesh chop into little pieces and blend them in a mixer. You can also buy fresh coconut in Asian Grocery shops or online.  If you cannot find fresh coconut you can use tinned coconut milk/ cream instead.

If you use fresh coconut, when you break it open you get coconut water in it, filter the water sometimes there will be remnants from the coconut skin, you can even use this water to blend with the pineapple chunks to get the fresh juice.

The post Vegan Tropical Fruit smoothie bowl appeared first on My Veg Fare.

Last few days Sun had been scorching hot, temperatures soared up so much I couldn't stand and cook in my kitchen as it becomes too warm there and I feel like running away to find some place cooler.  Any amount of water and juices wouldn't quench your thirst down, I feel like drinking something cold all the time.  I made some ice creams, kulfis, popsicles, juices and smoothies.  This smoothie is my favourite which  I make now and then when I get hold fresh Mangoes fortunately which are in season now otherwise when I crave for it I sometimes use tinned mangoes.  I have been eating lots of mangoes as well :), from markets here, they do not taste like the ones I get back home but, they are quite delicious.  When I think of mangoes I think of my hometown, as this is the  season you get loads of mangoes.  My sister has a Mango tree and she used to bring us boxes of mangoes every year, I have a photo of her Mango tree somewhere I should dig it out to share it with you all.

This smoothie was something I whipped once long back when I ended up with lots of Avocado when compared with these two fruits, Mangoes are more appealing to me, which one do you prefer?  Then off course I love the visual appearance of Avocado rather than eating it when compared with Mango.  I use Avocado in many ways it is such a versatile fruit just like a mango, it can be used either as sweet or savoury version, it adapts to anything very easily.

Avocado is definitely a super food, it is said to have a plethora of health and beauty benefits.  There are loads of research done upholding the facts about Avocados.  They are said to have good fat that is the Oleic acid found in Avocados can reduce LDL Cholesterol and Increase HDL Cholesterol.

They are rich in Vitamin E, it is rich in Omega-9 fats that repair damaged skin by reducing redness and irritation caused by Acne, you can use it as a face mask and use its skin as an exfoliator, Did you know it is said that the oil is good for your hair as well, it helps in regulating hair growth and prevent hair loss,  I use Avocado as a hair mask, apply mashed Avocado on to your hair leave it for sometime and wash it with a good shampoo. It is rich in potassium, Mono- saturated fatty acids, high in fibre, it is useful for people who suffer from the symptoms of Arthritis.

Did you know something about how to peel an Avocado and why is it so important? well, read further as there is an interesting fact to know about it. why peeling an Avocado properly is useful for healthy eating.  This information is from Whole foods (www.whfoods.org) Avocado and health benefits page.  To know more about this click on the link

The method you use to peel an avocado might make a difference to your health. Research on avocado shows that the greatest phytonutrient concentrations occur in portions of the food that we do not typically eat, namely, the peel and the seed (or "pit.") The pulp of the avocado is actually much lower in phytonutrients than these other portions of the food. However, while lower in their overall phytonutrient richness, all portions of the pulp are not identical in their phytonutrient concentrations and the areas of the pulp that are closest to the peel are higher in certain phytonutrients than more interior portions of the pulp. For this reason, you don't want to slice into that outermost, dark green portion of the pulp any more than necessary when you are peeling an avocado. Accordingly, the best method is what the California Avocado Commission has called the "nick and peel" method. In this method, you actually end up peeling the avocado with your hands in the same way that you would peel a banana. The first step in the nick-and-peel method is to cut into the avocado lengthwise, producing two long avocado halves that are still connected in the middle by the seed. Next you take hold of both halves and twist them in opposite directions until they naturally separate. At this point, remove the seed and cut each of the halves lengthwise to produce long quartered sections of the avocado. You can use your thumb and index finger to grip the edge of the skin on each quarter and peel it off, just as you would do with a banana skin. The final result is a peeled avocado that contains most of that dark green outermost flesh, which provides you with the best possible phytonutrient richness from the pulp portion of the avocado.

Coming back to the Recipe, This tropical fruit  blended with something incredibly healthy secret Ingredient which your kids wouldn't notice or I can say for fussy eaters who will never know what is in it, it's so yummy, creamy and thick.

VEGAN AVOCADO AND MANGO SMOOTHIE

INGREDIENTS:
1 Cup Pureed Mango Pulp*
3 Ripe Avocadoes
1 Cup Orange Juice
3 to 4 tbsp of fair trade Brown sugar*

METHOD
First of all blend y our Avocadoes which are cut into pieces use some orange juice if it is a bit difficult to blend into a lovely smooth consistency, once Avocadoes are smooth add the Mango puree and the remaining Orange juice and blend hem well with the sugar to a smooth consistency.
Increase adding extra orange juice or water if it becomes too thick.

For a variation:
You can add cream of coconut and some bits of Pineapple  to make it a complete tropical smoothie, you can even add Soya/almond/oats milk to make it more delicious.

* I used 2 mangoes cut them into chunks and blended it into a smooth consistency, you can even use tinned Mango pulp if fresh mangoes are not available.

If you liked it try it out and leave me a comment below  and also tell me how do you use Avocado in your  diet? Have you tried Avocadoes in any other way in your beauty techniques, Check out this blog for some baking recipes as well using Avocadoes

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Vegan Avocado-Mango Smoothie

Healthy and delicious, Tropical fruit blended with Avocado

Course Drinks

Cuisine International

Servings 5 Glasses

Author Jayasri

Ingredients

• 1 Cup Pureed Mango Pulp*
• 3 Ripe Avocadoes
• 1 Cup Orange Juice
• 3 to 4 tbsp of fair trade Brown sugar*

Instructions

• First of all blend y our Avocadoes which are cut into pieces use some orange juice if it is a bit difficult to blend into a lovely smooth consistency, once Avocadoes are smooth add the Mango puree and the remaining Orange juice and blend hem well with the sugar to a smooth consistency.
• Increase adding extra orange juice or water if it becomes too thick.

Notes

You can add cream of coconut and some bits of Pineapple to make it a complete tropical smoothie, you can even add Soya/almond/oats milk to make it more delicious.

* I used 2 mangoes cut them into chunks and blended it into a smooth consistency, you can even use tinned Mango pulp if fresh mangoes are not available.

The post Vegan Avocado-Mango Smoothie appeared first on My Veg Fare.

Hi everybody, I am very very Happy, Guess why, before that, I would like to first apologize to Radhika and Farah for not posting on time for my Blog Hop Wednesdays.  I had written to them a while ago before the BHW that I would be posting a bit late, I was all alone, should I say Home alone for 3 weeks as my kids went off for their Hols, and I really did not know what to cook or bake and thinking about how I could live without them when they are not with me anymore!.

Well, after that  every thing changed I couldn't believe that my Mom at last decided to come and visit us after all these years we had been pestering her to come and of course Dad wouldn't come so no question of asking him, She was not ready to come here all this way, a long flight  and she wasn't going to come alone that was my big problem, she was totally scared,  I have to thank my H who had the Lion share in brain washing my mom in coming alone, Thanks to him, I am really so happy..., at last one of my family is here, Kids are really thrilled and I have asked me to retire from the kitchen as they want their paati ( Nan ) to cook and feed them, as she is the best cook ever according to them and my cooking is OK!!.
Yes my Mum is here Yay!!, everything happened quickly, I had a very busy weekend till today :), I am more relaxed today mum is settled in and we all hope to enjoy her short stay here.  After a long time we have a wonderful sunshine here for a few days, hope it continues.., All my friends, family & neighbours keep telling mum that she has brought sunshine to us from India.
Well, coming back to this recipe, I chilled and served this delicious smoothie, with a bit of twist and made it a bit healthy by adding some toasted nuts and flax seed. Thanks to both Radhika and Farah for an other smoothie, I have a few more I need to post.., I Chose this smoothie because of my Prunes, I had bought loads of prunes, so I am trying to use them in many ways, as my kids don't like to eat them as it is !!, using them in  many ways is the only way I can think of using them.
I don't have to say for fellow foodies the goodness of smoothies.., A wonderful complete delicious drink to start your day...,  keeps you energetic and a healthy one too.. what more do you need....

PRUNE, BANANA AND APPLE SMOOTHIE

INGREDIENTS:
2 Bananas
3 Apples ( medium sized )
12 Californian Prunes
2 tbsp Flax seeds powder
3 tbsp of Toasted Nuts
3 Cups Milk
1/4 Maple syrup
few Ice cubes

I had toasted some nuts on pan, Almonds, Pistachios, Cashewnuts & Walnuts. I added 3tsp of Brown sugar for my kids smoothies as they wanted it a bit more sweeter.

METHOD:
Blend Prunes, Flax seed powder and Apples ( peeled & cored ) until smooth then add peeled & chopped Bananas and blend again, Now add milk blend them well again.
Add Ice cubes and refrigerate for 1/2 an hour and serve them chilled topped with toasted nuts.

sending this to Radhika's Blog Hop Wednesday , Radhika had assigned me to Farah of A mum's Journal, she has a beautiful space, I enjoyed going through her blog, I usually love to bake something but this time I had to choose something else, just because of the prunes everytime I went to her blog, I kept going through this recipe again and again, I kind of get stuck with it. I added some apples with it, I had got exactly three of them and if I didn't use them I would loose them, as I was loaded with apples from my friend who came to say hai to mum!!..  So here is this lovely recipe, hope you like it and make it...

Sending this to Ayesha's cook eat delicious desserts - milk, started by Raven

The post Prune, Banana & Apple Healthy smoothie appeared first on My Veg Fare.

Smoothies and Juices are such a healthy form of diet in your everyday life, These are such recipes where you can disguise any Ingredients like fruits, vegetables etc.., which are perfect  in  other way when you have teenagers or kids who are picky eaters tend not to eat what you want them to eat, They won't even know what you have added in them right ? I could say this to some adults too.., even if you tell them they are really good for health.

I have 3 kids one 18 and the other two 16 (twins!!), They sometime enjoy eating fruits if you give them peeled, sliced decorated with ice cream or salads in a bowl to where ever they are :), this is asking for too much, yes, otherwise they don't mind not eating it at all. My eldest has made an alarm telling her it's her fruit time, everyday morning and evening, I was quite surprised for a few days she would promptly eat a fruit, that was totally rejoicing day of my life I thought, as took this initiative on her own Yup!.. but, that didn't last still her mobile goes beep., beep., but she always gives me some reason that she forgot to eat.
So, I have come back to my way of giving them fruits, like this making smoothies, Apparently I do have a few smoothies recipes in my draft which I have never been able to post, may be someday I will do.. 🙂
Coming to this post..
As I have been away from blogging for lots of reasons, I had completely forgotten about my joining the Mom's Crazy Cooking Challenge, I suddenly remembered yesterday, that I haven't done anything at all for the challenge, I just decided I will write to Tina and told her my situation and said I might not be able to participate after all, I was a bit upset too.., I told her I might try out something but I might not be able to post it right on time, as I simply cannot do immediately for other things which need me when you come back home from work, like my kids who are hungry ( as always), immediately when they see their mum, because they are staying at home for their study holidays as they have exams whole of two months!!.  So, basically I have no domestic help :), makes me more tired..

As Tina of #CCC had challenged all the participants to make smoothies this month, you will be enjoying to see a whole lot of them here in the linky below, I would like to thank Tina, for encouraging me to take up and whip up something for this challenge, which I immensely from my heart enjoy this with this team of bloggers.., they are mind blowing.., We have to choose a recipe from other blogger to participate in this challenge and here I am with this recipe with a little twist of my own just to make my kids enjoy it more to their needs, I adapted this recipe from Yummy Food of Lubna Karim.
Yummy Food/ Kitchen Flavours of Lubna's needs no introduction for most of the Indian bloggers, she is wonderful blogger with mouth watering recipes and now top of all with her passion for blogging recipes has always been a eye catching photographer, you will just fall in love with all her wonderful photographs and tips if you are interested in food photography, just visit her blog and enjoy everything you set your eyes in her blog.., and as she always says at the end of post serve it with love..., That is her theme she has Served everything with lots and lots of love in her blog for every reader to enjoy..., Thanks Lubna for this wonderful smoothie, hope you like my little twist..

STRAWBERRY AND MELON SMOOTHIE WITH MUSELI
Recipe Source : Yummy Food
Serves 3

INGREDIENTS
1 Cup of chopped Strawberries
1 Cup of Yellow Melon
1/2 Cup Museli
1/4 Cup of Agave Nectar and Sweet Freedom (100% fruit)
1 Cup Milk
1/4 Cup Yogurt (home made)

METHOD:
Take Museli in a bowl add hot milk over it and cover it till needed.
Take chopped Strawberries and melon in a blender and blend it smooth to this add the sweetners and yogurt.
Strain out the milk from the museli and add this to the blender and blend once again, to this add the strained milk and give a whirl again so they all blend together well again.
Pour them into the glasses, top it with Coco pops and serve.
Serve it chilled or immediately.

NOTES:
I soaked Museli before blending as my kids don't like museli this way they didn't know I had museli in it :), If you like museli, you can just skip this step and top the smoothie with museli and serve.
They love Coco pops so I just topped it with them, just to attract them to it.
You can chop any other fruits or nuts to top them up for a full filling smoothie.
Please do not compare my photos with hers as I am just a Mobile photographer :))
Want to look at those lovely Strawberry Smoothie hop on to her blog....

Check out this link below for many more smoothie recipes.....
Fruit Smoothies/Shakes June 2012

The post Strawberry and Melon smoothie with Museli appeared first on My Veg Fare.