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The Healthy Golden Milk Mix Recipe

December 28, 2020 by Harshitha Leave a Comment

Golden Milk Mix Recipe

As we progress further and more into the future, we forget about the foods our culture has to offer. Golden milk mix is such a recipe. Golden milk is an awesome beverage to have. It is a traditional Indian drink.

Mainly people use turmeric in milk to give it a golden color. But simply putting turmeric in milk is not how one prepares golden milk. There are precise steps there to follow. There are many anti-inflammatory advantages of this drink. It helps to keep a person healthy.

One can take it before going to bed. Taking it before bed helps to improve memory and supports brain function. Overall it is a healthy drink a person can take in any season of the year. Now let’s take a look into the preparation of this drink.

Golden Milk Mix Ingredients

The ingredients that are used in making golden milk mix are also nutritional components. When you make golden milk, you need four things in best quality—turmeric, Cinamon, Black pepper and ginger.

In the winter you can make your golden milk hot to your convenience, and in summer you can make it cool as you like. Mixing these spices results in an ayurvedic, spicy blend that is super tasty when mixing to milk.

Remember, you have to use dairy-free milk for best outcomes. Some use sweetener because they want their drink a little more o the sweet side. You can add sweetener too. But try sticking with any homemade sweetener. Artificial sweetener is troublesome, and it is wise not to add in this drink.

Add honey. You will feel the difference in changes in the taste. And as it is a customizable drink, You can add and remove ingredients according to your needs. But the core concept remains the same. So make sure you follow that recipe.

The Golden Milk

The mix is an important thing in this drink. If you mess up the mixture of different components, you mess up the whole thing. But it is not rocket science, so there is no need to worry.

You have to follow some steps.

All you will need

4 tbsp ground turmeric
2 tsp of ground ginger
2 tsp of ground cinnamon
1 tsp of black pepper.

You can always add more of each component to access more strong tastes. But for a serving of one tsp, this is to go with.

You can also add some extra things to taste up things. Nutmeg and cloves are such things. You can add one-eighth tsp of ground nutmeg and the same amount of ground clove. Again, don’t forget about dairy-free milk.

The preparation

Now the important steps are coming into play. For preparation, you will need the golden mix at first. Alongside the mix, you will need a sweetener. For which consider maple syrup or honey. You will need two tsp of honey also. And lastly, get your hand on one cup of dairy-free milk.

Light coconut milk works best in the milk section.

Instructions To Prepare Golden Milk Mix

To make the mix, you have to mix all the things. You can also add things according to your preference. You can keep it at a small container and give it a good shake to mix everything. Then you can either leave it at room temp, or you can put it into the refrigerator.

Now comes the stage where you have to make the milk. Grab a pan or saucepan at first. Add the mix, two tsp of water and the sweetener into the pan. Stir to make it a loose paste. Please don’t make it very thick. Otherwise, the milk will not mix with it well enough.

Adding milk is the next step. Heat at such a temperature that does not influence in boiling. Being hot is enough for warm golden milk.

If you crave cold golden tea in the summer, it is also very easy to make. The thing is it is quite same as before. You add the things into a glass. Make a paste out of it. Add all the necessary things, and at last, you need to add ice cubes instead of boiling.

The add on’s will be added after the preparation is over. Regardless of the type of your milk, you can add the same things. A sprinkle of some nuts or additional cinnamon is a good idea. Let us leave this part to the user and their preferences.

Health benefits of golden milk mix

There are many benefits to this awesome drink. People do not take this to light up their regularity. Many older people and younger ones take it on a regular basis to take advantage of the healthy parts of this beverage.

Golden milk is famous for its anti-inflammatory aspect. The cinnamon, ginger, and turmeric paste help people stay healthy. It also helps in preventing metabolic syndrome, heart issues, cancer, joint pains, etc.
A person who takes this drink regularly in their diet is more likely to reduce inflammation in their body than a person who is not taking this drink at all.
A study has suggested that antioxidants present in different foods help one be fit by preventing cell damage. This drink shows many antioxidants properties also. So we can also assume it helps to keep your cells steady and ready all the time.
Diabetes is a great health problem in the world. Older people are more likely to get diabetes as they grow older. Well, we have some good news also then. Our golden milk helps people with type 2 diabetes.
The milk that we are adding to the mix is plant-based. And we know that plant-based milk has various healthy nutrients. Vitamin D and calcium are also present there. Here vitamin d helps our body absorb calcium, and calcium helps us keep the bones healthy.
If you think your digestive system is not very strong, take this drink regularly. Ginger helps to support our digestive systems and also helps people with vomiting tendency.

Elderberry Gummies For Kids (And Adults)

December 28, 2020 by Harshitha Leave a Comment

All About Elderberry Gummies

Elderberry gummies are tasty to children and interesting even to adult people. As people grow older, they tend to get weaker and more open to diseases. A lot of this has to do with the weak immune system of the body from childhood.

Experts say if someone does not get proper nutrition from childhood, they may have a weak immune response in the adult. But kids do not like to eat nutritious stuff with zero taste. Elderberry gummies are a lifesaver here.

These gummies taste great and contain a hell of a lot of anti-oxidants. Other than that, it is famous for its immunity-boosting properties, which help kids to fight flu.

Many of you are surely thinking that if it is natural or not? Yes. It is completely safe to consume for everyone.

About elderberry syrup

Elderberry gummies use elderberry syrup for their preparation. There are certain ways you can get your hand on the elderberry syrup. You can buy elderberry syrup from a local store, or you can make it at home. Store-bought syrups often have other ingredients like alcohol or vinegar.

If you feel like you don’t want to go with the store ones, you need to make it at home. Raw honey and dried elderberries will do the work for that. You can add lemon and cloves to enhance the health properties of the gummies.

Cinamon is also there to increase the properties of the gummies.

How to store the gummies?

Storing gummies is an easy step. It is all about finding the perfect mold. Kids especially like the little bear molds too much. But it can be anything interesting to kids.

Kids do not want to take liquid medicine for a long period. But who does not like little gummies?

The molds vary in size and in different details. The amount of gummies you will make in a day completely depends on the molds you use. If you use a bear mold, you will get around one hundred and sixty-five gummies.

Instructions

At first, you need to make sure your gummies do not stick to the molds after freezing. For that purpose, use coconut oil. This will help prevent sticking.
Add water of around half a cup to the syrup and stir quickly until it reaches a smooth state.
Put the rest of the syrup and stir also.
Pour this into the molds.
Refrigeration is the option that remains after doing all these. Put the molds into the freezer for two hours until it reaches a stable state.
Now you need to pop the gummies out of the mold, and you need an airtight container now. Put the gummies into the airtight container.

Nutrition values

As I told you before, the nutrition values of the gummies are huge. Many fitness freak people often wonder, are the gummies consist of high calories? The answer is a big no. Only seventeen to eighteen calories are there in two gummies.

It has all the important micro-nutrients that one can expect. Carbohydrates, Proteins, Fat, Sodium, Fiber are there.

There are 2.7 grams of carbohydrates and 0.8 grams of protein for two gummies. For fast, it has 0.5 grams. There are two milligrams of sodium in there and 0.1 gram offiber also.

Some Do’s and Don’ts

It is known that the mixture thickens up quickly but even then, try to use less water. It will help you with storing your gummies in bulk.
A paper towel is good if you plant to prevent the moisture. Place the paper towel on the airtight container and then close the lid. Don’t forget to change it periodically. It helps to block the moisture.
Avoid putting in the freeze, which is humid for some time. Make the freeze cold and block some moisture.
Some like raw honey in their gummies. But also you can add sugar there. It depends on preferences.
If you wish to use it for a very long time, then use a freezer bag and airtight container. Gummies can stay in the freezer for as long as twelve months.
You can have the gummies throughout the year also. In fact, you can have them every other season.

Variation

If you think there is only a certain type of gummy, is there. Then, my friend, you’re mistaken. Conventionally children take these gummies to fight flu. If that is the case, you can think of any immunity booster herb available near you.

You can also use a certain type of herb that provides other health benefits. All I am saying is that by know you are sure of this thing that it is customizable. You can choose what to add according to your needs.

For example, ginger is a good choice to add to your elderberry gummies.

I can provide you with some examples.

If you want to help your immune system further, use Echinacea.
You can add anti-microbial herbs like lavender.
Medicinal mushrooms are a very good option to add to your gummies too.

How many gummies are safe for a day?

If we are talking about children and giving your child gummies every other day, it is better to talk to the family doctor first. But if you are an adult and taking these gummies tastes fun to you, even then the answer is- it depends.

Depends on what? Well, a certain factor is the size of the molds. If it is a big mold that you use, try sticking to one gummy per day. If you are using small ones, you can take two or three. But it is always wise not to go overboard with anything.

Vegan Concerns

There are some vegan concerns related to these tasty gummies. If you are vegan, do not use gelatin in your recipe. Sugar is a good choice to start; I would say because gelatin is not vegan friendly. So vegan people can have problems with that.

How To Freeze Peaches The Right Way

December 27, 2020 by Harshitha Leave a Comment

How To Freeze Peaches The Right Way

Peaches are great food. Aren’t they? Everybody likes to enjoy peaches almost every day of the year. There is a way if you want to get this awesome fruit all throughout the year. You have to freeze it right.

Peaches of off-season do not taste that good. They kind of lose the flavor. So you need to freeze them when in season. Frozen peaches work great almost on every dish. As this is one of the flavourful fruits globally, frozen peaches do not lose their characteristics.

The preparation

What is the correct way to freeze peaches? The answer is – no one knows. But some rules are there. If you freeze accordingly, your peaches may turn as exactly as it was before. Well, that is too much promise, though.

In the preparation segment, there are a few steps. But the most important step here is cutting your peaches. It is slightly difficult if you are a total newbie in this field. It also depends on the ripeness of the fruit.

Get a nice and sharp knife after that cut the peach into two half. Then removing the pit is the only option that remains. It is okay if both the halves are not perfectly even in proportion. When you use the peach mostly in smoothies, it does not matter what the proportions are.

How to prevent peaches from turning brown?

This is a problem while you freeze certain foods. Like peaches, apple and avocados turn brown when heavily exposed to air. You must have seen this while eating an apple. When you cut in two halves, it is exposed to air. Thus it becomes brown.

There is a solution to every problem. This problem is a very small one in that aspect. What you need is lemon water or simply a mixture of lime juice and water. And you need to soak the fruit pieces in lemon water. That prevents them from turning brown immediately.

Another option is to use a fresh fruit protector. This does the job as well.

Freeze the peaches with the skin on or pealing it before?

Both of this can happen. When you freeze the fruit on the skin, it becomes very easy to let go of the skin when defrosting. But there are different recipes. Different recipes require different forms of this fruit. So it always depends on the requirement of the recipe.

If you intend to peel the skin, follow the steps below.

You need two different bowls of water. One for boiling water and one for cooling water.
Boil the fruit for a minimum of two to three minutes. You will notice the skin starting to get loose.
After doing the second step, now is the cooling step. Bring the fruit out of the boiling water and place them in the cold water.
It will take not so much time to get the cold of the cold water. Once you feel right, bring the peach out of the bowl. Now you can easily peel the skin.

It is the conventional way to keep the skin on until you defrost the peach. But again it depends on the user and his requirements.

Freezing and sealing

After you successfully soak them into the lemon water, you have to jump to the next step. The next step is to arrange them individually on a large baking sheet. Do not overlap the pieces because it will create a problem when you try to defrost them.

Next step is to find the ideal container for the fruits. The ideal container can vary in sizes and types. But before putting the pieces in a bag, you need to freeze them overnight or at least for four hours until they become slightly solid. Then comes the process of putting it in the freezer.

After you find your right bag for freezing, make sure you try to keep all the air out of the bag. Push out the air as much as possible. You can straw it out also. Both of these methods work just fine. After that, put your fruit in the bag and tightly lock the seal.

Peach is a great fruit for freezing. You can freeze them as long as a whole year. In this manner, you can also enjoy them no matter what the season is.

After locking the seal do not forget to put all the dates and labels on the bag. If you don’t remember when you put the bags in the freezer, then a major problem will arise. So write the dates on the bags.

Can you keep a whole peach frozen?

Of course, you can freeze a whole peach. But if your recipe does not call for it or require it, try not to freeze any fruit that way. Because when you freeze the peach whole, you do not cut the fruit. So the pit stays inside the peach.

When you intend to use it, you need to defrost the peach; first, you have to boil the fruit in hot water. Then you have to cut the fruit in half and then only you can take out the pit. You see all of this can be a little frustrating for someone. So do the same before freezing and enjoy the fruit afterward.

Small tips about freezing peaches

Freezing is an ideal way to preserve the peaches if one wants to use them the whole year. After defrosting, you may experience subtle softness in the frozen peaches. This is not a reason to worry. Freezing in no way reduces the quality.

There are various places you can add peaches to increase the taste. If you are a fitness lover, add peaches to your oatmeal. People also add them to baked goods or solid foods. Smoothie is a major thing where people add peaches. So the point is to cut the pieces accordingly.

Do not apply frozen peaches directly to your food. Always remember to defrost them. This is a very important thing to do.

Best Ways To Freeze Basil

December 27, 2020 by Harshitha Leave a Comment

Best Ways To Freeze Basil

Freezing basil can be very useful as basil is mostly a summer plant and its leaves dry completely in the winter. The soil needs to be warmed up nicely, and then only basil can grow in it. To solve this problem, freeze basil in your house during the summer, and you can have fresh green basil leaves throughout the year.

Basil is an herb obtained from the plant Ocimumbasilicum L. (sweet basil) and is from the mint family. The plant is small in size and grows up to 100cm. It is widely popular in Asia, America, and Africa.

It is very much loved in India as well for its aroma and medicinal values. Basil is a kitchen herb and is mostly grown in houses in small pots or vessels. The plant does not require much effort to grow and is very low maintenance but is extremely sensitive to frost. It best grows in warm and humid conditions.

For most of India and the world, the winters are chilling cold, and hence the plant dries down easily. Thus, the leaves of this plant can be collected and stored for around a year by following the methods we will discuss now.

Methods To Freeze Basil

Out of so many methods available online, only a few are useful. Here we will get to know about the tried and tested ones that are beneficial.

Also, it is very important to know that we must not lose the qualities and medicinal values while freezing the basil. These methods also ensure that and hence are reliable.

1. Blanched Leaves –

Blanching is a process in which a vegetable or herb is immersed in boiling water for 2-3 minutes and then is immediately transferred to an ice water bath.

For basil leaves, collect the leaves and clean them. Then put them in boiling water for 5-10 seconds, which is enough for basil. Transfer the blanched leaves into an ice water bath. Dry the leaves thoroughly and flash freeze them for about a day. The leaves are then ready to be stored.

Though it is one of the easiest processes, the drawback is that the leaves are very delicate, and hence if they are kept in the boiling water for few more seconds, they turn brown and lose their smell.

2. Washed Leaves –

In this method, collect and clean the leaves. Wash it with normal water and lay it on a tray to dry them completely. Freeze them for a day or half until they are firm enough to be stored. Then transfer the leaves to a freezer bag and make it airtight.

This method again doesn’t require much work, but they thaw very quickly. Comparing blanched and unblanched leaves, the blanched one stay fresh for a longer time.

3. Directly Freezing the Leaves –

As mentioned in the ‘Washed Leaves’ method, follow the same procedure. Wash the leaves and dry them completely, then directly store them in a ziplock bag without flash-freezing them.

Unblanched leaves are frozen best using this method. The leaves stay in their natural green colour for a longer time, and also this method is very easy.

4. Chopped and Oil Coated Leaves –

This method is one of the most popular methods to freeze basil. It is widely used, and people review it to be very useful in storing basil.

In this method, we need to wash and dry the leaves as earlier. Then we have to chop the leaves coarsely in a food processor, or a knife can work as well. The chopped leaves are then sprinkled with a little amount of olive oil.

The leaves and olive oil are then mixed well so that each of the pieces gets well coated with the oil. Then we have to take an ice tray and put the mixture in the tray, add a little water, and freeze.

The cubes once frozen can be transferred in a freezer bag or a ziplock bag. The cubes’ size will vary according to the size of the tray and so, try to have an idea as one tablespoon of fresh basil leaves is equivalent to how many cubes.

It is a full-proof method to freeze basil if you want that natural green colour of the leaves even after many days.

Tips To Perfectly Freeze Basil

Though the methods mentioned above are easy to follow, sometimes it becomes a bit tricky to get your frozen basil perfectly. To ace, the method of freezing basil, follow these simple tips and it can work wonders.

The leaves need to be removed from the main stem or from a thick stem to use them and pulling the leaves off the stem using fingers is the best way to do so.
Use a colander to wash the leaves thoroughly to get rid of all the dirt and even chemicals, if any. A salad spinner can also be used for this step.
Well, most of the time, it is hard to maintain the bright green colour for a long time but, the ‘Chopped and Oil Coated Leaves’ method works wonders in that case.
All the methods discussed here are for freezing basil. But, in case you decide to store them in the cupboard, which is at room temperatures, then make sure that oil is not added to it and if you do so, the chances of food poisoning increases.
For using the frozen basil in dishes where heat will be used, there is no need to thaw the frozen leaves separately. It can be directly put into the dish, and it will melt there only.
The cube form of frozen basil is much easier to use in soups and stews than in any other dish. So better to choose the method to freeze basil according to the use and the dish you will make.

Uses Of Frozen Basil

Basil is one such herb which is famous for its fragrance. It is widely used in Italian food. Dishes like pesto is made with basil. Soups, stew, chicken, salad, pizza all go well with basil, and delicious dishes can be made by combining the items with basil leaves.

Also, Mediterranean countries like India use basil in their cuisines.

How To Freeze Green Beans Efficiently And Use Them All Year

December 27, 2020 by Harshitha Leave a Comment

How To Efficiently Freeze Green Beans And Use Them All Year

Green bean is a famous vegetable that is around for a very long time. Mostly every country or culture uses this green vegetable in their dishes. But unfortunately, people cannot grow green beans on any day of the year. Mostly in India, it grows in the wintertime.

There is a concept of using green beans throughout the year by freezing it. Though the different culture has different ways of doing that more or less, the core idea remains the same. In this blog, let’s discuss how to freeze the green beans the right way.

The Right way

There are some ways you can freeze your green beans in order to use them in the future. We should avoid the methods which include mixing artificial ingredients in heavy load. Blanching is a famous way that many people use to freeze this vegetable.

Blanching is important because it prevents any buildup of any external factor before freezing. It also helps to keep the original color and texture of the beans.

Preparing the beans

Preparation is a must before anything. Freezing beans is no different. At first, what you need is a bowl of cool tap water. You need to gently wash your beans with the cool water. Remember to use specifically cold water. After washing the next part is cutting the end of the beans.

If your knife skill is good enough, then there will be not much trouble cutting the end of the beans. Use a small number of beans at a time. Be sure to use a sharp knife. Repeat the process until there are no beans.

In some beans, there is a stringy fibre. Stay sure to remove this from your beans. You will not want those strings into your frozen beans.

Cutting the beans into required pieces

The next step is quite simple here. What you need to do is to cut your vegetable into pieces. How big each and every piece totally depends upon you. There are various recipes, and the different recipe requires different uses of beans. So either you can keep it whole, or you can cut before freezing.

You can also keep the beans whole before freezing and cut them after freezing.

Blanching

The term blanching is just a fancy word for boiling. Many people don’t know what to do with this. But it is a very useful technique in terms of freezing any vegetables. We talked about blanching in the early part of our discussion. Now let us talk in detail.

Blanching simply means boiling vegetables after cutting and quickly bring them into cold water. But if your bean pieces are not even then different pieces will need different times. Like smaller beans will need a smaller time window while bigger pieces will need more boiling time.

While you are boiling your beans, inside you will need a bowl filled with cold water. Cool the beans by keeping them in the cold water after boiling. You need to work simultaneously here. Generally smaller beans need two minutes, and bigger pieces need to take about four minutes to boil.

Cooling in cold water makes the beans keep their green color. Keep them in cold water for around three minutes. After that drain them off the water.

Preparation before the freezing

There is also a certain amount of preparation before freezing. After bringing the beans out of cold water, You need to spread the beans before freezing. Make sure the beans don’t touch or overlap each other. It is very important to keep them that way.

Put your chilled beans in a freezer-friendly container. This container can be anything that supports freezing. You can use freezer bags or freezer-friendly jar. Always try to compact the beans. Leave some space behind in the container. If you are using a jar, it is mandatory to leave some space behind.

Irrespective of what you are using to store your vegetable, always make sure that they are completely dry. Before keeping freezing beans, you need to press out the air too. And the last part includes sealing them completely.

You can use freezer tapes too. This makes sure that the seal around your container is tight. Lastly, put the dates and other information on your freezer bags. Freezing before is important to prevent all the beans from becoming a chunk of beans.

Freezing and timing

Now comes the main part that is freezing. Mainly it is the easiest step. But there are some rules here too. Try to add layers of bags or containers to make them freeze quickly. And also try to keep some space to circulate some air between them.

When the beans are solidly frozen, you can place them near each other. Try to use the beans within eight months of freezing. It can be used after the particular time limit also, but the quality decreases as time passes.

Other ways of freezing Green Beans

There is a way less famous for freezing beans. However, both of these methods use almost the same method. But boiling in hot water is not an option here. Instead of boiling your beans in cold water, you need to first cut them as mentioned in the early steps. Then clean them in plain water.

This step is happening because one needs to get all the dirt out of the vegetables. Now drying is the next step. Usually, drying takes a bit of time here. It takes about twenty minutes to completely dry the beans. You can use either one paper towel or a normal towel.

Now the next step is even simpler. You need to freeze them. Follow the guidelines for freezing. We were talking about them earlier in the blog. You have followed the instructions.

If you intend to defrost them and use them in your dishes, then the idea is also the same. Defrost them using boiling water. Directly applying is not what a tasty and urgent dish needs. Try to avoid that. But if you feel you are in a hurry then go with your luck.