The Real Summer of Delhi where the temperature rises up to 45oC or more and stays like that for weeks has started unusually late this year. It is only in the past couple of days that the night temperature has shot up to 30oC. The weather promises to be like this at least for couple more days.
The only thing to do is to stay inside the house, keep oneself hydrated and hope that the rains will come soon.
This Summer I explored all kinds of syrups- Rose syrup that I made from rose petals, Nannari syrup made from Nannari roots, Aam panna from Raw mangoes, and lemon syrup. The Aam panna and Lemon syrup are my Mother's recipes. Every summer she would make it for us. We never purchased any syrups from the market and Rasna was banned in the house after one of my maternal uncles told my mother that the chemicals in Rasna are not good for health. So every summer she would make lemon concentrate and Aam panna for us. I continue with the tradition. Sugar syrup is boiled and cooled. Lemon juice along with ginger paste is added to sugar syrup and the ensuing syrup is stored in the fridge. Whenever, I want to drink lemonade, all I have to do is to take a tablespoon or so of the concentrate, add water, and ice cubes.
The Aam panna my mother used to make is different from the ones available in the market which contains mint leaves and pepper and other sundry items. My mother used to boil the raw mango. My job (not my brother's) was to peel the mangoes and crush the pulp. Then my mother would add sugar and cardamom powder to the pulp. I would stir it till the sugar dissolved and store it in the fridge. When ever we wanted, we would take a tablespoon of it, add water to it and drink it. More often, instead of drinking it, we would simply eat it with roti/chappati.
This week I also made Banana Bread. Banana in this season tends to get spoiled fast. So I decided to eat my fruit in the form of Banana bread using this recipe. As usual I tweaked it. Instead of oil, I added butter (I had it and wanted to finish it). I used 1 cup maida and 1 cup atta. Instead of brown sugar I used jaggery. This was the end result:
The only thing to do is to stay inside the house, keep oneself hydrated and hope that the rains will come soon.
This Summer I explored all kinds of syrups- Rose syrup that I made from rose petals, Nannari syrup made from Nannari roots, Aam panna from Raw mangoes, and lemon syrup. The Aam panna and Lemon syrup are my Mother's recipes. Every summer she would make it for us. We never purchased any syrups from the market and Rasna was banned in the house after one of my maternal uncles told my mother that the chemicals in Rasna are not good for health. So every summer she would make lemon concentrate and Aam panna for us. I continue with the tradition. Sugar syrup is boiled and cooled. Lemon juice along with ginger paste is added to sugar syrup and the ensuing syrup is stored in the fridge. Whenever, I want to drink lemonade, all I have to do is to take a tablespoon or so of the concentrate, add water, and ice cubes.
The Aam panna my mother used to make is different from the ones available in the market which contains mint leaves and pepper and other sundry items. My mother used to boil the raw mango. My job (not my brother's) was to peel the mangoes and crush the pulp. Then my mother would add sugar and cardamom powder to the pulp. I would stir it till the sugar dissolved and store it in the fridge. When ever we wanted, we would take a tablespoon of it, add water to it and drink it. More often, instead of drinking it, we would simply eat it with roti/chappati.
This week I also made Banana Bread. Banana in this season tends to get spoiled fast. So I decided to eat my fruit in the form of Banana bread using this recipe. As usual I tweaked it. Instead of oil, I added butter (I had it and wanted to finish it). I used 1 cup maida and 1 cup atta. Instead of brown sugar I used jaggery. This was the end result:
I gave two pieces to Sumitra whose wedding anniversary it was and a piece to my friend. The only thing was that Sumitra's husband told her that since I have given her cake, he does not need to give her anything. Sumitra, very properly, has stopped talking to him.
