Make this cooling almond sharbat this summer Another
childhood memory. I was born and brought up in Haryana.
Summers in Haryana get really hot and mercury hits 50 degrees Celsius. Food
during summers had to be such that the body cools down is able to
survive the heat. My mother used to prepare badaam ka sharbat at home,
as the summer started in the month of April and till about August, we
always had it with milk. It is very nutritious, is considered good for
eye sight and also a home remedy for nose bleeding due to heat.
It
can also be served with water. The flavours are very soothing and
calming. Serve it as a welcome drink to your guests or give it to the
kids after they sweat it out playing.
Apart
from almonds, another key ingredient in the Badaam ka sharbat is musk
melon seeds. Musk melon seeds are a great source of protein, Vitamin A, C
& E, antioxidants and Omega-3 fatty Acids. Most of us nowadays eat
the musk melon and throw the inner lining with the seeds. My mother used
to soak the inner lining of melons in water overnight and clean it the
next day to get the seeds. Dry the seeds during the day. During our
summer vacations all of us used to remove the outer skin of the seeds.
It took a little effort, but it was just one of the things that as a
family we did together.
Cooking time: 30 minutes | Preparation time: 20 minutes | Total time: 50 minutes
Ingredients (For 1 bottle)
1/2cup- Almonds
1/4 cup- Musk melon seeds
1/2 tsp- Saffron
15 to 20- Green cardamom
2 Cups- Water
1/2- Lemon
Method
* Measure all the ingredients.
*
Soak the almonds for two hours at room temperature. If you soak the
almonds in hot water, the skin of almond may leave its colour on the
almond. We want white almonds therefore I soak it in water at room
temperature. It takes longer but gives better colour to the syrup.
*
Wash and soak the musk melon seeds, too. Put sugar and water in a
vessel and boil. Once the syrup starts boiling add lemon. Make syrup of
single thread consistency. That means when you press syrup between two
fingers a single thread is formed. Adding lemon will help collect all
the froth on the syrup. Remove the froth and add saffron. Let the syrup
cool down.
* Peel the green cardamoms and powder them using a mortar and pestle.
*
After two hours, drain the water of almonds and musk melon seeds.
Remove the skin of almonds. Put almonds and musk melon seeds in fridge
for half an hour. After half an hour, grind the almonds and musk melon
seeds (preferably without water). Mix the above in syrup along with
powdered green cardamom.
* Store in an airtight bottle in fridge upto a month.
* Shake the bottle well before use as the almonds and musk melon paste will tend to settle on top of the bottle.
