Eat your way to health & longevity

Eating is one the most important events in everyone’s life. We enjoy eating - it’s part of who we are and part of our culture; in fact, eating is the hottest universal topic of all times. We depend on eating: the foods we eat are the sole source of our energy and nutrition. We know so much about eating: we are born with the desire to eat and grown up with rich traditions of eating. But we also know so little about eating - about how the foods we eat everyday affect our health. We are more confused than ever about the link between diet and health. Eating is a paradox and a mystery that our ancestors tried and modern scientists are trying to solve.

Most of the spices used in Indian cooking were chosen originally for their medicinal qualities rather than for flavor. Many of them such as turmeric, cloves and cardamoms are very antiseptic, others like ginger, are carminative and good for the digestion.

Spices are full of antioxidants which may help prevent certain conditions, such as premature aging and heart problems, from occurring. Although many spices can be purchased in capsule form from local health food store, a tastier option is to incorporate these health giving seasonings directly into culinary creations. It is much healthier to flavor foods with herbs and spices rather than sprinkling on loads of sugar and salt.

Spices and herbs are good not only for our taste buds but also for our health. They supply calcium, iron, vitamin B, vitamin C , carotene and other antioxidants. For instance fresh parsley has been linked with cancer prevention due to its antioxidant content and spicy food is much more appealing than a vitamin pill. Besides herbs and spices don't have any kilojoules or fat, so you can eat them to your heart's content.

Serves :6

•   Cooking oil or nonstick cooking spray

• 1  cup all-purpose flour or whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2  cup soy flour
• 1/2  cup sugar
• 1  teaspoon baking powder
• 1  teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4  teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8  teaspoon salt
• 3/4  cup buttermilk
• 1/4  cup refrigerated or frozen egg product, thawed, or 1 egg
• 3  tablespoons cooking oil
• 1/4  cup apricot, peach, or raspberry spreadable fruit

Directions

• Lightly coat twelve 2-1/2-inch muffin cups with cooking oil or nonstick spray; set aside. Stir together all-purpose of whole wheat pastry flour, soy flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
• Combine buttermilk, egg product or egg, and oil in another bowl or large measuring cup. Add buttermilk mixture all at once to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter will be stiff).
• Spoon about half of batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each about one-third full. Place about 1 teaspoon of the spreadable fruit in the center of batter in each cup (if necessary make an indentation in batter with back of spoon). Top with remaining batter, dividing equally. Muffin cups will be about two-thirds full.
• Bake in a 400 degree F oven for 15 to 18 minutes or until golden. Cool in muffin cups on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove muffins; serve warm. Makes 12 muffins.

Make-Ahead Tip: Store baked muffins at room temperature, wrapped tightly in heavy foil, for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. To reheat, bake in a 300 degree F oven for 15 to 18 minutes.

Nutrition Facts

• Servings Per Recipe 12 muffins
• Calories 125,
• Total Fat (g) 4,
• Saturated Fat (g) 1,
• Sodium (mg) 101,
• Carbohydrate (g) 21,
• Fiber (g) 0,
• Protein (g) 2,
• Vitamin A (DV%) 0,
• Vitamin C (DV%) 0,
• Calcium (DV%) 0,
• Iron (DV%) 0,
• Fruit (d.e.) 1.5,
• Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Serves :2

Ingredients

• 250g Maida
• 4 bananas, mashed
• 1 egg
• 75g sugar
• 2g cardamom powder
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 glass milk
• 50g oil

Method

Beat the egg well and to this, add sugar, milk and mashed bananas. These ingredients can also be mixed in a blender.

To the all-purpose flour, add the above banana mixture and mix well to form dosa batter. Now add cardamom powder and baking powder to the batter and mix well.

Heat a flat pan and make thin dosas (pancakes). Fry on both sides until golden brown in color with
little oil.

Serve hot with any juice.

Serves: 2

Ingredients

4 ounces fresh or frozen medium shrimp in shells, peeled and deveined
4 ounces fresh or frozen sea scallops
½ of a medium red sweet pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
½ of a medium onion, cut into wedges
½ of a medium zucchini or yellow summer squash, cut into 3/4-inch slices
1 tablespoon canned chipotle chile peppers in adobo sauce, mashed
1 – ½  teaspoons lime juice
1 – ½ teaspoons cooking oil
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon snipped fresh cilantro
 Lime wedges

Method

1. Thaw shrimp and scallops, if frozen. Rinse shrimp and scallops; pat dry with paper towels.
2. On 2 long skewers alternately thread shrimp,, scallops,  sweet pepper, onion, and zucchini, leaving about 1/4 inch between pieces.
3. In a small bowl combine chipotle peppers, lime juice, oil, brown sugar, garlic, salt, and cumin.
4. Brush the kebabs with chipotle mixture

For a charcoal grill, place kebabs on the greased rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals.
Grill for 5 to 8 minutes or until shrimp and scallops turn opaque and vegetables are crisp-tender, turning occasionally to
cook evenly.
(For a gas grill, preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium)
Place kebabs on greased grill rack directly over heat.
Cover and grill as above.
Or, place kebabs on the greased unheated rack of a broiler pan.
Broil about 4 inches from the heat for 5 to 8 minutes, turning occasionally to cook evenly.

For 4 servings: Prepare as above, except use 4 long skewers (in step 1).

Serves :4

Ingredients

• 4  medium skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (about 1 pound total)
• 4  green onions, finely chopped
• 1/2  cup orange juice
• 1  tablespoon brown sugar
• 1  tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
• 1  tablespoon olive oil
• 2  cloves garlic, minced
• 1  teaspoon ground corinader
• 1/2  teaspoon paprika
• 1/4  teaspoon salt
• 1/4  teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4  teaspoon black pepper
•   Nonstick cooking spray
• 2 cups hot cooked basmati or long grain rice

Directions

1. Place chicken in a plastic bag set in a shallow dish. For marinade, in a small bowl combine green onions, orange juice, brown sugar, ginger, oil, garlic, coriander, paprika, salt, cinnamon, and black pepper. Pour over chicken; seal bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for 2 to 6 hours, turning bag occasionally. Drain chicken, reserving marinade
2. Lightly coat a 2-quart rectangular baking dish with cooking spray. Arrange chicken in the prepared baking dish; pour marinade over chicken.
3. Bake, uncovered, in a 375 degree F oven about 20 minutes or until chicken is tender and no longer pink. Transfer chicken to a serving platter. Strain the juices remaining in baking dish; stir juices into rice. Serve the chicken with rice. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition Facts

• Servings Per Recipe 4 servings
• Calories 290,
• Total Fat (g) 5,
• Saturated Fat (g) 1,
• Monounsaturated Fat (g) 3,
• Polyunsaturated Fat (g) 1,
• Cholesterol (mg) 66,
• Sodium (mg) 209,
• Carbohydrate (g) 30,
• Total Sugar (g) 6,
• Fiber (g) 1,
• Protein (g) 29,
• Vitamin A (DV%) 0,
• Vitamin C (DV%) 33,
• Calcium (DV%) 4,
• Iron (DV%) 12,
• Starch (d.e.) 1.5,
• Fruit (d.e.) .5,
• Very Lean Meat (d.e.) 3.5,
• Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Serves :2

Drink this juice first thing in the morning. It'll give you the energy to start your day right.

Method

5 carrots (about 13 oz.), 1 large cucumber (about 12 oz.), 1/4 cup mint leaves or ginger mint leaves, 1-inch slice of ginger, Dash of salt.

Slice carrot & cucumber into pieces, and feed into juicer. Season with salt. Cover and chill if desired. Stir before serving. Serve over ice.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• Fine Semolina (Pal Rava) – 500gm
• Onion chopped – 2
• Ginger Paste – 1 tablespoon
• Green chilli chopped – 1 tablespoon
• Grated carrot – ¼ cup
• Beans chopped – 1/4 cup
• Curry leavs – small bunch
• Mustard seeds - – 1 teaspoon
• Red Chillies – 2
• Urad Dal - 1 teaspoon
• Toor Dal- 1 teaspoon
• Oil – 2 tablespoon

Method

Serves :2

Ingredients

• 1  cup fat-free milk
• 1  medium banana, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch slices, and frozen
• 1  to 2 tablespoons sugar or honey
• 1  tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2  teaspoons instant coffee crystals
• 1/2  teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup small ice cubes or crushed ice

Method

Nutritional Facts

• Calories 136,
• Total Fat (g) 1,
• Saturated Fat (g) 0,
• Monounsaturated Fat (g) 1,
• Polyunsaturated Fat (g) 0,
• Cholesterol (mg) 2,
• Sodium (mg) 55,
• Carbohydrate (g) 28,
• Total Sugar (g) 20,
• Fiber (g) 2,
• Protein (g) 6,
• Vitamin A (DV%) 0,
• Vitamin C (DV%) 9,
• Calcium (DV%) 15,
• Iron (DV%) 7,
• Fruit (d.e.) 1,
• Milk (d.e.) .5,
• Other Carbohydrates (d.e.) .5,
• Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Serves: 1

Ingredients

• moong dal - 2 cups
• urad dal - 1 cup
• masalas - chili,dhania,jeera etc according to your taste
• salt - (as per your taste)
• water
• oil
• Dhania(cilantro)

Method

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 4  cups chicken broth
• 1  8-ounce can bamboo shoots, drained
• 1  8-ounce can sliced water chestnuts, drained
• 1  4-ounce can (drained weight) sliced mushrooms, drained
• 3  tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
• 3  tablespoons rice wine vinegar or vinegar
• 1  tablespoon soy sauce
• 1  teaspoon sugar
• 1/2  teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1  8-ounce package frozen peeled and deveined shrimp
• 4  ounces firm tofu, (fresh bean curd), drained and cubed
• 1  egg, lightly beaten
•  2 tablespoons snipped parsley or fresh coriander

Method

1. In a 3-1/2- or 4-quart slow cooker, combine broth, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, mushrooms, tapioca, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, and pepper.
2. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 9 to 11 hours or on high-heat setting for 3 to 4 hours. Add shrimp and tofu. Cover and cook on low- or high-heat setting for 50 minutes more.
3. Pour the beaten egg slowly into the soup in a thin stream. Stir the soup gently so that the egg forms fine strands instead of clumps. Sprinkle with parsley. Makes 8 side-dish servings.

Nutrition Facts

• Servings Per Recipe 8 side-dish servings
• Calories 114,
• Total Fat (g) 2,
• Saturated Fat (g) 1,
• Cholesterol (mg) 83,
• Sodium (mg) 664,
• Carbohydrate (g) 9,
• Fiber (g) 1,
• Protein (g) 13,
• Vitamin A (DV%) 3,
• Vitamin C (DV%) 5,
• Calcium (DV%) 4,
• Iron (DV%) 10,
• Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 4  medium carrots, sliced
• 2  medium potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1  15-ounce can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), rinsed and drained
• 8  ounces fresh green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1  cup coarsely chopped onion
• 3  cloves garlic, minced
• 2  tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
• 2  teaspoons curry powder
• 1  teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4  to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/4  teaspoon salt
• 1/8  teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1  14-ounce can vegetable broth or chicken broth
• 1  14-1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
•   Hot cooked rice

Method

1. In a 3-1/2- to 5-quart slow cooker, combine carrots, potatoes, garbanzo beans, green beans, onion, garlic, tapioca, curry powder, coriander, crushed red pepper, salt, and cinnamon. Pour broth over all.
2. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 7 to 9 hours or on high-heat setting for 3-1/2 to 4-1/2 hours.
3. Stir in undrained tomatoes. Cover; let stand for 5 minutes. Serve over hot cooked rice.

Nutrition Facts

• Calories 407,
• Total Fat (g) 3,
• Saturated Fat (g) 0,
• Cholesterol (mg) 0,
• Sodium (mg) 1068,
• Carbohydrate (g) 87,
• Fiber (g) 12,
• Protein (g) 13,
• Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet