Carrot Milkshake

Milkshakes are certainly my favourite. I always prefer light breakfast in the morning possibly some thing to drink not wholesome solid foods like Idli or Dosa. Carrots can be found in supermarket all year-round. The carrot is a versatile vegetable and commonly eaten raw, steamed, boiled, roasted and as an ingredient in many soups, stews, gravies and even in some of the rice dishes.

 This is an easy to make, tasty milkshake which would be loved by both kids & adults alike barring any age difference. A colourful drink which goes well with any simple breakfast like pancakes, sandwiches or even a simple toast. The drink would sure make you feel full. Yet you'd still feel healthy and light. Carrots are a good source of nourishment to improve the skin tone too.

The antioxidant Beta-carotene, is that which gives carrots their bright orange color. Beta-carotene is absorbed in the intestine and converted into vitamin A during digestion. Carrots also contain fiber, vitamin K, potassium, folate, manganese, phosphorous, magnesium, vitamin E and zinc.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Serves:2 glasses

INGREDIENTS:
Carrot-1 large (or) small-2
Boiled and chilled Milk- 1 and 1/2 cups
Chilled water-1/2 cup
Sugar- 1 tablespoon (or) Honey- 1 tablespoon

PROCEDURE:

Method:1

• Boil and chill the milk well inside the refrigerator.
• Peel the carrots and cut the top green portion (found in some carrots & would give a raw taste to the drink - advisable to avoid the same).
• Cut the carrots roughly into smaller pieces.
• Add the carrot pieces and grind it to make a coarse paste . Now add half a cup of water and grind well to make a fine paste.

• Strain the juice; add half a cup of more chilled water and extract the juice again.(Do not add more water which eventually would dilute the milkshake)
• Now add the extracted carrot juice on a juicer or blender jar with the sugar/honey and chilled milk.
• Whip well till it becomes frothy. Serve chilled in glasses. Add ice cubes if desired.

Method:2

• You could make this milk shake in another way, by pulsing the carrot followed by grinding the carrots with a cup of water as a fine puree. Then add the puree as such in the juicer jar with sugar and milk.

• Blend well and strain  the milk shake. Transfer the clear milkshake again in the juicer jar and whip till frothy and serve.

• Note: Staining process removes the fibre content of the vegetable. So adults can drink without straining the juice too if you prefer it more healthy.
• A pinch of cardamom could be used for a variation.

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Orange Milk Shake

The milk flavoured with orange juice is just amazing. When you think about Orange milk shake everyone think wont the milk splits when added on orange juice. It won't split when the milk is perfectly chilled. Even you could slightly freeze the milk to prevent splitting. It is a tasty combo if you make it in a chilled milk.

I have prepared this in low fat milk you could achieve more rich in taste using full fat milk. This is a quick and easy orange milk shake without any ice cream. Easy to make real summer treat. You could freeze them in Popsicle mould and serve as Popsicle too.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Serves: 2

INGREDIENTS:

Oranges (Navel/ Mandarine)- 1 and 1/2

Milk, chilled- 2 cups (low fat/Full fat)

Sugar- 1 tablespoon

PROCEDURE:

• Boil and chill the milk very well.  You could freeze the milk too. I have freezed the chilled milk for half to one hour. (Milk should be really cold to prevent curdling)
• Extract orange juice using normal juice extractor (or) squeeze using hand and extract without any seeds.
• In the juicer or blender jar add the extracted orange juice, sugar and the chilled milk.
• Whip well till frothy, immediately transfer the milkshake on a glass and consume before the chillness leaves.
• You could pour this milkshake inside a Popsicle mould and freeze and consume while peak summer.

• You could add a scoop of vanilla ice cream too for more creaminess. I have not added.

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Avocado Milk Shake

Avocado is otherwise called butter fruit which is so creamy fruit which is vastly used in salads and sandwiches and also beverages. In shops they add ice creams to give a creamy texture to the beverages like milk shakes or smoothies. But in this smoothie it has its own richness and creaminess to make a milk shake or a smoothie to taste really good.

The avocado is colloquially known as the Alligator Pear, reflecting its shape and the leather-like appearance of its skin. Avocados are rich in nutrients and regarding it has so many controversies. Avocado has sometimes received a "bad rap" as a vegetable too high in fat. First are the phytosterols that account for a major portion of avocado fats. These phytosterols include beta-sitosterol, campesterol, and stigmasterol and they are key supporters of our inflammatory system that help keep inflammation under control. The anti-inflammatory benefits of these avocado fats are particularly well-documented with problems involving arthritis. Second are avocado's polyhydroxylated fatty alcohols (PFAs).  Like the avocado's phytosterols, its PFAs also provide us with anti-inflammatory benefits. Third is the unusually high amount of a fatty acid called oleic acid in avocado. Over half of the total fat in avocado is provided in the form of oleic acid—a situation very similar to the fat composition of olives and olive oil. Oleic acid helps our digestive tract form transport molecules for fat that can increase our absorption of fat-soluble nutrients like carotenoids. As a monounsaturated fatty acid, it has also been shown to help lower our risk of heart disease. So don't be fooled by avocado's bad rap as a high-fat food. Like other high-fat plant foods (for example, walnuts and flaxseeds), avocado can provide us with unique health benefits precisely because of its unusual fat composition. (Information collection from here)

INGREDIENTS:
Avocado-1
Milk- 2-3 cups (I used low fat milk; You could use full fat milk too)
Sugar- 1 tablespoon (Increase according to your taste)
Ice cubes- 3 nos

PROCEDURE:

• Slit the avocado and take out the seed. Using a spoon scoop out the flesh and add directly on a blender or juicer jar.
• Add a tablespoon of sugar and one or two ice cubes, which prevents the pulp browning while grinding.
•  Blend to make a paste. If you have a big jar it is difficult to grind smaller quantity. So you can puree them in smaller blender jar and transfer the puree or even you could mash it with the backside of a spoon after adding into a big jar.
• Once it pureed add the boiled and chilled milk  and blend well till you get the frothy stage.

• If you do not have time to chill the boiled milk. Bring it to room temperature and more ice cubes inside the blender jar while making the milk shake.
• Consume immediately; when the milk shake kept in room temperature for long time the browning process starts on the milk shake.

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Strawberry Milkshake

Generally milk shakes are prepared by adding ice creams to give richness to the milkshake. Ice cream gives taste and also gives a creamy texture to the milk shake. But it adds extra calories and it is makes the milkshakes unhealthy. So I found a way to replace the ice cream with almonds which is good for health. Milkshakes are generally consumed in the morning and the almonds adds health benefits to your diet.

Kids love this milk shake as it is so colourful and tasty. It is the best way to feed kids some milk with nourishment. Light and tasty drink which could be consumed after food too. In summer with added ice cubes it cools down and refreshes the body.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 minutes
Cuisine: Continental
Makes: 2 glasses

INGREDIENTS:
Strawberries, fresh/ frozen- 10 nos, big
Almonds- 10 nos
Milk, boiled and chilled- 2 cup
Sugar-2 tablespoons
Ice cubes-as required (optional)

PROCEDURE:

• Soak the almonds for 1 hour or overnight or soak them instantly in boiling hot water and peel them. Pulse to powder and then add some water and make it as a fine paste. 
•  Boil the milk and chill inside the refrigerator.
• Wash and cut the stem and leaf of the strawberries deep down. In a blender or juicer jar add the cut strawberries with sugar and blend it as a paste  to avoid big chunks of fruits.

• Then add the prepared almond paste and chilled milk and blend till the frothy layer appears on top.

• Serve with added ice cubes if desired.

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Mango Milk Shake/ Mango Milkshake with Ice cream

    This recipe is a kids friendly, rich and delicious milkshake, using mango pulp and milk. Mango milk shake is very popular in India, as well as in the other countries because it is very luscious in taste.  I have used fresh Alphonso mangoes for this recipe, however you can also substitute it with either tinned or frozen mango pulp.

INGREDIENTS

Mango-1 fresh (tinned / frozen pulp can also be used)

Low fat milk/ Normal milk (chilled)-2cups

Sugar-1tbsp (tbe adjusted to the sweetness of the mango)

PROCEDURE

• In blender puree the mango with sugar (if you add directly to the juicer jar chunks of fruits will be there)
• Then in a juicer jar add the mango puree, sugar and cold milk and blend well till frothy consistency on top of the juice. Transfer this in a tall glass and serve chilled.
• Tip: Vanilla ice cream can be added instead of milk for more rich taste.

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