Vegan Chocolate shake - 'healthy' is just a side effect.

Went riding some 20 odd miles, following it up with Yoga. But often time is one luxury we don't have. Ritu had to leave for farm and I was to fix the breakfast no time. One one side I quickly tossed a raw tomato Pulao (Pilaf) and on the other side started conjuring the one minute smoothie. Have been having a lot of fruit smoothies, so mind turned chocolaty.
So got 3 bananas, handful of cashew, 2 scoops of cocoa powder (99%+) 5-6 dates and loads of ice, and 2 scoops of Grainny's seed mix. Notice that no extra sugar is added. All this went into the blender for 60 seconds, while I turned focus on the Pulao. Both were ready in under 5 mins and served. The shake, it seems, turned out to be pretty good. How I know that? The pre-teen daughter did not raise any brow, and asked for a repeat tomorrow also.

Now time for some Shavaasana. :p

Want to know how the Pulao was made?

Runners Pasta - In Pesto and Garlic dressing.

Went out running 10kms on a rolling terrain, with the Run Guru Amit Ojha. All I had to do today was to not leave his shadow, and he made me drop full 7 minutes from my previous 10km best. And it sure left me amply hungry. Reached home to find Ritu rushing to the Farm, and I was promptly deputed to make the smoothie and fix breakfast for all.
The net neutrality issue and Baba Ramdev have a lot to do with the post today. Because if it gets implemented, and FB or Blogger, get on to the receiving end, we soon will be posting a lot less of these food pictures. Anyway the pasta turned out to be super. The proof is the empty dishes in sink. 

pasta remains one of the favourite post workout meals. Others being Idlis, dosa, or a millet khichdi. Of course, it is vegan and made with homemade Pesto and home grown herbs.
And Ramdev... He added a lot of comic relief. Kudos! (can you believe it, he is been accorded the Cabinet Minister Status)

Recipe -

What all you need?

1. Half pack whole grain pasta
2. Onions - 2
3. Spring onion - 4 chopped
4. Seasonal veggies, I used Gobhi and Kale (grown at Upavan by Ritu )
5. Cold pressed groundnut oil 2 table spoons for cooking
6. EV olive oil for dressing
7. Cashews - handful
8. Garlic - 4-5
9. Grainny's Vitalitea - Realised that major herbs in this, like oregano, thyme, and rosemary, are also used in Mediterranean cooking.
10. Frozen Pesto - 2 cubes (made with home-grown  basil)
11. What else?... ya salt, red and black pepper. 

Method -

• Boil pasta in 2x water in pressure cooker. Drain water and rinse with cold water.
• Switch on music and start playing the leftover playlist. I had Harry Belafonte in the kitchen.
• Take a deep pan, oil it and cook onions and gobhi. Add spring onions cook a bit more. Nothing harsh, just ‘Belafonte’ the stuff.
• In the grinder put the cashew and some water, make paste, and add to the pan. Taste, now add salt and peppers. Cook a bit more. But you want to keep the veggies fresh and crunchy (remember)
• Now throw the pasta in the pan, add kale, toss it a bit with half a spoon of Vitalitea, and cover the pan for a minute.
• Feed the cat.
• Crush garlics in olive oil. Switch off the stove.
• Time for quick 10 pushups. 
• Add the garlic dressing to the pasta.
• optional - Sprinkle 2 spoons of Grainny's Seed Mix.

Time to eat and scoot to work

Total time taken – 10-12 mins.

Note - 

No animal was hurt in the entire process of cooking and eating.

Resemblance to any Professionally cooked Pasta is coincidental and entirely unintentional.

=================================

The Author - Manas Arvind, Chief Ecovation officer - Grainny's.
After 18 'interesting years' in creative communication strategy and design, is - pursuing his interests in world cuisine, fighting for animal rights, advocating growing food at home, helping set a local farmer-citizen community, teaching photography, digital marketing, and Haiku writing, planning for the next Tour of Tigers for cyclists, besides spending countless hours in the bakery, researching and making food which is safe, healthy, and cool for us, next generation, and environment.

Learn about Grainny's at www.grainnys.com

Superman's Breakfast

Now it has been a long time since I posted anything here. Yes we have been making and eating good stuff, just that got busy with many things. Will come to that later.
Here is something which you probably have had before. Ya, but this one is a bit twisted, with Ritu's happy iinventiveness.

You need some sweet potatoes, potatoes, lime, beetroot and spices. And a green leaf for the garnish (we used kale, which I chomped into after the picture)

Clean the potatoes thoroughly and get rid of all the clingy soil. We are not going to peel these.
Cut these into half a finger long chunks. Put them in a microwavable glass dish, cover with lid, and toss them with a spoon of mustard oil (actually I don't care, but mustard tastes and works well)

Just microwave it covered for 4-6 mins. Check if done, else put it back for 1-2 mins.
Now squeeze the lime, add some salt, chat masala.
Ya toss it well after grating some raw beet root amply on top.

Enjoy the super breakfast!

Total time from thought to naught - 10-12 mins.

Signing off!

Manas Arvind
The health Chef in a hurry

www.grainnys.com

Recovery Drink

Www.grainnys.com

Last sunday, went #cycling a 100 miles in the sickening and humid weather. It was not the first time, and definitely knew how not to die. Just pedaled back home, and made my recovery drink first thing after a Sugary Lemonade. 

This one is a bliss, and a great healer after a hot day. All you need - 

Take 1 big piece of your seasonal fruit like Mango, Guava, Banana, pear etc. and cut it into the blender. 

10g of ginger crushed, 

10g of raw turmeric, 

and 2 spoons of seed mix. 

Add a spoon of brown sugar.

Pour all of this in a blender with half cup of cold water and whisk well. 

Top it to 500 ml mark and make a smoothie.

Carve 2 glass out of this. Dunk 1 immediately, and go for second one after an hr. Catch a short nap in between if you:)

When I baked the bread!

Well, that's kind of an unkind way of putting it. I bake breads very frequently for our daily consumption. It was just for the past 3-4 weeks, when the focus was on launching grainnys.com, I didn't get time to bake any bread. I know it's a time consuming process, but is absolutely worth it, when what you are making is just the way you want, without any artificial additive, is clean, and 100% wholegrain.

What is in the sandwich?
The bread, chilli flakes in mustard oil, and garden tomatoes. On the side you see is traditional Kasundi (from Bengal) a desi mustard sauce...
and news article on use of Cannabis in cancer treatment.

Eat simple... and - Viva la vida loca :)

Peanut milk smoothie for dinner tonight.

Reached home early and got time to go tinkering in the kitchen. Have been toying with the idea of finding a replacement of animal and soy milk. Peanuts looked like one possible option. So here is a cup of peanuts, soaked and drained. Blend this with 4 cups of water for around a minute. Voila! We are ready. The blend can be used as-is for making a yogurt or using in a shake. This can also be strained for clear milk. Don't through the pulp. It can be used in baking, or added to chapati dough. The milk tastes like, well, peanutty, but it's a good taste.
I went on to make a smoothie, adding a spoon of jaggery, fresh pomegranate, and grainny's seed mix, having a hearty dinner, dunking in some calcium rich Ragi cookies, straight from a beer mug.

Sunday Hearty Potatoes and Plum Dressing

Typical Aaloo chat has been favourite for ages. Just that it can beat any of the McD or KFC junk in crappiness.
This one is a different story. Because it does taste devilish but the nourishment is divine. After the Mango smoothie and Jamun morning, Ritu conjured this for a quick Brunch.

Hearty potato salad-
Take Boil/steam chunks of potato (2per person),
sprouts of Moong Daal and alfaalfa (half cup per person)
2-3 Raw grated Carrots
2-3 celery leaves chopped
Salt to taste
Toss them together and this is ready.

Plum Chutney
Pulp of 3-4 plums
1 tomato
1 Tablespoon jaggery
2-3 pinches of Salt
And half teaspoon chili flakes
Blend these in a blender and its ready

Eat this by tummyful. Give a smart slip to bread and parathas.