Cocktail Recipes from Aspri Spirits

In this festive season, there is always a need for a quick part receipe. You can create your own cocktails with these simple receipes below!

BLOODY MARY D.OLIVA
INGREDIENTS:
• 2 oz Patrón Silver infused
with horseradish
• 2½ oz organic tomato juice
• ¼ oz lemon juice
• ¼ oz extra-virgin olive oil
• dash of Worcestershire sauce
• dash of hot sauce
• salt to taste
• freshly ground black pepper
to taste
• ½ tsp freshly grated horseradish
• olives for garnish
• lemon twist for garnish
METHOD:
Stir all ingredients and serve in
a collins glass.
Garnish with olives and a
lemon twist.

BLUE-EYED GIRL
INGREDIENTS:
• 2½ oz Patrón Silver
• 2 oz fresh ruby red grapefruit juice
• 1½ oz rhubarb syrup (steep one
cup water with one cup sugar
and one cup chopped rhubarb)
• boxwood basil for garnish
METHOD:
Shake all ingredients in a mixing
glass with ice and strain into a
rocks glass.
Garnish with boxwood basil.

CUCUMBER TWIST
INGREDIENTS:
• 2 oz Patrón Silver
• ½ oz freshly squeezed lime juice
• ½ oz simple syrup
• 3 sprigs dill
• 4 slices English cucumber
METHOD:
In a shaker, muddle 2 slices of
cucumber with 2 sprigs of dill.
Add Patrón Silver, lime juice,
and simple syrup. Combine
ingredients into a shaker with
ice. Strain into a cocktail glass.
Garnish with remaining sprig of
dill and cucumber.

ESPRESSO MARTINI
INGREDIENTS:
• ¾ oz Patrón Silver
• ¾ oz Patrón XO Cafe
• ¾ oz espresso shot
• fine sugar
• powdered chocolate for garnish
METHOD:
Rim the serving glass with
sugar. In a mixing glass,
combine Patrón Silver and
Patrón XO Cafe with espresso.
Add ice, shake, and strain.
Garnish with powdered chocolate.

FORBIDDEN APPLE
INGREDIENTS:
• 1¾ oz Patrón Silver
• 1½ oz apple juice
• ¼ oz ginger liqueur
• splash of Velvet Falernum
METHOD:
Combine all ingredients in a
shaker. Shake well and pour into
a cocktail glass.

GINGER CUP
INGREDIENTS:
• 1¾ oz Patrón Silver
• ¼ oz ginger liqueur
• ¼ oz lime juice
• ¼ oz simple syrup
• splash of soda
METHOD:
Pour all ingredients (except
soda) into a shaker. Shake
well. Pour into a chilled martini
glass. Add a splash of soda.

Have a blast this season. Stay blessed!

xoxo

91% of all online searches related to food are for Indian recipes, says Annual report by Bawarchi.com

As per a recent study by bawarchi.com, 91% of all online searches related to food are for Indian recipes.

• Chicken is the popular non-vegetarian dish
• Health is a critical element; soya is now regularly considered in the dishes
• Indians prefer Continental and American desserts

The study reveals 91% of all online searches related to food are for Indian recipes; both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. This study is based on over 4 million visits and searches across 25,000 food recipes on Bawarchi.com, in the last one year.

Food Category split:

Indian food continues to be most searched-for cuisine across vegetarian and non-vegetarian food, and accounts for 91% of the overall searches. This is followed by Italian, Chinese, Continental and American cuisines.

While 40% people look for vegetarian food online, the remaining 60% look for non-vegetarian.

Insights on vegetarian food searches:

• Indian vegetarian cuisines account for 97% searches.
• Dry gravy (33%), more popularly known as subzis, and served as accompaniments to Indian bread and rice are the most widely searched for food course.
• Indian vegetarians preferred gravies made of paneer and soya.
• Starters made of Paneer are the most searched-for.
• Most popular method of cooking searched-for include stewing, followed by sauté and frying.
• Insights on non-vegetarian food searches:
• Here too, Indian cuisines top the chart with 85% people looking for it, followed by Fusion and Continental.
• Dry gravies (43%) are most searched-for non-vegetarian food. Chicken, followed by red meat and sea food were the main ingredients.
• Most popular starters were those made of chicken.
• Stewing, followed by shallow and deep frying are the most searched-for cooking methods for non-vegetarian dishes.
• International cuisine trends:
• Pastas and Pizzas are the most searched-for Italian foods.
• Among Chinese food, Momos, fried rice, noodles and soups are most searched-for.
• Interestingly, Indians mainly search for dessert options in the Continental and American cuisines.
• Spanish and Arabic are most preferred Mediterranean cuisines followed by Turkish.

Other interesting findings:

• It is interesting to note that about 15% people look for food for kids.
•  49% people look for recipes for their main part of the meal course which includes side dishes, followed by Starters (19%) and Desserts (14%).
• Indians prefer parathas and idlis for breakfast. This is followed by recipes made of oats.
• Fried food are the most searched-for food cooking method. Fish fry, crispy corn and chicken spring rolls being the most popular deep fried food item, whereas Chicken Fry, Keerai Adai and Sooji ka cheela are most popular shallow fried food item.
•  

Nachos Shots

When there is a party, there are SHOTS!

We all love it but here us a shot, with a twist - Lime and Mint Cornitos Nachos Shots! Yay



Lime and Mint flavor is ideal for Nachos Shots.

Tomato                                                                4
Onion                                                                    1
Garlic chopped                                                  20 g
Cilantro chopped                                             1 Bunch
Salt                                                                         To Taste
Pepper                                                                 To Taste
Boiled Sweet Corn                                           25 g
Oregano                                                              5 g
Pineapple chopped                                         1 piece
Apple chopped                                                 1
Cheese Dip                                                         25 g
Soda                                                                      500 ml
Fruit Juice                                                            500 ml
Cornitos Nachos (Lime and Mint)              1 Pack (150 g)

Nachos Shots

Preparation Method

• Prepare the shot by mixing soda with Fruit Juice. Pour into Tequila Shot glasses
• Place Cornitos Nachos (Lime and Mint) on a platter and top it with combination of ingredients listed above. Nachos Crisp can be topped by chopped fruits or chopped salad or boiled sweet corn as per individual tastes and liking
• Serve it by adding drop of Lemon juice, Grated Cheese, salt, oregano, black pepper and cilantro placing it on top of Tequila Shot glasses.

Feel free to share your own receipes here! xoxo

Diet Cake (No Maida - No Butter)

Yes..the name sounds ironical but necessity is the mother of all inventions! Growing Fat (ok Plump!) day by day has its own side effects. One craves for food--which isn't too good for the growing belly :/

BUT BUT BUT the perks of loving cooking comes by when  you can customize the age old recipes to suit your taste (ahem and body :D)

So I made my own recipe of a "Diet" cake (with no maida and no oil). Here it goes..I am posting a simple "Cooker Cake" recipe so that everyone can try it

Ingredients:

• Flour (Aata) - 1 cup
• Milk - 1 Cup
• Eggs- 2
• Powdered Sugar - 1/2 cup
• Raisins
• Almonds
• Baking Powder- 1/2 tbsp
• Baking Soda- 1/4 tbsp

Method:

• Beat the eggs and sugar together until fluffy
• Add aata, sugar & milk and fold it lightly with a spatula
• Add baking powder and soda and mix gently a couple of times
• Take an aluminium bowl grease it and dust it with flour
• Place a baking sheet at the bottom of the bowl
• Prepare the cooker as an oven
• Remove the whistle
• Add 3 cups of salt on the base of the cooker
• Place the aluminium bowl in it (sprinkle the dry fruits on it at this stage) and close the lid. REMEMBER TO REMOVE THE WHISTLE
• Cook for 40 mins
• Pierce a knife & check if it comes out clean
• If it does, your cake is done.
• Enjoy it while still warm & fresh

Note: Since this has no oil/maida it is for immediate consumption. Avoid refrigerating it as it might make it rubbery

Diet Cake

Microwave Indian Milk Cake

Next in line is this recipe for making Indian Milk Cake:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup ricotta cheese or plain paneer
• 1 cup milk powder + (1/4 cup to keep aside as sometimes a little more is needed )
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tbs unsalted butter
• cardamom (elaichi) powder

Method:

• Melt the butter and grease the microwave safe container ( preferably glass )
• Take ricotta cheese,milk powder & sugar in container & Mix all the ingredients together. If it is too runny, add a little extra milk powder . It should be like cake batter consistency. Spread it out evenly to cover the entire dish.
• Microwave on high for 6 minutes, stirring it every 2 minutes in between. It fluffs up a little on the sides than the centre. Level the surface out each time you stir it.
• It will begin to look a bit crumbly and lumpy.
• Take it out, break it up with a fork a little. Microwave on full for further 1 1/2 minutes.
• The edges will begin to look a little golden colored.
• Microwave again for 1 min .
• Take it out, firm it gently and microwave for 1 minute. It should be completely set by now. If it is not, microwave for a further 1 minute. In the end, it must be set & the color in the bottom changes to dark brown. Garnish it with elaichi powder
• Allow to cool and then cut it into squares 

Milk Cake

Recipe Courtesy: Shailaja Tomar

Kesari and Milk Pedas #SaffronBites #MilkBites

Holi was round the corner and buying sweets from traditional sellers was a BIG no no due to the adulteration stories all around. BUT..everyone loves sweets and c'mon it was HOLI. So I tried a quick recipe for home made pedas and milk cake. This recipe is based on the one I found on another blog.

Ingredients:

• Instant Dry Milk (Milk Powder) – 2 cups (150gm)
• Sweetened Condensed Milk - 1, 14oz can (396gm)
• Unsalted Butter – 1, 4oz stick (113gm) or Desi Ghee
• Saffron
• Yellow Food Colour

Method:

• In a microwave safe dish, melt the butter.
• Add in the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
• Cook in the microwave for 3 minutes, stirring very well after every minute.
• After the 3 minutes, mix well again and leave aside for the mixture to cool down enough to handle.
• Once the mixture has cooled down, grease your hands and make balls.
• Gently press the balls and flatten them to shape…round and flat.
• Decorate them with colored sugar, almonds, cashews, pistachios or raisins.
• Let the pedas set and cool down.

Milk Pedas

Kesariya Pedas

Too easy to make but doesn't compromise on taste. Go ahead and try making some.
Recipe Courtesy: Show Me The Curry

Paperboat #Natural Drinks

So here I am with a review of 4 flavours of 'Natural' drinks from Paper Boat.

 I got it in 4 flavours – Kala Khatta, Aam Ras, Jaljeera and Aam Panna.

 Paper Boat claims that does not contain any junk but the pack clearly says that it has added natural and nature identical flavours. Just to clarify picking up an extract from their website:
 A. Natural Flavours: Flavours have the exact chemical composition as the fruit and are derived from natural sources.
B. Nature Identical Flavours: Flavours have the exact chemical composition as the fruit but are derived through a chemical process.
C. Artificial Flavours: Flavours don't have the exact chemical composition as the fruit and go for the closest tasting substitute regardless of chemical structure. Or your well-being in general. With nature and nature identical flavours, you get the closest there is to the real thing without putting your family's health at risk.

 The drinks come in a cute novel handy packaging though I was afraid to carry it around as I wasn't 100% sure that it won't burst or spill. The packaging is not biodegradable. But it does require a much lower carbon footprint than your average PET bottles or Tetra-Paks. Though the packaging doesn't mention it but found out through enquiry that once the seal is open, it should be consumed within 3 hours if unrefrigerated and 24 hours if refrigerated. (Well it sure must be Natural!)

Coming down to assessment of flavours –

 aam panna was my fav without doubt! Just the right amount of sweetness and the first sip n gives you a hit of nostalgia!

 I didn't like the mango one and can suitably call it a substitute for slice etc – just with an upper edge of being 'close' to natural.

 Jamun – was actually a surprise flavor! Going by its deep purple colour I was expecting it to be more on the lines of blackcurrant (as I didn’t read the label first) and Whoa! Took me a moment to realize how Jamun tastes and YES Nostalgia again (I hardly see Jamun fruit in local market these days). It surealy was a pleasant surprise.

 Jaljeera was neutral to me as long as it taste goes. I was OK with it. Not too good, not too bad. A sure substitute if you are a Golgappa Addict :P

Ingredients

Hamper