Cool Summer Cocktails

The mercury is rising by the day and in these sweltering temperatures what one requires after a long day in the sun is a dip in the pool and some refreshing drinks to sip and cool down. Now it’s very easy to open the fridge and gulp down that oh so inviting can of chilled beer… but think how exciting it would be if you were able to mix a few simple and easy to source homemade mixed drinks. 

These mixed drinks either alcoholic or non alcoholic would give a different dimension to your choice and would surely increase the range of drinks that you can serve your guests or enjoy on your own. Let’s look at some simple yet very refreshing summer drinks.

Beer Shandy

For this you require is a pint of lager beer, some lime juice, limca/sprite/7UP (any one), sugar & rock salt.

In two pint glasses add in juice of 1 lime each add a tea spoon of sugar and a pinch of ground rock salt in each of the glasses, add in the limca/sprite/7UP whatever you have to about half of the glass and then top them up with the lager. This you will find is cooler to taste than just the beer and it also helps to replenish the requisite body salts lost in the sun.

Bee Tea

Now this is your usual Iced tea with a unusual twist, I have substituted the sugar syrup with a more healthier option, honey & to spice it up you may want to add in your citrus vodka, if you have just a regular vodka don’t worry just squeeze in half a lime to the drink. So there you have your cool & energizing Bee Tea.

Watermelon wave

For this refreshing drink all you need is some watermelon juice, honey, ginger juice, rock salt and white rum or vodka. Now in a tall glass add in few cubes of ice add in the spirit, honey, rock salt and ginger juice about a tea spoon of it should be enough, fill the glass with watermelon juice and garnish with watermelon chunks & strips of ginger.

Mojito (pronounced as Mo-hi-toh)

This is the ever so popular cool summer cocktail. For the Mojito you require White rum about 30 ml, fresh mint leaves 6-8 no. , lime wedges about 3, sugar & soda (or instead of sugar and soda you can use just sprite).

In the glass place mint leaves with sugar and lime juice muddle it enough to dissolve the sugar and extract oils from the mint. Do not muddle to crush the leaves and make a paste. Add rum, ice cubes & top it up with either soda or sprite garnish and serve with a straw.

Cheers!!

Enjoy Responsibly 

Burning the midnight oil

This is that time of the year when students all across the globe get a particular fever… yeah right the deadly Exam fever. The symptoms start in this way….

(Whole year we try to study or try and get near our books to start reading and understanding them but always there are lot of important and unavoidable circumstances C’mon how can we miss the  canteen chit chat, movies, internet, games, going out, chilling etc. and suddenly at the end of the semester , we come face to face to 10-20 days of study leave with the exams staring at us from the other end. 

We panic! We start searching for those books, we open them, read two - three paragraphs but can’t make any sense, we don’t understand a word from those books, we feel breathless, we start to sweat and finally give up…. Behold we have the deadly exam fever! ).

Don’t worry although it’s true that’s it’s never too late to start but it’s also true that the earlier we start the better it is

 We always end up spending long hours in front of the books the previous night studying for the next day’s paper. This eleventh hour preparation, where we have to finish revising the whole syllabus in three-to four hours is very similar to playing in a T20 match where one is expected to score maximum runs in a very short time.  

Seems difficult but it’s not, with a little bit of warm up practice & preparation (i.e. in your study leave) before this eleventh hour, one would be good to go & ready to face all the difficult deliveries with smashing success. 

 So let’s have a look at this warm up practice & preparation first.

1. First and foremost it is very necessary to organize our study area, keep all the notes of one subject together in proper order so that valuable time is saved during that crucial moment
2. Divide the available days of the study leave and make a time table for each subject. For this you may want to look at the portion of each subject and allocate days accordingly.
3. Make sure when you actually start studying, you are fresh, you are not hungry and mentally at peace.
4. Start with highlighting important points (this comes in handy during the night before exams).  After each chapter/section try and solve questions based on the topic. When you feel confident move on to the next topic.
5. Get hold of previous year’s/semester’s question papers. They help you understand the pattern of the questions plus you get an idea about the length of the paper to be solved.
6. Once you have completed a subject, try and solve 2-3 question papers with allotted time limit. If you get stuck with any particular question, do not worry move on to the next question. After you finish, go back to the unsolved questions, look up for the answers in the book and write them down. This will help you remember the answer next time you write.
7. Evaluate the paper yourself or even better get it done from your teachers (believe me they will be more than happy to see you actually studying and taking the right efforts), This will give you a rough idea about how well prepared you are.
8. Snack on brain food. Keep away from junk food and opt for a bowl of nuts instead. They're much better for the waistline and for the brain. You need to fuel your body while you study so make sure you eat nutritious food that has been proven to help your brain focus such as fish, nuts, yoghurt and blueberries

Now the night before the exam always remember to be calm and not to get over stressed with the pressure. Remember these points.

1. You have done the preparation so there is nothing to worry.
2. Get all the notes and just run through the highlighted points.
3. Check the stationary, you should have good stock of quality pens, pencil etc.
4. Do not stretch yourself with long hours at the desk. Ideally you should finish your studies before your regular sleeping time.
5. Eat well & sleep peacefully. Get up fresh and reach the exam hall well before time. If you are new to the place or if the exam hall location is new to you then it makes sense to visit the place a week before so that you are well accustomed to the route and the time required for travel.
6. While writing the paper keep checking on the time, draw margins and underline the important points.
7. Finish the paper little before the allotted time so that you get time to re-check the answers.

All the best!  And remember what David Bly (USA) said “Striving for success without hard work is like trying to harvest where you haven’t planted.”

Travel blog: Dapoli

A view of Dapoli Hills

Coastal Maharashtra has many hidden, enthralling locales that can put to shame some of the famous tourist destinations. One of those many hidden jewels is Dapoli. 

Nestled between the Sahyadri range and the coastal belt is this beautiful town that has an unusual gift of being a small and cozy hill station at the same time a gifted beach destination, I say gifted because one can explore as many as 5 major beaches along its coastline.

I was introduced to this beautiful coastal town by a cousin, since then i have visited this place 4 times.

Apart from the beaches and hills, Dapoli is also famous for mango orchards, beetle nut plantation and coconut gardens. One can find the famous Alphanso variety of mango here and the Agriculture Institutre of Dapoli grows some of the best export quality mangoes (Check out their sale during the peak mango season, ideally April onwards till about first half of June).

There I found a very unusual coconut tree which had three trunks of the tree coming from the same coconut I call this The Triplets tree.

Talking of beaches the best beach is the murud harne beach (not the Murud Janjira) It is safe, flat and has a long beach with a lot of shade just before the beach

Pears Beach Resort

There are many resorts one can stay, plus there are homestays where one could experience the warm hospitality of konkani family. I stayed in a new resort 'Pears beach resort' that was right on the ladghar beach. They had nice individual cottages for couples and bigger cottages for families

Apart from great location, comfortable rooms they had the best fried fish and alphanso aamras ( fresh mango pulp)  I had ever tasted. The fish was fresh, the aamras was tasty, the food was great overall.

Atypical Konkani Thali

One can laze on these beaches or can go dolphin spotting arranged by the local fishermen. Ideally the best time to spot these friendly mammals is early morning. The boast services start by 6.15am and the earlier you book, better are  the chances  to spot dolphins in huge numbers. 

The boat ride is safe and lasts for about an hour. we saw many dolphins coming on to the surface and jumping out of water. they were so swift that it was very difficult to catch them on camera.

Once you visit Dapoli it becomes like a addiction. It is a place to relax rejuvenate and re energize oneself. Dapoli truly deserves a visit. As I said before It is one of the many underrated destination on the coastal Maharashtra.

Dapoli Fact Sheet: 

By Road from Mumbai via NH-17 : 220Kms
By Road From Pune its 185 kms
By Railway one can take Konakan Railway from Mumbai till Khed from Khed its about 40 kms, one can take bus or autorickshaw till Dapoli.

Nearest Airpot is Pune 

Wine & Good Health Part II

In the first part we discussed about good effects of wine on heart, lungs & blood pressure, In this part we explore a few more good effects & look at exactly how much quantity is good for regular consumption.

Wine & Ageing: There are numerous health spas in France that used wine in their beauty therapies. The antioxidants present in red wine help reduce wrinkles. Though many spas use extracts from grape seeds that are rich in oils for moisturising and the grape skins that are rich in tannins, washing face with red wine has been proved to bring back spring in the skin.

 Wine & Calories: A glass of red wine contains about 85 calories now compare that to a pint of lager beer that would set you back by 250 calories whereas your Jack Daniels with coke would hammer you with 350 calories. A Stanford university study suggests that the action of the wine on the metabolism somehow makes its calories less fattening.

So finally we come to that all important question..  

Is wine good for you?

In moderation and as part of an overall healthy diet, the short answer is yes!

However, the amount of wine you drink matters tremendously. Drink more than what’s recommended, your health benefits are lost and your health risks go up.

Here’s what’s considered safe and effective:

¢  Men: No more than two drinks per day.

¢  Women: No more than one drink per day.

¢  One drink is defined as a 5-ounce glass of red wine. (Approximately 140 ml).

So what do you need to start off             

      

• A wine bottle                            

             

• Cork Screw Opener  (nowadays many wines come with regular twist caps too)

• & Wine Glass

As they say better red than dead.

Cheers

Drink responsibly 

Travel

I have been a biker riding various commuter bikes for about 15 years now. These bikes were a mix of Indo-Jap commuter bikes, totally trouble free best for point to point travel  but they all lacked something... something that would strike a chord within... something that would light up the day... sigh.. sadly these commuter bikes came with a complete lack of  attitude. Attitude... well.. that department was reserved for one name in the Indian two wheeler market... Royal Enfield.

Royal Enfield Thunderbird Twin-spark 

 Royal Enfield.. the name brings goose bumps, its a name synonymous with style, royalty, passion, love, poetry and of course The THUMP! yes the thump, that sweet exhaust note which few affectionately call it the beat as in the heart beat of the bike, the same beat which makes many heads turn as it passes by on the road breaking a few hearts, I was one of those aching hearts until that September of 2009 when I bought my dream machine The Royal Enfield Thunderbird Twin spark.

Its been over two years and more than 23000 kms of sheer joy. The experience has been a pleasant surprise.... Yeah because many people had advised me against buying this machine citing various mechanical problems related with Royal Enfield bikes.

People said that you may spend more time at the mechanic shops than riding, and that you become friends with the mechanic than with your bike and so on....
I studied a lot about these bikes and the people who ride these machines through various forums... understood their views and their reasons for choosing their Royal Enfields

Also read a lot about the reliability of the new generation twin spark engines and how modern engineering merged with vintage passion gave birth to today's Royal Enfields.

 I then understood that the people who advised me against buying the bike were so naive about these beasts, they  knew so little yet they proclaimed to be ohh so knowledgeable. I decided buy the Thunderbird twin spark and today after more than two years of ownership I am glad I made that decision.

Today I leave you with few of the pictures I clicked on its second year with me...  Feast!

curvy

The legendary name

An apt picture for the name a Thunderbird under the Thundering clouds!

Wine & Good Health -1

Better red than dead is affectionately said by many wine lovers.  Drinking wine has long been considered a healthier option compared to consumption of other alcoholic beverages primarily because of the way it is prepared. In its simplest form it is just a fermented juice of freshly gathered grapes.

People have been drinking wines since the birth of civilization itself, they always knew about the good qualities of wine, especially red wine, it is only recently that science has been able to pin point these qualities and bring out the results for everyone. 

In this two part series  I have tried to bring out the good effects of wine consumption on our health and to support my statements I have given references of the studies conducted all over the world. 

The Red wine & Heart Disease: According to the University Of Bourgogne researchers, People who drink up to four glasses of wine daily have higher levels of HDL (good cholesterol that escorts the bad cholesterol away from artery walls). 

The famous French paradox study revealed that in spite of having rich, creamy, cheesy & starchy food, The French Gallic wine drinkers were found to be having healthier hearts than their teetotaller counterparts.

Today in many hospitals around the world heart attack victims are advised Red wine consumption during their recovery.

 Red wine & Healthy blood:   At a 2001 conference at the University Victor Segalen in Bordeaux France, a discussion raised the possibility that the 200 phenolic compounds used in the red wine maybe effective against a number of ailments ranging from heart diseases to cancer.

 Many of these compounds come from skins and seeds of the grapes that are used in the making of red wine.

Red wine & Blood pressure:   Red wine helps in calming the blood pressure British journal of Pharmacology associated the relaxation of blood vessels and reduced blood pressure with red wine consumption.

 A study done by the same journal exhibited the positive effects on people with high blood pressure.

White wine & healthy lungs:  White wine also enjoys some of the healing benefits enjoyed by its colored cousin. In the early 2002 a survey of more than 1500 New Yorkers done by the University of Buffalo uncovered that Anti-oxidants in the wine prevent the creation of free radicals, harmful molecules that damage lung tissues.

Wine & Food Poisoning:  Wine of both colours help against constipation and diarrhoea, while white wine in particular stimulates the urinary functions. An Oregon study that was also reported in the Journal of Food Science suggested that wine combats both salmonella and E. Coli. It also kills cholera bacteria and combats typhoid.

In the next part: 

* Looking at a few more ailments that can be reversed/ controlled/avoided by the consumption of wines.

* What quantity is exactly good and if you are to start then how much is too much.

Cheers!

Vodka Cocktails @ home

It so happened during one of the parties at home, the mixers(soft drinks)  got over and it was quite late in the night to get new ones, the party was still on and people needed their drinks , I looked around in the kitchen and found some unusual looking amla crush bottle(believe me, this drink was born out of necessity) , so I fixed one vodka drink with this amla crush, I added a regular vodka shot to about 60-80ml of amla syrup , cold water and few cubes of ice and voila the drink was ready. 

The drink was such a hit that everyone wanted to try one of those drinks. That day I happened to look around the house and found so many different and interesting mixers that since then I have stopped buying regular aerated drinks as mixers for my parties.

All of us might have such items @ home that we may just tend to overlook, but one may never know that those mixes might turn out to be a super mixers that may make your party a hit, people might remember your party because of that one drink or may be they come to your parties just to try your unusual mixes.

I have tried to list down a few mixes which are easily found at home or are easy to procure, & these make such wonderful cocktails that your guests are bound to get surprised when you tell them the ingredients of their drinks.

Kokum syrup

Amla syrup

Rose syrup

Tea

Strawberry/ mixed fruit Jam

Paani puri

 For the base alcohol I have considered vodka as it provides the best versatility for mixed drinks.

So for Kokum Delight you need the kokum syrup, soda or plain water, chaat masala, a dash of lime and ofcourse vodka.

In a glass add 45ml vodka, 60-80ml kokum syrup, pinch of chaat masala to it add water or soda whatever you prefer and then squeeze half a lime and drop it in the glass. Your kokum delight is ready.

The same recipe can be applied for Amla syrup, just remember to minus the lime as amla is tangy enough.

For Rose Garden (many might be familiar with Rooh afza sharbat) one can add vodka: 45ml, rose syrup: 45ml, water (you may want to try sprite) chaat masala (rock salt powder will work too) & a dash of lime. It’s simple & yet very refreshing.

 The same recipe may be used for mixed fruit or strawberry jam, just whisk about 20gms of jam to a paste and add rest of the ingredients.

Iced Tea surprise: Prepare black tea using two tea bags & let it cool, Remove juice of one lime and sugar syrup about 20ml. Fill a highball glass with ice cubes, add 45ml vodka then pour the cooled black tea further add the sugar syrup and then the lime juice you can garnish this with fresh mint leaves and lime slice.

Vodka Paani Puri shots: This is your ohh so delicious paani puri with a wicked twist. Prepare paani puri liquid using readymade paani puri powder mix. Then in a shot glass add 15-20ml vodka pour the paani puri liquid & garnish with khara boondi. Best way to have these is to try to gulp it in one shot just the way you have paani puri!! 

Cheers!

Enjoy responsibly!