Receta {Holi Special Drinks/Beverages} Thandai | Spiced Almond Milk Recipe
The Holi fever is slowly catching up in our neighborhood and people are getting ready to enjoy this boisterous festival of colors with their friends and family. It also feel good to know awareness to use only eco-friendly, organic colors and demand for the same is increasing with each passing year. I never played Holi as I said in my previous post but the gaiety of spirit does get to you. :-)
This is also a time when people tend to indulge themselves with heady drinks and get sloshed by the end. One beverage popularly called as Thandai, a spiced nut milk is consumed in copious amounts during this day. There are two versions of it - one is mixed with an intoxicating bhang and other without it. Today's recipe is the latter version. Not just for Holi, this delicious beverage can be prepared anytime, any day and for any occasion. It doesn't need much effort except for the nut mix which can be made way ahead of time. Kids will love it! Enjoy.
Important: Due to severe drought conditions in few parts of India, many are pledging to celebrate water-less Holi this year. Please be mindful of the amount of water you use and avoid any wastage.
To all you readers out there, Wishing you all a very Happy Holi. Play safe and think about our environment too.
..ingredients to be ground into fine powder....
{Recipe} Thandai | Spiced Almond Milk
Adapted from Tarla Dalal
Ingredients:
- 1 litr milk
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup almonds (preferably dry roasted to avoid oily taste)
- 2 tbsp poppy seeds
- 3 whole cardamoms (elaichis) (or use cardamom powder)
- few strands of saffron
- 1/4 tsp pepper powder
Preparation:
1. Grind - almonds, poppy seeds and whole cardamom pods into a fine powder. Store in an air tight container. This nut mix can be prepared way ahead and will stay fresh when refrigerated.
2. Boil milk. Add saffron and sugar. Stir until sugar dissolves. Cool it down a bit. Then add the nut mix and pepper powder. Refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours so that flavors blend well into the milk. Strain the mixture through a sieve or a colander. Top with chopped nuts/raising if you wish to. This tastes fabulous when served super chilled.
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