FOOD
When Life Throws Lemons at You Make Lemonade, lemon Pickles, Lemon Rice
My December getaway with the nature…
When life throws lemons at you, you feel happy, because you love lemons and make a lot of yummy stuff out of them …
This happened to me…
Our home was getting renovated, and I shifted to a beautiful old bungalow near my home for a month.
Shifting may sound tedious and uncomfortable, and it was …
But the charming old bungalow, with huge windows opening to the forest, was a perfect year-end getaway for me. It was a great opportunity for me to do a digital detox and ease out my jagged nerves from a year of hectic activities.
I settled in a home without an internet connection sans complaint.
Peacocks flew in and sat behind me in the garden facing the open veranda.
One cat with a bell around her collar walked around like a queen…
Clothes dried happily on the long cloth lines in the open.
I started my kitchen with the minimum possible stuff shifted from my home.
I was feeling happy…
without the Netflix and internet, I was enjoying a digital detox!
The most enchanting thing was the cute lemon tree in the backyard, laden with lemons. Yellow and green limes fell from the tree on the clean ground. I collected them and distributed some of them with the helpers. And then more of them fell on the ground daily. It was literally life throwing a lot of lemons at me. It was a display of giving and lessons of the abundance of Mother Nature through a small lemon tree. I decided to pickle the limes!
Homemade Lime Pickle
👉Ingredients and Spices: 🍋🌶️🌿🌿🌿
8 to 10 small-sized lemons
4 to 5 garlic pods
3 to 4 teaspoons red chili powder
1/2 spoon turmeric powder
A pinch of asafoetida
2 to 3 teaspoons of mustard seeds
same amount of fenugreek seeds
Salt to taste
Sesame oil
👉Cooking Process
Boil one liter of water in a pan. Add the limes and keep the lid on. Allow the limes to cook on a medium flame for five minutes. Switch off the flame.
Dry roast the fenugreek seeds and mustard seeds in a tawa.
Powder them coarsely.
Take out the limes now. The skin is soft now. Wipe limes dry with a clean towel. There shouldn’t be any water on them
Slice the limes into small pieces.
Take a bowl, add lime slices and powdered spices. Add turmeric powder, chili powder, and asafetida. Add salt and mix well.
The lime pickle is almost ready now. The only ingredient remaining is the oil.
You can use olive oil if you like. I use sesame oil. Add 3 tablespoons of sesame oil. Mix well.
👉𝒯𝒽ℯ 𝓈ℯ𝒸𝓇ℯ𝓉 𝐼𝓃𝑔𝓇ℯ𝒹𝒾ℯ𝓃𝓉:
To balance the taste add a pinch of sugar. All set. Keep the pickles in a jar with a tight lid. You can keep it in the fridge also.
LEMON RICE 🍚🍋🍋
What if you have some leftover rice,
and you don’t want to waste it…
Here’s lemon to the rescue!
A dash of fresh lime juice can transform the leftover rice into the dish of the day!
Here you go,
👉Ingredients and Spices: 🍋🌶️🌿🌿🌿
3 bowls of cooked rice
juice of one medium-sized lemon
1 /2 teaspoon turmeric powder
Salt to taste
2 teaspoons of finely chopped ginger
2 green chilies finely chopped
1 small onion finely chopped
A handful of roasted peanuts
👉For Tempering:🌶️🌿🌿
Mustard seeds
split chana dal (split chickpeas )
Oil of your choice
Dry red chilies
Curry leaves
👉Procedure :
Take the rice in a bowl. Separate the grains using your fingers. Add lime juice and salt.
Take a nonstick pan. Pour two teaspoons of oil.
Add the ingredients for tempering. Add a spoonful of Mustard seeds and chickpeas. Add chopped onion, ginger, green chilies, split red chili, and curry leaves after the dal turns brown. Sauté for two minutes, till the ingredients start to emit a slight aroma.
Add the turmeric powder, roasted peanuts, and rice.
Stir and mix well. The turmeric and spices should evenly coat all of the rice.
Take down the flame. Your mouthwatering lime rice is ready to serve.
Lime renders its aroma and flavor to the rice. The spices and peanuts add the crunch and nutty flavors. You can keep it day long or even carry it in a lunch box during travels. It remains fresh for a long time!
Go ahead, use that lime, and repurpose the leftover or freshly cooked rice.
I enjoy lime rice with a slice of pickle and papads.
yum… forget dieting!
LEMON TEA
𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐋𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐧 𝐓𝐞𝐚🍋🍵, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐡 𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐞🍈 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐨𝐝𝐚💦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐭🌿
When I sipped this refreshing Lemon Tea at a cafe,
I remembered to add it to our lime recipes collection
Here it goes,
Boil 2 cups of water, add 2 tsp tea leaves.
Allow to boil for two minutes, and strain the tea to a Mug.
Squeeze the juice of half a lemon.
Add ice cubes, one teaspoon of sugar, and a few fresh mint leaves.
Your refreshing drink is ready!
The leaves of the lemon tree are also used in Indian cuisines to enhance the flavors. It is a common practice to add a leaf of lemon to homemade buttermilk. It is a great summer coolant and has many health benefits.
Did you know that in Maharashtra, a state in India, no meal is considered complete without a slice of lemon? In Kerala, it is compulsory to give one lime to everyone who attends a marriage feast.
In India, Lime is considered very auspicious and is used in many temple rituals and Pujas.
Nutritional Facts of lime :
Limes are 88% water and contain 1% each of protein and fat.
They are low in sugar. It has only 5 g of Sugar per 100g.
Per 67 of serving :
Cal — 20 calories
Carbs — 7 g
Protein — 0.5g
Fiber — 1.7 g
It is a great source of Vitamin C. 22% of the daily value (DV)
Iron — 2% of the DV
Calcium — 2% of the DV
Vitamin B6–2% of the DV
No wonder limes are considered a superfood! Don’t leave that slice of lime in your dish unattended!
Hope you enjoyed the nature and recipes :)
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Have a lovely Christmas! ❄🎄🎅🏻🎄❄🦌🎁 ☃️
