Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Fruit Salad with Green-tea Jelly

What? It's cloudy again? Weather gods, send us some sun please!

And to make things worse, its friggin' HOT! Which means, the option of sipping hot chai all day is pretty much out of the window. What i need on a day like this is something cool and refreshing, but bright enough to beat the gloom outside.

Like...oranges. Sweet, cool, refreshing but zesty and bright. Perfect.

But of course, you didn't come all this way to hear me tell you to go eat oranges. Oh, no. I've got something extra special for you, which is....(pregnant pause for effect)

Le GREEN TEA.

Full to choking with antioxidants and all good things in general. But lets face it, on its own it.tastes.like.HAY.
Which is is why we infuse it with a little mint. And later, a wee bit of honey and lemon juice to perk it up further.


And while we are waiting for the tea to steep, why not sprinkle soak some some gelatin and dissolve it in the hot tea? Pale, delicate, milky cubes of flavored green tea. Genius? Genius.




What next? Salad dressing. Easy peasy. Another tablespoon of honey, some orange zest, orange juice and freshly ground black pepper. Done.


Now for the real deal. Greens: Crunchy iceberg lettuce. Citrus: Orange (Duh!). Other fruit: Whatever you can fish out of your fruit basket- all i had was strawberries. And then, if you are a texture junkie like me, some granola, or toasted almonds for crunch. Pour dressing, toss and finally, top with cubes of green tea jelly.
Yu-hum.



Fruit Salad with Green-tea Jelly

For Green tea Jelly:
2 cups water
3-5 mint leaves
2 green-tea bag
1 and a half tbspn honey
Juice from half a lemon (the last two can be adjusted according to your taste)
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
  1. Boil water with the mint leaves, dip the teabags in the boiling water and allow it to steep for a few minutes.
  2. In the meantime, sprinkle the gelatin in a little cold water and allow it to soak.
  3. Discard teabags and mint leaves, and add the honey and lemon juice to the tea.
  4. Add the gelatin to the hot tea and stir until mixed properly.
  5. Pour the tea into a flat pan (I lined it with cling-film so that i could take jelly out easily)
For Dressing: 

I tbspn honey
1/4 cup orange juice
1 tbspn orange zest
1 teaspoon of fresh crushed pepper
  1. Mix all the ingredients together

 For Fruit Salad:
1 cup chopped lettuce
2 oranges
5-7 strawberries
1/2 cup granola or toasted almonds
  1. Chop lettuce; peel and segment oranges; halve strawberries
  2. Mix the greens, fruits and granola together, pour dressing and toss. 
  3. Top with green tea cubes before serving.


11 comments:

  1. Wishing u luck on ur weight loss journey... Ive also joined that site yesterday, seeing ur fitness pal bar... Even I want to shed some pounds... will see if Iam motivated enough!! 7 pounds in a month is great... wishing u all the best...

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  2. This green tea jelly in fruit salad sounds nice idea. I love green ta.

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  3. This recipe is definitely the work of a genius, aka Jyothi! Seriously what a lovely idea.

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  4. @sojo: Thank you so much! Stick around, and we'll exchange notes (and woes) on our weight loss from time to time! :)

    @Swathi: I'm not really a great fan of green tea on its own... But love it with lemon n honey! :) Try it out n let me know you liked it, ok?

    @Priyanka: Thankzee!!! Its comments like yours that make me want to cook n blog everyday! :)

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  5. JYOTHI.. Loved this snack.. comes in handy, when we run out of healthy dishes.. i am on loosing pounds too.. i could use this .. :) thanks

    New to ur space n happy to follow u for upcoming wonderful recipes
    Do visit me when u get time.
    http://comeletseat.blogspot.com

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  6. @ Mehjabeen: Welcome to the club! :) I visited your blog, and loved it immediately!

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  7. I need to lose 20 pounds quick! I've been slacking on my diet and exercise these past 2 months and your fruits salad topped with green tea jelly looks just perfect to put me on the healthy path again. Love this creation.

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  8. nice blog u have here. my first time. would love to revisit. i am following u now.
    would love to have u drop by/follow me as well.
    http:food-fanatic.blogspot.com

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  9. Wow great idea, never heard of it and very well written!!
    Thanks for the nice comment on my blog. You have some awards awaiting in my blog. Pls do collect them. :)

    Ankita
    http://eat-hearty.blogspot.com

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  10. A great dish! So healthy and original..nice write up too :)

    US Masala

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