Cashew Date Smoothie

Smoothies are awesome! They make a convenient on-the-go meal, they’re delicious, and you can pack a lot of different nutrients in just one drink. On most days I have a smoothie either for breakfast or for dinner. Usually these contain a variety of fruits and green veggies depending on what I have on hand. But sometimes I like to switch things up and make a protein rich nut smoothie - perfect as a post-workout recovery drink! Pistachios, cashews and almonds are all wonderful options, and in this particular recipe I’ve used cashews as the base, sweetened with dates. You can add some vanilla protein powder, flaxseed or any other nutritional additive you prefer, just taste it as you go and modify quantities accordingly.

Ingredients (2-3 servings)

¼ cup raw cashews

3-6 pitted dates (depending on how sweet you like it)

Pinch of cardamom powder

½ tsp rose water (optional)

6-8 ice cubes

1-2 cup of water (depending on how thick you want it to be)

Additional water for soaking cashews

Honey (optional)

chia seeds (optional)

Soak the cashews and dates in water for at least 2 hours. Scoop them out once soaked and add them to a water, cardamom powder and rose water to a blender and puree the cashews. Once you have a smooth mixture, add the ice cubes and blend. Adjust the number of dates till you achieve desired sweetness. You could also use honey to sweeten the drink.

Serve as is or with chia seeds (pre-soaked) and/or a drizzle of honey.

~Gayatri

 

Note: If you are saving the smoothie for later, keep it refrigerated and shake it before serving as the water might separate.

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What's your favorite post-workout drink/snack?Here's an idea for a delicious creamy cashew and date smoothie as a...
Posted by The Cooks of Cake and Kindness on Friday, February 19, 2016

Cardamom, Pistachio & Rose Scones

Our scone flavor exploration continues! We’ve modified the same base scone recipe to incorporate both sweet and savory flavors, and this recipe is for another delicious sweet one. I have to say, so far this one if my favorite - not only does it taste great, it smells and looks great too! It’s not too uncommon to find cardamom, rose and pistachios together in some of the Indian desserts, but I was a little unsure of baking all these flavors into scones - a pastry that’s generally not very sweet. I was pleasantly surprised by the outcome. The scones are quite good on their own, but with the glaze and pistachio, rose petal topping, they are just perfect!

 

Ingredients

Click here for base ingredients

Add ins

1.5-2 tsp rose water

2 Tbsp chopped pistachio

½-1 tsp ground cardamom

Sugar glaze (optional)

¼ cup confectioners sugar

Few drops of rose water (optional)

1-2 tsp milk

Topping (optional)

~1 tsp chopped pistachio

~½ tsp dry rose petals (food grade)

Preheat oven to 425 F. Roughly chop the butter and rub it into the self rising flour until crumbly. Mix in the sugar, chopped pistachios, ground cardamom. Mix rose water with the milk and add it to the flour mixture. Combine to form a dough.

Divide the dough in half and roll it out into a circle, about ¾” thick. Cut into 8 wedges. Repeat with the other half of the dough.

Spread out the pieces on a greased baking sheet. Generously brush the tops and sides with milk. Bake in preheated oven for about 15 minutes until golden brown.

Topping!

The topping can be definitely be skipped, but it is certainly recommended. It elevates the flavors greatly! To make the glaze mix the cardamom powder and rose water with the powdered sugar. Mix it all up, and slowly add only enough milk to form a thin paste. Be careful not to add too much milk at once.

Drizzle a little bit of the glaze on the scones. Quickly sprinkle chopped pistachios and rose petals, and drizzle a little more glaze to make sure the toppings stick.

Enjoy the fragrant delicious scones with a hot cup of tea or coffee.

~Gayatri

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Uniquely flavored, mildly sweet cardamom-pistachio-rose scones - perfect for afternoon tea (or cocoa or coffee)!http://cooksofcakeandkindness.blogspot.com/2015/08/cardamom-pistachio-rose-scones.html

Posted by The Cooks of Cake and Kindness on Sunday, August 9, 2015