Beat the heat with cool homemade Drinks

Aditi Panda

The winters have long disappeared and the mercury in the capital is increasing each day. The blazing heat and rising temperatures end up exhausting you and by the time the day ends you perpetually are dehydrated and fatigued. OdishaLIVE brings you easy homemade recipes to cool you off with a new drink each day of the week. Read on to know more.

Even if the temperature is soaring outside, people have to let go the comfort of the cool homes to go to school, office and other each day tasks. So, the next best alternative to quench the thirst and beat the sweltering heat is by drinking refreshing cool drinks. There is an assortment of aerated drinks and colas offered in the market, but it has repercussions which can cause harm to the body.

Talking about natural cool drinks the favourites and regularly consumed are tender coconut water, sugarcane juice, fruit mock tails, milk shakes, nimboopani and cold lassi or buttermilk to satisfy the need for water. After some time, the taste buds are fed up of drinking the same drink and since, yehdilmaange more, OdishaLIVE spoketo our readers to share some new tang and flavour of a few innovative coolants that help relax you this summer.

Agua Fresco

Agua Fresco means cool water in Spanish and in fact cools the body after drinking it. It’s a perfect blend of sugar, water and any fruit of your choice like Strawberry, Pineapple and Watermelon, available in plenty during summer. Some people also like to add seeds or cereals of their choice to make the drink healthier.

Fruit smoothie

Make a nice cool drink by mixing your favourite fruits with yoghurt or cold milk. Add ice cubes and replenish yourself with a fruit smoothie at home.

Cold coffee

An ardent coffee lover can chill this summer by adding a big spoon brand of coffee to chilled milk and churn it in a mixer. To make the cold coffee more tempting add a dollop of your favourite ice-cream or a brownie, a cup cake or even a pastry and enjoy the summer, sipping your cold coffee in the balcony instead of a crowded cafe.

Kokum juice

Kokum juice is more popular in the western part of India and is slowly spreading in rest of India and perfect for a scorching summer. Mix the Kokum decoction available at supermarkets in water and add ice cubes and viola your kokum sherbet is ready. It prevents dehydration, improves appetite and digestion, cleanses blood and also fights infection and allergies.

Mint lemonade

A refreshing combination of fresh mint leaves, lemon juice, sugar and water make a super healthy and refreshing drink. You can change its colour by adding any food colour or turning it pink by adding fresh fruits like strawberries and cherries or even black grapes.

Badam/ Almond milk

Add a few almonds, a few strands of saffron to a glass of milk and blend it together to get a nourishing healthy drink full of nutrients. A pinch of cardamom powder or nuts like pistachio and cashew nut or walnut can be added to suit the taste-buds and enrich the flavour.

Lemon ginger squash

Add sugar, water and a little ginger in a pan and boil it for about 15-20 minutes. Simmer the flame once the mixture becomes syrupy. Once the ginger-sugar-water syrup cools down add lemon juice and mix well. Strain the syrup and save it in glass bottle in the fridge. To serve mix two spoons of the syrup in water and add ice cubes. It helps to control weight gain and congestion and refreshes you in summer also. 

Barley water

Very few people know the goodness of Barley water.Apart from reducing heat,it helps to cleanse the kidneys and helps the body get rid of toxins. It’s very simple to make barley water at home. Take some barley in a sieve and rinse under cold water until water runs clear. Put that barley in a saucepan with grated lemon zest and 6 cups of water and boil it over medium heat. After it starts boiling, reduce the flame and simmer for 10 minutes. Now strain the mixture into a clean bowl and garnish it with any add-on like pepper, mint leaves to add to the taste and drink it cold.

The list is endless. There are more interesting blends like gulab sherbet with Roohafzaa, grape juice mixed with soda, green tea mixed with raw mango and a mixture of shrikhand and buttermilk with dry fruits.

That’s why with loads of varieties on hand to rejuvenate you and satiate your parched throats this summer, stay fit and fresh by trying these wonderful coolants at home and thrash the summer heat.

(Aditi is a freelance writer and pursues interest in the area of social issues)