culinary-food: Wood apple Tamarind Aquafresca- Fruity Refreshing drink for Summer

This light, refreshing non-alcoholic drink served throughout Central America, Mexico, and the Caribbean, as well as Mexican cafés are made by combining fresh fruits, grains, seeds, with sugar and water.One of the best way to enjoy fresh fruit is in agua fresca form. Agua frescas are nothing but refreshing fruit drinks made with fruits , water, lime juice and a bit of sweetener.

I am sure you must be familiar with bael or woodapple pana if you have roamed along the streets in Bhubaneswar on a hot Summer day. Since childhood I am used to having the Bela Pana my mother used to offer us, more than the taste, her recipe is about using the bael fruit for the health benefits. I have given the traditional Bela Pana a modern twist suiting to our palette,if you have seen it but never had it before, you must try it once.

Cuisine; Mexican

Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS :

Pulp from 1 medium size Wood Apple( Bael /Bela)
2 tbsp tamarind pulp
4 tbsp jaggery
Juice of one Orange( optional)
1 tsp Black salt / kala Namak
1 tsp roasted cumin powder
4 to 5 crushed mint leaves
4 glasses of Chilled water
Ice cubes to serve
oranges wedges for garnishing

Let's learn how to make this Agua fresca:

Crack open the Wood apple, scrap out its entire pulp using a spoon into a glass bowl/vessel.

Fill up the bowl with 2 glasses of chilled water till the entire pulp is covered in water. Mash the pulp so that it completely dissolves into the water. Use a large strainer and strain the entire thick pulpy wood apple juice into a larger bowl, you may need to stir and press down the pulp with a spatula to completely extract the juice.

Discard the remaining seeds, fibers etc left in the strainer.

Add the jaggery,tamarind, mint leaves, roasted cumin powder and the remaining chilled water. Stir well, you may pulse it in a blender for a smother consistency.