Gajar (Carrot)~Ginger Ale.

A glass of chilled “Gajar (Carrot)~Ginger Ale” is a very welcome and fantastic drink to sip on when you want to just relax from heat or want a break from heavy work. Go for it, It is very easy to make and is much better than serving your loved one’s those aerated drinks loaded with junk and calories. The addition of carrots, lemon and ginger makes it that much more healthier and nutritious … You will be happy when you see faces glowing … Yummilicious or must I say Carrolicious …. 

** It’s the season of both carrots and lemons and I for a long time been thinking of making some changes in the carrot juice to make it more adaptable and nutritious. Somehow though good for health, plain carrot juice does not appeal much to me nor does it when mixed with other veggies though I must say I love carrot soup. Recently when I had to under go eye surgery for cataract, I was waiting in the Doc. Reception area where there were lots of pin ups on Do’s and Don’t’s for healthy eyes. There was a picture of huge carrot and its benefits too. Well we all know carrots are good for eyes, so I thought over as I waited on what was the best way I could include it in more ways into my diet. 

** By now, my family and friends know very well my craze for juices and always ask me what’s new? If nothing I drink my lemon juice without fail at mid morning, but some juice is must. As I had no fruits, I decided to go about preparing my loyal lemon juice, when I suddenly felt like drinking ginger ale. I always prepare fresh ginger ale and never in large quantities to store aside. Somehow trying out new juices, then makes it lie in the corner. I prepared my ginger ale the usual way and put it in the fridge and that is when my eyes fell on the beautiful red carrots winking at me and pestering me to try them on. 

** Why not? I thought yes why not add in carrot juice instead of club soda to the prepared ginger ale. Something tasty may turn up, if not I would just wrinkle up my nose and gulp it down. So I prepared the carrot juice separately and mixed a little bit of both in a small glass. Reluctantly, I first inhaled the juice, till now it was fine, nice aroma of ginger, so slowly sipped it, that’s it I relished the whole glass without a murmur. Now it was hubby’s turn. I mixed the two and served it chilled, standing aside to see his reaction. Ahhhaaa, he simply loved it. So “Gajar / Carrot Ginger Ale” was here to stay for sure. Now I can enjoy my carrot juice with added benefits of lemon and ginger. Try it out, you will love it. 

** Some simple facts about Carrot, Lemon and Ginger …. I am sure all of you are completely aware of the health benefits of all these 3 ingredients, but would love to say a bit … 

** Carrots know as Gajar in hindi And Gajara in Konkani ... are a good source of many types of vitamins and minerals. It is loaded with Vit.A (Beta Carotene), potassium and Vit. B6 to name a few. Vit.A as you all know is very good of retina of the eyes and so they are very beneficial for eyes. 

** Lemons known as Nimboo in hindi And Limbiyo in Konkani ... are something all of blindly use without even thinking much. Mom said its good that means simply that it is good. Absolutely correct, they contain loads of Vit. C, B-Complex Vitamins, Calcium, Copper, Iron etc. It is very beneficial for the whole body system by building up immunity. 

** Ginger Known as Adrak in hindi And Alle' in Konkani ... is an ingredient that is available in every kitchen. There is no home that does not add into their diet ginger in some form or the other. The aromatic, pungent and spicy ginger has a special flavor and zest and goes well when added to preparation of dishes. It is one of the oldest and healthiest herb also used in Ayurveda medicine. In India we use it in cooking, pickles, juice and also tea. 

** Preparation of Gaja~Ginger Ale is very simple. I prepared ginger ale and carrot juice separately and then mixed them together. 

** For Ginger Ale : Wash, wipe dry and cut into pieces 100 gms of ginger. Crush them well with a heavy weight stone or you can coarsely grind them in mixer too. I crushed them on my small stone with a weight. 

** Bring one liter water to boiling point. When it is boiling well, add in the crushed ginger and bring it back to boiling point. Now lower the heat to medium and keep boiling till the level of the water decreases to ¾. Say about 4 glasses. 

** Add in sugar say about 1.5 – 2 cups depending upon how sweet or strong you want. I added about 1.5 cups for about 4 glasses of the boiling ginger in water. Mix well till all the sugar has melted. Bring to one single boil and remove from fire. Allow to cool completely under cool conditions. Like you can keep the fan on and place it below for quicker cooling. 

** Strain the prepared ginger ale through a fine sieve. Add in 1 tsp of kala namak and mix well. If kala namak is not available you can add in ordinary table salt too. Cover and put it in the fridge to get chilled properly. Coolants always taste best when they are chilled. 

** For Carrot Juice : While the ginger is being boiled in water, on the other side start preparing the carrot juice. Well that’s simple. I just used three large one. Wash them, wipe dry, peel off the outer skin and chop them into pieces. Grind with 2 cups of water to a smooth paste and strain. Add in another cup and mix well. Put the prepared carrot juice in the fridge to also chilled. You can use a electric juicer to extract the juice if you have one. 

** Preparing of Gajar (Carrot) Ginger Ale : Now that both the ginger ale and carrot juice are ready and chilled, all we need is to mix them. For about 1/3 cup of ginger ale add in 2/3 cup of carrot juice and mix well and your “Gajar (Carrot) ~ Ginger Ale” is ready. You can make variations in mixing as per your taste. If you need it sweeter add in a little bit more of ginger ale and less of carrot juice and vice versa. 

** “Gajar (Carrot)~Ginger Ale” is done and ready to be served. Serve this chilled during mid morning break of whenever you want to take a break and refresh yourself. A fantastic coolant with the added benefits of carrots, lemons and ginger. All three considered very good for health and in building immunity. Go for it, it is much better than serving your loved one’s those aerated drinks loaded with junk and calories. You will be happy when you see faces glowing. 

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