Mango Lassi and a Guess!

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Sincere NPR listeners should have been shocked or felt some mild discomfort listening to this program on marketplace extolling the virtues of GMO crops to feed the growing population of the planet. I was a bit angry but let it go with everything that happens in the normal course of life.

All I could think of was the very same NPR which had a program a year ago about how food production had never been a problem but the distribution was. I remember it very well as they were talking about how India dumped several tons of food grains into the ocean because they did not have a good distribution system to get those food grains into the hands of people who needed them most.

The Washington Post Live sponsored the Future of Food Conference at Georgetown University on May 4 and the Washington Post Food Section had an article, Food Future. A few quotes from the article.

"We have to dramatically reduce our greenhouse gases in the environment, and that's the one thing we do not want to talk about, because it means we have to change the way we do business and the way we consume."

"The unfortunate thing is we've convinced ourselves that materialism and the level of consumption is what gives us a quality of life. But all of the data, that comes from psychologists who have studied this are telling us exactly the opposite: that quality of life indicators have actually gone down since the 1970s...."

-- Fred Kirschenmann, a professor, organic farmer, veteran leader in sustainable agriculture and board president of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture.


"Reversing the effects of climate change might involve more than artists. It's time to stop playing Angry Birds and watching "Glee" and get involved in the process of producing change."

-- Laura Andreko, associate professor at the Georgetown University School of Nursing & Health Studies.

If you are interested in the roundup of the conference the entire article is here.


What does a program on NPR and Future of Food conference have to do with anything? Everything.

I received the organic consumer online newsletter landed in my mailbox. Re-read the bolded quote and if you are a regular NPR listener and would like to do something about it, here's the link - Don't let Monsanto buy out public radio.

Guess


What plant bears this beautiful flower?

Here's a recipe to cool of the summer heat.

Lassi is one of those quintessentially Indian drinks that is both refreshing and tasty. The popular drink is made with the most common of ingredients in every Indian home. Yogurt and Sugar. Blend the yogurt with sugar, add some ice and a refreshing drink is ready in minutes.

During summer when there is abundance of mangoes blend the mangoes into the yogurt for a smooth mango lassi. The mangoes sure make it an exotic drink. I always remember fondly my aunt and uncle who introduced the drink to me many many years ago . A colleague at work asked me about lassi and how difficult it was to make it. Realized that I do not have the recipe and hence this post.

While in India juicy mangoes of all shapes and sizes are readily available, the mangoes available here are neither juicy and are not the best for making lassi but mango pulp is readily available and they work best for making lassi. The pulp already has a lot of sugar so there is no need to add sugar. If using fresh mangoes add sugar to sweeten.

Mango Lassi
Ingredients
1. 1/4 cup of mango pulp or 1 cup of mangoes + 2 tbsp sugar
2. 3/4 cup of yogurt (I used home made yogurt made from 1% milk)
3. ice cubes
4. 1/4 cup of water (optional)

Method
1. Blend the mango pulp and yogurt, add in some ice and lassi is done.