Make this masala milk mix ahead of time and add to any kind of warm, organic milk to create a delicious and healthy beverage that is filled with the goodness of nuts, seeds, aromatic spices like saffron, turmeric, cardamom and dried ginger.
Ingredients:
- Cashews (a handful)
- Almonds (peeled) (a handful)
- Pumpkin seeds (a handful)
- Sunflower seeds (a handful)
- Greed cardamom pods (4)
- Dried ginger powder (1 tsp)
- Turmeric powder (1 tsp)
- Cinnamon powder (1/2 tsp)
- Saffron strands (10-12)
- Organic brown sugar (optional) (to taste)
Method:
- Grind the nuts, seeds, and cardamom pods in a coffee grinder or a blender to a fine powder. Optionally, you may dry roast the nuts, seeds and cardamom before grinding. This will help in enhancing the digestibility of the nuts and seeds and also the aroma of the cardamom seeds.
- Mix in the remaining ingredients and store in a clean and dry glass or steel container.
- Mix in a couple teaspoons of this mix into warm milk. You may add a few drops of honey, or a little jaggery, or organic brown sugar before serving, if you want to add some sweetness to this beverage.
Tastes (Rasa):
Sweet (nuts, seeds), sour (none), salty (none), bitter (turmeric), pungent (ginger, cardamom, cinnamon), astringent (turmeric).
Doshic Influence:
Nuts and seeds, in excess, may be kapha aggravating. Milk by itself is also kapha aggravating. However, for young kids and active adults, milk, nuts and seeds are a great diet addition, since they provide important nutrients and build strength in the body tissues. The addition of the digestive herbs and spices is crucial since milk by itself is difficult to digest. Warming the milk and adding slightly pungent, digestive and aromatic herbs and spices like ginger, turmeric, cardamom and cinnamon serve the purpose of enhancing the taste, aroma and digestibility of the masala milk. Saffron serves as a digestive and also helps promote good sleep, making this a great drink to indulge in before going to bed at night.
Effects on the Mind (Gunas):
This mild, sweet, and nourishing drink mix is highly sattvic for the body and mind. It calms and harmonizes the mind and nourishes the body.