I forgot to photograph the dishes I made, but pictures can be found in Ayurveda Inspired Cooking for your Individual Well Being by Anne Buhring & Petra Rather (Barrons). No publication date, but I got this as a wedding gift in 1996, if that helps. I made three dishes: yellow mung dal, cauliflower curry, and nectar rice pudding. Sadly, they all turned out horribly! The mung dal was the least disastrous, just undercooked.
I think I went wrong with my substitutions in the others. I used plain yogurt in the curry, but it was the greek kind. It was too thick and separated. Maybe a little water got into, too. The nectar rice pudding called for 4 cups of whole milk, which I didn’t have. I replaced it with 3 cups almond milk + 1 cup buttermilk. It never got thick our creamy :(
Even though three main dishes didn’t turn out, the basmati rice was wonderfully flavorful and aromatic. I learned about a new spice, to of - black onion seed, or kalongi. I found it in the Indian market with the help of the person behind the counter and google. I had to sift through a lot of conflicting info, but came up with this source: http://www.uni-graz.at/~katzer/engl/Nige_sat.html using black onion seeds as the search term. The other positive piece of this experience was all the fabulous smells wafting through the house. This won’t be my last body to India, but I might try a different cookbook. Besides, now I have a bunch of exotic spices to use, right?

I think my taste buds may be failing. I just couldn’t get enough lemon flavor in this batch. Usually, 4-5 while lemons is all I need for the basic lemonade part, but this batch took 9 whole lemons! I used 2 cups frozen, unsweetened cranberries, heated for one minute per cup in the microwave and had trouble getting the strong cranberry flavor I craved. The sweetener was Zsweet …just about a cup. I was really trying to make a super sour, pucker-upper; I’m just not sure it happened. Maybe it will get stronger over night our maybe it ‘s fine. A second opinion is definitely warranted.

A variation on a sugar-free mojito punch found on allrecipes.com, today’s refreshing beverage is as follows:
4 lemons
2 limes
1 liter diet 7-up
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves from the garden
1/4 cup Splenda
Ice to raise the liquid level to the top of the pitcher

Oh, and don’t stir too much- it’s carbonated and will overflow.

I know I already made this one, but there are a few changes this time. I used an equal number of lemons and limes and agave syrup instead of Splenda. It turned poor tart and tangy with just a hint of sweetness.

It was too kiwi-y and had a lot of pulp and seeds. So, I strained it twice, removed the lemon slices, added ice, squeezed two more lemons into the pitcher, and wah-la: much more pleasing to the tongue. Still awaiting the verdict from my tasters.

We finished the peach-ginger lemonade yesterday, and though I was not really in the mood, I made a new batch at my hubbie’s request. His words, “I like having it around, and I’ll drink less beer if I have lemonade.” So check in tomorrow to get the verdict on the watermelon lemonade. :)

This week we have enjoyed blueberry lemomade - a bit disappointing :( It lacked the strong blueberry flavor I was hoping for. I just made a pitcher of peach-ginger lemonade. Hoping it will be interesting and cool for this hot weekend.

6/29/12- The peach-ginger is a hit! I woke up to 1/2 the pitcher GONE. James said it was refreshing, which it’s EXACTLY what I was aiming for. I tried a taste and agree. The peach flavor is light, and the ginger hits as the last swallow goes down.