Red Mango

~ Review- Red Mango~
Treat yourself well !!!

An array of hundreds of colorful toppings, luscious chocolate and

caramel dripping out from some beautiful dispensers of Ghirardelli ,

 juicy kiwis , strawberries and blueberries , the smell of world's best 

vanilla wafting in the air and an invitation for a healthy guilt free, self
 serve indulgence ...Everything just sounds from some fairyland !!!

Over the last couple of years our  ice cream craving Indian tooth has 

become more conscious about the hidden unhealthy colors, flavorings 

n  sugar laden aspects of the icy magic n we are constantly looking for 

low calorie dessert options to satisfy our sweet cravings. The frozen

 yogurt concept  - with is baby steps in the Indian market is surely 
here to drastically revolutionize  and pamper  our icecream 

crazy taste buds.

The Red Mango tagline - "Treat yourself Well" had definitely impressed me 

and finally I had to accept the courteous invitation  to visit the 

gorgeous store and taste this delight .....Lucky me , besides the wonderful

 tasting  I had a chance to meet  the CEO Mr Rahul Kumar too . 

Red Mango is a World's Number 1 renowned frozen yogurt and  smoothie 

brand ,and has established its foothold in the Indian F& B market with

 its offerings of 100% natural, non-fat & low fat , kosher & gluten free 

frozen yogurts fortified with pro- biotic.With its global presence  in 300 

cities across the world and  5 stores  across Delhi NCR , the company plans to
 open almost 100 stores all across India in next 5 years. 

My tastebuds that were familiar with the taste of the other frozen 

yogurt  brands  in the market were silently questioning me - whats 

so great about this one ???? But the  very first spoonful of this 

delicious , smooth and creamy taste was enough to prove why 

has Red Mango won millions of hearts across the globe. You'l 

be surprised to find that the pale colors ( yes they are free from 

artificial colorings ) of the treats owe their color to real stuff .

Mr Kumar was kind enough to share his  knowledge with me ,

right from the  raw materials, pro- biotic bacterias, flavorings ,

toppings and packaging he briefed me how the brand is 100% 

natural without any artificial sweeteners, colors and flavors. 

Red Mango's believes in  the best . And  to maintain their taste and

quality they import vanilla  from Madagascar ( the finest producer 

of vanilla in the word !!), the strawberries from Sonoma, California ,

Blueberries  from Europe , along with most premium chocolate 

servings from Ghirardelli. I was totally floored with a new self

 serve ,weigh and pay concept. There are absolutely no 

classifications of general / premium toppings  and hence no 
extra charges for the same. 

You pick the flavors, you choose the toppings -  its as simple as that .The 

calcium , protein and live active culture loaded yummilicious 6 flavors

 and over 34 creative toppings right from fresh fruits, granolas, MandMs, n

Haribo marshmallows are perfect to challenge the hidden yogologist

 in you. Its definitely one of those magical desserts that promises a 

satisfying treat without a high calorie guilt.

And If you are craving for something more - Red Mango has  ample 

of healthy  choices of  low fat sandwiches,croissants , smoothies, 

parfaits , cakes n muffins too. Indulgent in  smooth and creamy 

 combo of strawberry yogurt topped with colorful cereals, blueberry

  or marshmallows or   watch the delight on your lil one's  face

 while he digs into  juicy jelly balls ( called Popping Boba's )
 cutie gummy bears or colorful  sprinkles ..Worrying about
 unhealthy desserts will surely be a thing of past .....surely 
 treats were never tastier  before !!!!!

Go ahead and pamper yourself at  their stores in Ambience Mall
(Vasant Kunj), Select city walk( Saket), Great India Place(Noida) , 
Ambience Mall ( Gurgaon) and Connaught Place ( outer circle).
Red Mango Yogurts pricing 99 paise/gram

Special thanks to Mr Rahul Kumar ( CEO and principal owner 

Red Mango, India ) and Ms Akhilee Matta of Percept Profile 

for this delectable treat. 

All pics with Little Food Junction watermark 
photographed by © Smita Srivastava , must not be 
reproduced without a written 

permission .

Giveaway

~ A Zansaar Giveaway ~

Festivals, celebrations, gifts and sweet temptations go so very 

much hand in hand. We Indians love celebrations of all kinds-

from the colors of Holi to the aromatic  sevai of Eid  , from 

 illuminating lights of Diwali to the gifts of Christmas- we 

just look forward to all the fun and  frolic each festival brings.

Its been just a couple of days after Diwali but the wishes, 
 sweets and gifts are still pouring in . With all the festivities and
preparations at home I just missed to wish a very Happy Diwali 
to all my readers . Late wishes must surely be accompanied with
 some extra gifts .....what say ????
Thus Zansaar and Little Food Junction join hands  to make
 your festivities  sweeter with not one or two but three 
wonderful gifts for one of you..............


Zansaar .com is a popular online shopping portal , that fills up, 
colors and  flavors the modern Indian homes with an amazing 
range of home and food products from around the world and across 
India. From decor to lamps, bed linen to crockery , kitchen ware to 
world foods their entire product range is carefully curated  ,
 well designed and available at great price points. They have 
a range to appeal to the most eclectic tastes, and yet satisfy 
the simplest. Truly shopping was never so much fun .....

All you have to do is LIKE  Zansaar and 

Little Food Junction Facebook pages , once ur done

jus leave a comment here .

2.Increase your chances of winning by blogging or 

tweeting about it .You can even share the giveaway post update 
on the Little Food Junction facebook page. ( leave additional 
comments here, along with the url for each)

3. Giveaway ends by  30th November '12  IST.  

Although this giveaway is open to all yet owing to shipping

 restrictions prizes can only be delivered at an Indian address. 

If you are a non blogger pl make sure to include your e-mail id

in the comment , so that we can contact you if you win.

Good Luck !! 

A sip of Hibiscus

~ Give me Red ~

(A sip of Hibiscus !!) 

The local vegetable market filled with an array of colorful fresh 

vegetables and dew drenched fruits has its own magical charm. 

Vibrant greens, shiny yellow, lustrous reds, velvety purples, rich 

chrome..... nature's color palette seems to be unending. 

Lost in the colorful world of vegetables at the veggie market

 yesterday , my eyes came across a tiny basket of of beautiful red 

flowers - truly much more captivating than the aromatic ones that 

beautifully adorn a florist's shop. During the short span while I 

selected the unblemished ones n  paid, I tried to grasp the farmer's 

knowledge about these enchanting blooms . Called kundri or 

sun kukray in the local dialect , he told me these are perfect for 

making tangy chutneys ( dips).

All I knew was its local name and my tongue's verdict on its sour petals 

but that was not enough to search some fruitful result on Google. 

The calyx has some hibiscus like sticky stuff n I just typed in 

wild hibiscus - lo behold it opened up to a new world - so many 

pics, recipes , uses , cocktails, salads, syrups ah the list was endless.

With just a few flowers in hand I decided to play with this Wild hibiscus, 

Jamaican Sorrel or roselle. If it works with dried petals , it should

 work with fresh too and I headed to the kitchen.

Hibiscus tea with its sour taste is great to serve hot or cold . 

Just a pot of water , some sugar and a  star anise is all 
thats needed to brew up this concoction.

Remove the red petals from the flower n simmer in a pot of 

water with some sugar and star anise for 12- 15 mins .
Strain and  enjoy. 

 Cool  breeze and a cup of warm tea with a loved one is perfect morning 

retreat . 

Hibiscus Tea 

Ingredients 

1 cup fresh wild Hibiscus petals , 4 cups water, 4 tsp sugar ( adjust

 as per liking) , 1 star anise ( opt) , lemon slices for garnishing .

Method

Place water in a large saucepan , add in petals , sugar and star anise. 

simmer for 12- 13 mins till the water turns red. Strain , garnish 

with a slice of lime n serve. 

Iced Hibiscus tea 

We relished some of the hot tea while refrigerated rest to relish as a

 cool beverage. Some chilled hibiscus tea and  lots of ice is all thats needed 
to transform a hot tea to cool and refreshing Agua de Flor de Jamaica . 
 My family went gaga over this ruby red delight . 

The leaves of the Jamaican sorrel plant are also tart n

are widely used as a souring agent for preparing pickles n curries . I 

wish i could get some of those too :) :) 

Agua de Jamaica

Ingredients 

1 cup fresh wild Hibiscus petals , 4 cups water, 6 tsp sugar ( adjust

 as per liking) , 1 star anise ( opt) , lemon slices for garnishing .

Method

Place water in a large saucepan , add in petals , sugar n star anise. 

simmer for 12- 13 mins till the water turns red. Strain , chill and 

serve with ice or tonic / soda water. 

Lil Powerhouses

~ Little Fibre Powerhouses ~

( Bottlegourd Rissole )

This week is one of the most wonderful weeks for me, a few of my 
works will be on air. Couple of weeks back I  got a mail from the 
production department of the famous US Television talk show-
Dr. Oz Show  that they  want to use a few of my fun food 
images for an upcoming segment. I have always admired 
Oprah Winfrey and Dr Oz, n my works on their show is definitely 
nothing like a dream come true. Finally its scheduled to air
 this  Friday. So all US viewers tune in to Dr. Oz Show 
on 9th Nov, 2012 to see my fun food creations. 

Kids, Fun foods and healthy cooking go hand in hand and hardly
 do we realize how a recipe that had come up as a solution to feed
 a fussy eater slowly becomes a family favorite. A few changes
here and there and off its ready to fit into so many avatars...
Strange, isn't it??? but then thats what life is all about. 

Loved by adults and hated by lil ones , the humble bottlegourd is no less 
than a miracle vegetable. This easy on stomach vegetable with a slightly 
mild (read bland) flavour , loads of fibre n excellent nutritional benefits 
mostly receives a very unwelcoming gesture from the kids - right from 
cribbing over its sqishy sqashy taste to nicknaming it -food for the sick, 
kids try all their might to keep at bay from it. But concealed or rather 
revamped as rissoles, cutlets or patties this calcium rich vegetable
 can give a run to numerous tiffin snacks . 

As per wiki- Rissoles are small croquettes or patties enclosed in 
pastry or rolled in bread crumbs . While the traditional version 
uses minced meat along  spices, breadcrumbs and seasonings this 
baked meat free version is a combination of shredded bottle gourd,
 wheat bran ,oats,spices n seasonings. Pack these in a kiddo lunch 
box or pair these with some garden fresh salad and some Greek
 Tzatziki  for  a wholesome lunch. Substitute these little fibre 
powerhouses with potato patties in a burger or with the tikkis
 or ragda patties for an Indian chaat. A good squeeze of lemon n
some fiery red chilies will leave even  the adults craving for 
a guilt free  second helping .


 Bottlegourd Rissoles 

Ingredients- 
1 large bottlegourd peeled and grated ( approx. 2 1/2  cups grated), 
1/4 cup wheat bran , 1/4 cup Quaker Oats , 1/4 cup bread crumbs
(  grind 2 whole wheat bread slices ), 1 tsp minced garlic, 1/2 tsp
freshly grated ginger , 1 tbsp finely chopped  coriander (cilantro),
1 tbsp finely chopped mint, 1 tsp cajun spice ( or substitute with 
 garam masala) , salt n chili to taste, oil for greasing
Method-
Sprinkle 1/2 tsp salt on grated bottlegourd n keep aside for 7-8 
mins. Squeeze  and keep in a large bowl. Mix in the rest of the
 ingredients. Shape into 7-8 patties . Preheat oven to 200C and 
grease a tray with some oil - bake the rissoles for 15 mins , flip 
and bake for another 10 mins. Serve hot with Tzatziki or your
 favorite dip n some fresh salad.

For Tzatziki dip -Mix together 1/2 cup thick yogurt,  1/4 cup 
cucumber seeded n finely diced, 1 clove garlic grated, 1 tsp chopped
 fresh dill n some salt n pepper .