Refreshing Mango Lassi

Seems like summer is here to stay! Temperatures soared to 90 degrees over the weekend and have been continuing to soar ever since.

R loves a good mango lassi, and so decided to whip up some for breakfast. This made for one refreshing and filling breakfast on a super hot day. It not only kept us cool for rest of the morning, but the resulting sugar high was a welcome side effect ;)

Mango lassi is supposedly a super popular drink in Bombay, but oddly enough the 1st time I had it was in the US! For the true blue Bombayites this was sacrilege, right up there with the fact that I had not watched Sholay till a few years ago! Go figure. Given that I grew up on savoring the prized Alphanso mango in its purest form eaten by itself, mixing it with yoghurt seemed like an unattractive proposition initially. But after a few attempts at trying to find the perfect, non saccharine filled mango lassi, I understood why it is so revered among the legions of left college in the 90s generation !!

Speaking of Alphanso mangoes, R is awaiting its arrival in North California with more excitement than his graduation results! And yes, the thought of traveling to New York to buy even ONE mango from the 1st ever Indian mango export consignment sent to the US (after the 18 yr ban) did cross his mind…not once but several times!!

This is my entry to the timely Summer Fruits Breakfast Blogging event hosted by Padmaja of Spicy Andhra. I hope to be able to post a fresh Alphanso mango based recipe soon ☺

Mango Lassi
Ingredients
1. 3 cups mango pulp. Mango pulp is available in any Indian grocery store. I use the Laxmi brand kesar mango pulp
2. 1 cup plain yoghurt
3. 1 cup cold milk
4. 1/2 cup sugar (alter according to taste)
5. Salt to taste
6. 1 tsp black pepper (optional)


Method
1. Add all the ingredients in a blender and blend for 2-3 minutes till its a smooth consistency. Make sure there are no white swirls from the youghurt or milk
2. Pour into individual glasses and serve
3. Garnish with fresh mango, water melon or any other fruit

Enjoy :)