How would you like them?
Gosh, it’s that horrid time of the year when the sun will sap your energy and you’d be left feeling completely drained. Remember all those summers when respite came in the form of cold water melon eaten sinfully in front of your coolers and ACs? Well, we have a quick fix for you this summer. Albeit, with a twist.

Have you ever imagined having your fruits dipped with chocolate and garnished with sweetened oats? Well, if you haven’t, you are bound to, after reading this! Here, some interesting recipes for you.

Fruit sticks with chocolate and nuts
Make it

• Melt dark chocolate and keep aside.
• Chop your favourite fruits – mango, plum, peach, strawberry or banana. Put a toothpick or a small skewer on your fruit and freeze.
• Finally chop some nuts – pistachio, almond or even cashews!

Plate it
Dip the fruit into the melted chocolate and drizzle with the chopped nut

The twist
You can make it beautiful by playing with the colour palette Our suggestion: ripe, red strawberries go well with green pistachio, peaches and almonds appeal to the eye and plum looks the best with coconut flakes on it!

Black rice kheer with roasted coconut mousse and fresh alphanso mango*
Now, don’t you get intimidated by that long, fancy name. This is an easy yet exotic recipe and we want you to enjoy it in style!

Make it
The kheer

• Wash black rice (easily available in the market now), soak it for six-eight hours and then steam it. Boiling is an option but that takes much longer, remember?
• Make a gud (jaggery) syrup by simply boiling gud in water till you get a nice and thick consistency. Add the syrup to the steamed rice and mix well.

The mousse

• Pan roast dried and desiccated coconut
• Add any cream cheese, whipped cream, castor sugar and mix well

Plate it

• Put some kheer in the middle of a serving bowl
• Squeeze out the mousse on top of the kheer from a piping bag
• Put mango slices around the kheer ensemble

The twist
Each time you take a spoonful of the kheer into your mouth, make sure you follow it up with a mango slice immediately! One spoon, one slice!
*Recipe courtesy Chef Shantanu Mehrotra, Indian Accent at The Manor

Spicy mexican fruit salad
The best thing about this recipe is the fact that it lets you be creative to the core. Choose your favourite fruits – one, two or as many as you like! Here are your options:

Mango
Pineapple
Watermelon
Melon
Strawberry

Make it
Slice up the fruits into big chunks. This is meant to be finger food so keep the size finger friendly! Cut and freeze your fruits till you’re ready to serve.

Plate it
Place the fruit in a shallow bowl. Squeeze lime juice over it and season generously with salt and chilli powder. Stir gently – you don’t want to spoil the taste now, do you?

The twist
The more the chilli, the better the spark! Add cucumber for that summery crunch!

Fruit facts you didn’t know:
Strawberry
Strawberry is the only fruit with seeds on the outside
It is low in fat and calories and high in vitamin C, fiber, folic acid and potassium
It is rich in nitrate and helps to prevent muscle fatigue by increasing the flow of blood and oxygen to the muscles

Grapefruit
  Also known as Chakotra in India, the grapefruit has a tangy-sweet flavor and is very juicy. A part of the citrus family, it is rich in phytonutrients such as vitamin A, beta carotene and lycopene.
  A great source of vitamin C, half a grapefruit can provide all the vitamin C our body needs for an entire day!
  Very low in calories, it is rich in dietary insoluble fiber pectin, known to reduce blood cholesterol levels. This is what makes it a dieters favourite.