Have you ever heard of Sweet Tamarind drink? It is a drink that originated in Africa and the taste is sweet and tart and is loaded with Vitamin B and Calcium. It is a home remedy for lowering cholesterol but that use has not been scientifically proven.
You would have to go to an ethnic market to buy the tamarind. You can find it in the fresh fruits and vegetables section of the grocery store. Not all stores carry it but if your grocer stocks ethnic foods it will be there. It comes in a package like this (I forgot to take the photo before opening it LOL). What you buy are the pods. Make sure they are not hollow, and the pulp should be firm and touching the shell. Get about a pound:
I take off the brown skin first and I pull off the fibers on the outside. Put the remaining fleshy pods in a saucepan
Cover with water
Boil for 15 minutes. The water should be brown and the pods soft
I like to let the water cool down before I mess with it anymore….I give it about 15 minutes cooling period. You can throw away any fibers that might still be on the pods (fibers look like roots). Get the pulp off the seeds. If your pods are fresh the seeds will pop right out when squeezed. If not you are going to have to manipulate them out. Throw the seeds out and put the pulp in a blender.
If a seed drops in the blender by accident don’t put your hand in there trying to get it out..or this will happen.
Add 2 cups of the water from the pot to the pulp in the blender. Blend blend blend till smooth smooth smooth. At this point you should strain it but I can’t find my strainer so I used it as is and it was okay…think of it as added fiber…au natural. The choice is yours: either put the blended mixture in a drink pitcher strained or not strained. Add a quart of water and about a cup of sugar. Stir well, chill and then serve over ice.
Variation: Sometimes I like to add about 10 strawberries to the mix.
Oh and in case you are wondering what kind of blender I use…well its actually a food processor and it makes the BEST smoothies. It is the Ninja Master Prep. and it comes with the juicer and the chopper. I LOVE IT. Now in Wal-Mart they have two versions of it. One cost $100 and one cost $39. You shouldn’t even have to ask which one I got. here is a link to the Ninja Master Prep Food processor. I give it 5 stars.
A City Girls Country Dreams 