This is my version of Karak Chai, a milky tea popular in Gulf countries and South Asia, this one utilizing beautifully aromatic saffron by Heray Spice, a Chicago-based company, sourcing their products from farmer cooperatives all throughout Afghanistan.
It’s less sweet, as I’ve opted to swap out milk + sugar (you can also use honey) for the typically used sweetened condensed milk in this recipe: What makes this extra special? The Afghan saffron by Heray Spice.
To make Milky & Sweet Saffron Tea, use the following ingredients
Makes 2 teacups
Ingredients
1/8 teaspoon Heray Spice Saffron, soaked in 1/2 cup warm water for at least 10 minutes
5 cardamom pods, crushed
2 black tea bags (English Breakfast is perfect). You can also use loose tea, but you will have to strain the final mixture well.
1 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon raw cane sugar, or to taste. You can also use honey, but add this at the end when the tea has cooled somewhat.
Directions
In a small saucepan, bring the water-soaked saffron to a boil. Add the cardamon and the tea bags and continue to boil for 1-2 minutes.
Add the milk and lower the heat to medium simmer. Cook for an additional 2-3 minutes, adding the sugar in the meantime.
Pour the mixture into teacups immediately before serving.
For those of you who saw my video interview with Mustafa Koita, Entrepreneur and Founder of Koita foods (plant-based nut milks), you may have watched till the end when I made this pretty tasty smoothie that contains the Koita Oat Milk product and just a few other things. Here’s the recipe all laid out and a few notes on the substitutions at the end.
To a blender, add the banana and pour in the Koita Oat Milk. Add the tahini and mix well on high. Add the Medjool date and almonds and mix again on the highest setting to finely chop and blend both ingredients.
Pour into one tall glass or two small cups and garnish with chopped pistachios, if desired.
NOTES
Try to consume this drink soon after making it, as refrigerating it may not taste as good since the banana is quick to degrade.
If you require a little more sweetener to this drink, you can add about 1/2 teaspoon honey or grape molasses (will change the color slightly). (The honey would make this smoothie vegetarian instead of vegan).
For a different topping, you can garnish with any type of chopped nut or coconut flakes and it would be equally delish!
One of my all-time favorite recipes for drinks that truly hydrate without artificial sugars. This is great for a Spring or Summertime Ramadan when you really want something cool and refreshing and super hydrating for Iftar, too.
Don’t skimp on the fresh mint, either. That little detail at the end makes it extra special and tasty.
This recipe appeared first in my Summer Ramadan Cooking cookbook, which you can find on Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats.
One of the very first recipes I ever created for Suhoor (early morning meal before a fasting day) was this Very Berry Smoothie. It incorporates such healthy ingredients, including berries which are full of antioxidants. The original recipe is in my first cookbook, Summer Ramadan Cooking, which is available on Amazon.
This video is sponsored by one of my favorite online shops to procure a lot of my organic spices, salts and other ingredients, Mountain Rose Herbs.
To top the smoothies, I love to use freshly chopped nuts like almonds or pistachios. You can get halal-certified pistachios in the ad below.
A very berry smoothie with blueberries and strawberries is chock full of antioxidants
In the heat of the summer, sometimes we crave hydration more than food, especially when fasting during a summer time Ramadan. That’s why I love to freeze fruits and use them as ‘ice cubes’ in a variety of drinks and one of my favorite of these drinks is the super delicious homemade Strawberry Lemonade. It’s not too sweet (you can adjust the sweetness as you like or take it out altogether) and so fresh because you’re using real fruits strawberries and lemons, both of which are hydrating and packed with important nutrients.
This recipe can also be found in the paperback and Kindle editions of Summer Ramadan Cooking: Recipes & Resources for Healthy Meals All Month Long, available on Amazon.
Recently I posted a series of photos on Instagram when I was beginning to make almond milk from scratch at home.
The last couple of times I tried store-bought almond milk (many years ago and then again recently), I was totally turned off by them because they didn’t truly taste like the milk was made from almonds. I was spoiled by how things really tasted in Sicily, where I not only had almond milk, but almond granita, almond gelato, etc. Everything tasted like almonds. As it should.
Even with store-bought almonds, one has to be sure they’re of the best quality, for the best taste. I did some sourcing of my own and found an organic almond farm in California where I purchased some of the best tasting almonds I’ve had since being in Sicily- seriously, by ordering them from Heron Fox Farm. To get started, I soak the almonds in a bowl overnight. They get nice and plump so make sure that you have enough water to cover them all.
The next morning, I remove the water and add the almonds to a blender with double the amount of water (i.e. 1 cup of almonds to 2 cups of water). I like that ratio but if you like more or less, it’s just something you’ll have to figure out by experimentation.
Next, blend them up really well so that there are no more large pieces of almond in the liquid.
Pour it over a cheesecloth-lined colander with a bowl underneath the colander.
Now use the sides of the cheesecloth – bring them up and use them to twist out the liquid as much as you can. What remains on the bottom is your almond milk. What remains in the cheesecloth is what you can use as almond flour. I like to dry it out on the counter for the day, but it cannot stay out overnight as it could get moldy. You can put it in the fridge, but do not cover it or it will also get moldy- it does not like moisture. You can sweeten the milk with honey, molasses or maple syrup- or nothing at all. It’s all up to you.
I like to save the milk for my cereal, my coffee, my oatmeal, my smoothies- the possibilities are seriously endless! Have you ever had almond milk made like this? Will you make it yourself after reading this recipe?
To get started, I soak the 
Pour it over a 
What remains on the bottom is your almond milk. 
What remains in the 
You can sweeten the milk with honey, molasses or maple syrup- or nothing at all. It’s all up to you. 
Have you ever had almond milk made like this? Will you make it yourself after reading this recipe?