It's the season of leafy greens and our grocery stores are teeming of various different types of nutritious vegetables. Some of the most common ones abundantly used in Indian kitchens are palak, methi, bathua, mustard greens, radish leaves etc. Be it curries, stuffed parathas or dry mixed vegetables, there are numerous dishes that are made from winter greens. Greens can also be added to salads to lend some seasonal nutrition to your diet. They can also be made into soothing soups that are just perfect for winters. Spinach is widely used as an ingredient in creamy soups that can be enjoyed as meals during winters. We give you some delicious spinach soup recipes that can help you brave the cold outside. But let's look at the rich nutritional profile of this quintessential winter green.

Spinach Nutrition: Facts and Benefits
Spinach is very low in calories. In fact, it is one of the most nutritious negative calorie foods out there. A 100 gram portion of the vegetable provides just 23 calories (as per data by the United States Department of Agriculture). It is extremely rich in vitamins and minerals, most notably beta-carotene (a precursor to Vitamin A), Vitamin B6, Vitamin B9 (folate) and Vitamin K, as well as iron, magnesium and manganese. The leafy green is known to help maintain eye health and improve the health of bones. Spinach is also said to regulate blood pressure and fight inflammation in the body.

Winter Diet: Spinach Soup recipes
1. Spinach Cauliflower Soup Recipe
Two nutritious low-calorie vegetables come together to make this amazingly nutritious recipe. Spinach and cauliflower florets are simmered in a stock with onions, until the vegetables are soft. The veggies are blended together and mixed with seasonings and skimmed milk.

2. Spinach Soup With Spicy Chickpeas Recipe
This unique combination of spinach and chickpeas is filling and sumptuous. Onions are cooked along with chickpeas and then further cooked again in water that chickpeas were soaked in. Once this is done, all the ingredients are allowed to cool down, blended together and then garnished with cream and black sesame seeds.

3. Chicken Spinach Soup Recipe
Add some protein power to your spinach soup meal with this simple recipe. Minced chicken is mixed with green onions, ginger, garlic, shredded carrots, an egg for binding and some seasoning, to make balls that are first chilled in the fridge and then boiled with the soup stock until they are cooked. You can then add vegetables of your choice, along with spinach leaves and cook everything together for a satiating meal.

4. Spiced Spinach Soup With Paneer Croutons Recipe
Bread croutons are passe. Paneer or cottage cheese is used as a healthier substitute in this recipe. The recipe uses three important winter greens- spinach, dill and fenugreek leaves to prepare this wholesome soup that is nutritious and delicious.

Ajwain, or carom seeds, are very common in Indian households. The aromatic seeds are used in adding flavour to a number of desi drinks, curries and even breads like parathas. It is also revered in Ayurveda for its numerous health benefits. But not a lot of people know about ajwain leaves. Although these leaves come from different plant as the true ajwain plant, the succulent leaves are still known as ajwain leaves in the Indian subcontinent. The plant that the leaves are a part of is also known as the 'Indian Borage,' which is also called the ajwain plant sometimes. The leaves of this plant are the real stars. They are bright green in colour and are broad and pulpy. They have a layer of very fine and soft hair atop them, and you can access these leaves by buying a pot of the Indian Borage at any nursery or botanists. The reason these leaves are known as ajwain leaves, despite being a part of a completely different plant, is that they have a smell that is similar to that of carom seeds. In Kannada, the plant is known as 'saveer sambar soppu,' which literally translates to 'thousand utility leaf.' The scientific name of the plant is 'Plectranthus Amboinicus' and can easily be grown at home or in your kitchen garden. The leaves have a number of uses and can be added to dishes of your choice to add a distinctive flavour and taste to them.

Incredible Uses And Benefits Of Ajwain Leaves

Ajwain Leaves Can Be Put To The Following Uses:

1. To Cure Cold And Cough:
Ajwain leaves can be boiled with water and made into a warm concoction to remedy persistent cold and cough. If you have a pesky cold and cough, take some 10 or 12 ajwain leaves, clean them with water and then add them to a glass of water and put it to boil on a low flame. Allow the decoction to boil, until the water is reduced to about three-fourths of its original quantity. Take it off the heat, allow it to cool down a bit and then drink it for relief from cold and cough. Add a little honey to it, if you like.

2. Use It To Make Pakodas:
Ajwain leaves can be added to a spiced besan (gram flour) batter and then deep-fried to make delicious and flavourful pakodas, which are known as omavalli bajji. These pakodas can be enjoyed hot with ketchup or any other yogurt dip. Also try this recipe of ajwain chakli.

3. To Make Chutneys And Dips:
Ajwain leaves can be sautéed ground and then added to some creamy yogurt to make a delicious and flavourful dip. Alternatively, make some fresh ajwain leaves chutney by throwing it in the grinder with some water and spices of your choice. The chutney can be enjoyed with pakodas, chips, crisps or even with parathas.

4. To Make Refreshing Green Juices:
You can add ajwain leaves to any fruit or vegetable juice of your choice to add flavour and nutrition to the drinks. You can add them to any green juice of your choice to make it more palatable and flavourful.

Ajwain leaves are said to have a number of health benefits, including remedying stomach problems and for improving appetite and digestion. Bring these amazing leaves into your daily use to enhance taste and flavour of everyday dishes and for everyday home remedies.

A bowl of fresh, creamy and homemade yogurt is one of the simplest food joys. This wonder dairy product can make for a dish itself with fruits or chopped onions and tomatoes or it can be blended into smoothies, used to add texture to your curries or make your breakfast cereal wholesome. It is very convenient for us pair yogurt with our daily meals but have we ever wondered about the amazing health benefits that we can enjoy by having a bowl of curd or yogurt every day? Yogurt comes from milk and therefore, it is loaded with several essential nutrients like calcium, vitamin B-2, vitamin B-12, potassium, and magnesium. An advantage with yogurt is that it is light on the stomach and easier to digest than milk. If you didn’t know, here are six impressive health benefits of curd.
Here are some incredible health benefits of curd:

1. Good for digestion: Yogurt or curd is a great probiotic (an ingredient that contains live bacteria). These good and beneficial bacteria are known to improve gut activity, soothe inflamed digestive systems and treat an upset stomach.

2. Stronger immunity: The live active cultures found in yogurt fight disease-causing germs and keep your gut and intestinal tract protected. A scientific study conducted by a team of researchers at the University of Vienna in Austria found that eating a 7-ounce dose of yogurt (about 200 grams) was just as effective in boosting immunity as popping pills.

3. Beautiful and healthy skin: Curd has a moisturizing effect on your skin and it heals your dry skin naturally. A lot of people suffer from acne due to certain gastrointestinal problems. Curd helps in marinating a happy and active gut which leads to healthy skin. Yogurt is an excellent beauty ingredient for face packs too as it contains lactic acid that acts as an exfoliator and clears off all dead cells and blemishes.

4. Reduces high blood pressure: A research presented at the High Blood Pressure Research Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association (AHA) showed that people who ate more non-fat yogurt were 31 percent less likely to develop high blood pressure than others. The special proteins in yogurt along with nutrients like potassium and magnesium help in lowering high blood pressure and promoting a healthy heart.

5. Prevents Vaginal Infections: Yogurt may be particularly good for women as it helps in discouraging the growth of yeast infections. The lactobacillus acidophilus bacteria found in yogurt is known to control the growth of infection in the body and kill the yeast by kills by producing hydrogen peroxide.

6. Good for the bones: A cup of yogurt (250grams) contains about 275mg of calcium as per the United States Department of Agriculture. A daily dose of calcium not only helps in maintaining bone density but also strengthens them. It is low in fat and calories and thus, may also help in keeping your weight in check.

Curd is full of calcium, vitamin D, protein and healthy gut bacteria. There is no doubt that curd is full of nutrition and will benefit you if you include it in your daily diet. You can team a bowl of yogurt with fresh fruits or seeds like flaxseeds and sunflower seeds to add an extra dose of fiber along with all the other nutrients that it provides.

An outpour of guests, hearty conversations and some guilty binges- This is what our Diwali celebrations are looking like this year too. Diwali is a grand affair in India, while the festival is being celebrated today on 27th October this year, but we know very well that the festive vibe is here to stay until Bhai Dooj (29th October 2019); which means, a lot a bingeing and risk of calorie overload. Well, not necessarily. Now don't get us wrong, we are not asking you to tuck into salads while the world the world's busy indulging. But no one ever said that festive indulgence cannot be healthy, right?
We have put together some healthy versions of your favourite Diwali treats. You can munch into them when cravings kick, you can even serve these snacks to your guests and add a tinge of health to their Diwali as well.


1. Baked Ragi Chakli

Chakli or murukku is one Diwali staple that we cannot get enough of. Crispy and coiled, this savoury snack is usually deep-fried and made with besan. But this chakli is made with protein-rich goodness of Ragi. It is gluten-free too.

2. Baked Namak Para

Who does not like munching into these ribbon-like savories while engaged in a conversation. Namak para is one of the most loved Indian snacks, it is traditionally made by frying a special maida dough seasoned by ajwain seeds. In this recipe, instead of frying, you need to bake the snack. Baking helps save you many calories that are often associated with frying.


3. Ragi Coconut Ladoo

Your regular coconut ladoos got a protein-rich spin. Packed with the goodness of Ragi, peanuts and coconut, these ladoos are sweetened by jaggery. Jaggery is rich with antioxidants, and a much healthier alternative of refined sugar.

4. Almond Pearls

Dry fruits and Diwali go hand in hand. This dry fruit snack would only require a few minutes to prepare and is sure to impress each time. If you want to make this healthier, we advise you rule out sugar from the recipe. Almonds are a rich source of protein and heart-friendly omega 3 fatty -acids.

Try making these snacks at home and let us know how you liked them in the comments section below. We would also like to know how you are making your Diwali healthy this year!

Tea is one of the most popular caffeinated beverages around the world. The drink has a lot of varieties and the level of caffeine in each varies. At the same time, it has got a wide, almost universal appeal, even though the preparations and recipes differ. There has been some scattered evidence indicating benefits of drinking tea, including some studies talking about tea's benefits for the brain. A new study has looked at the impact of regular consumption of tea on the structure of our brains, specifically. The study has said that regular tea drinkers may have an advantage over non-drinkers, wherein they may have a better brain structure. The study indicated that drinking tea may result in greater functional and structural connectivity in the brain.

The study titled, "Habitual tea drinking modulates brain efficiency: evidence from brain connectivity evaluation" was published in the journal Aging. For the study, a group of participants was asked to fill out questionnaires about tea-drinking habits, which spelled out how often they consumed different types of teas. The participants were of the age of 60 or above and each provided details of their psychological health, daily lifestyle and overall health. The participants were then divided into two groups- tea drinkers and non-tea-drinkers and were made to undergo MRI scans. They were also put through a battery of tests.

The scientists saw a significant difference of connectivity between the tea drinkers and non-tea drinkers. The research was focused on the Default Mode Network (DMN), which is a large network connecting various parts of the brain. The study report said, "The observations in this study partially support the hypothesis that tea drinking has positive effects on brain organization and gives rise to greater efficiency in functional and structural connectivities due to increased global network efficiency found in the brain structure of tea drinkers, but no significant enhancement in functional connectivity. As hypothesised, tea drinking leads to less leftward asymmetry in structural connectivity between hemispheres."

However, the study was a very small-scale one, since the number of participants totaled just 36 people and the number of females was just six. Therefore, the results of this study may be taken with a pinch of salt.