Anjeer Burfi/Barfi is widely prepared and sold in Indian Sweet Stores. It has a peculiar taste. Those looking for a low calorie sweet, anjeer burfi is a perfect option to satisfy their taste buds, with some modifications to this recipe (given below the original recipe). This delicious recipe is simple and effortless to make. Give it a try!

Ingredients:

12 dry anjeer (figs); soaked in warm water for 20-30 minutes,

1/2 cup or more (if required) khoya; roasted for few minutes,

3-4 tbsp mix dry fruits powder,

Powdered Sugar as per taste,

Almond shavings to garnish.

Method:

Grind the soaked anjeer with little water. Use the water in which they were soaked.

In a nonstick pan add the anjeer paste and cook until it thickens and changes color to a darker shade of brown. You can use little ghee (clarified butter) if you like, but since khoya leaves some ghee I do not add any ghee. Later add khoya, sugar if you like and dry fruits powder.

Cook until the mixture comes together to form a ball. Remove from flame and set it aside for 5-7 minutes. Then grease a flat dish. Spread out the mixture onto the greased dish, evenly into a square shape, with medium thickness. See the picture.

Spread almond shavings on top and set it aside until it cools down. Later cut small burfis and serve.

TIPS:
1. Since anjeer are sweet, add little or no sugar.

2. For a low calorie anjeer burfi, do not add ghee, sugar. Khoya can be avoided but since we are using it in less proportion, it can do. Instead of khoya you can also add some ‘dink’ or ‘gondh’. Also avoid cashew nuts in the dry fruit powder, add more almonds instead.

Have you been eating the same diet food to avoid excess calories? Gone are the days when you had to eat boiled vegetables, soups, salads and fruits to reduce weight. You can smartly use few ideas to make your daily food have lesser calories and be healthy too. You may find plenty of low cal, diet or healthy recipes in this age, but there are very few which taste good. Here are some different recipes that will make you forget about your diet (though they will take care about it!)

Grilled Tomato and Green Onion Platter

If you are tired of eating raw salads and vegetables, Grilled Tomato and Green Onion platter is a smarter option. The recipe is made of  tomatoes, green onions, olive oil, basil, vinegar and some seasoning. The minimum ingredients help retain the actual flavor and nutrition. Tomatoes are an excellent source of Vitamin C, A, K and Lycopene. Even though tomatoes are more healthy if eaten raw, grilled or processed tomatoes have more quantity of lycopene than raw tomatoes. When eaten with small amount of fat, it is better absorbed in the body, hence we have used olive oil in this recipe. Olive oil is beneficial to health because of its high content of monounsaturated fatty acids and antioxidative substances which offer protection against heart diseases. Read more

TIP: This recipe uses 1/3 cup of olive oil but you can adjust the quantity. This recipe could also be prepared without grilling if you want a strict healthy diet.

Guacamole

Guacamole is made of ‘Avocado’ which is a rich source of heart healthy fats. Eat it with baked tortilla chips. Read more

Whole Wheat Healthy Pancakes

We eat pancakes all the time! But the refined flour is not as healthy as the whole wheat flour. So instead use whole wheat flour in you pancakes, with bananas or any other fruit to make it a healthy and complete meal. Add lots of honey, or use jaggery and brown sugar instead of white sugar. Have it with your favorite syrup like Maple or Rose. And yes, use less butter!

Steamed Vegetables with Tomato Garlic Sauce

Vegetables are low in calories and full of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytochemicals. So get all your favorite vegetables together and use them in this recipe. We are using less oil and steaming the vegetables, (as against boiling, where most of the nutrients are drained out) retaining their natural juices and nutritional values. Read more

TIP: You can also grill the vegetables.

Healthy Grilled Fish Burger

Instead of using the lean meat, this burger contains grilled fish fillet. Fish contains plenty of proteins, amino acids, minerals, vitamins and fatty acids. Well the nutritional values differ in different fishes, but a general study shows that it contains high nutritional values. This recipe uses the Red Snapper Fish, but you can replace it with any other fish steak. Read more

Poached Eggs with Warm Green Salad

We all know that eggs are rich in protein. While egg yolks and whole eggs are rich source of proteins and choline, yolks are considered to have more fat than the whites. You can use only egg whites and poach them. The warm green salad makes it a complete meal. Read more

Low Calorie Raspberry Dessert

A meal cannot be complete without a dessert, and a dessert reminds of loads of sweetness and calories. But this raspberry dessert is not only low in calories but it is so delicious, that you need not be on a low cal diet to have it. Read more

Some tips for making you daily diet healthy and low in calories:

• Opt for shallow fry or grilling instead of deep frying.
• Add lots of vegetables to you daily diet.
• Eat lots of fruits, at least one fruit every day.
• Drink lots of water, fresh juices and avoid canned ones as far as possible.
• Eat whole grain, multi-grain, multi-cereal bread for you sandwiches.
• Unsweetened yogurt is a good source of calcium.
• Replace sugar with honey wherever possible.

Ingredients:

3 large and firm tomatoes; cut into thick slices,

10 green onions; alongwith the green of about 4″ long,

1/3 cup olive oil,

1 tbsp Wine Vinegar,

2 tbsp fresh basil; chopped,

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste,

Few sprigs of parsley; chopped.

Method:

In a bowl, combine olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and basil. Dip the onions and tomatoes into this mixture for some time. Then arrange the grill rack around 4-6 inches above the barbeque coals. Arrange the tomatoes and green onions on skewers and place them on the rack. Keep brushing with the mixture and grill, turning them few times for 5-6 minutes. Then transfer them onto a platter. Garnish with some parsley.

An unusual recipe of ‘raita’ made with pomegranate. The raita is made up of creamy yogurt, with red crystals of pomegranate that gives a blushing pink color to it, makes it more attractive. The best part of this raita is that you need not have it with your food, but eat it as a filler any time of the day.

Ingredients:

400gms yogurt (or sweetened yogurt) well beaten,

3 scallions (spring onions), chopped,

2 tsp sugar,

1 pomegranate, arils or seeds separated and juice preserved.

Method:

Leave a tbsp of pomogranate arils for garnishing and chill them until ready to serve. and mix all the other ingredients together. Also add the juice to the raita to get the nice pink color to the raita. Just before serving garnish with the reserved pomogranate arils.

Many times we feel hungry between our meals. And if we snack or munch this time we do not feel hungry at the time of our regular meals and later our stomach again needs feeding. In the end we end up eating more and nothing is healthy. To avoid such things we can also have fillers like soups and salads.

This is a filler soup that would keep your stomach full and you, healthy.

Ingredients:
10-12 leaves of spinach,
1 carrot,
3″ portion of white pumpkin,
Few florets of cauliflower and broccoli,
A small piece of cabbage,
1 small tomato,
1 tsp butter,
1 heaped tbsp wheat flour,
1/2 cup skimmed milk,
Salt and pepper to taste.

Method:
Blanch all the vegetables with little water and then grind them until smooth along with the water in which they were blanched (stock). If stock is excess then reserve that for later use. Mix together flour and milk to form a smooth paste. Now melt butter in a saucepan and then add the flour and milk mixture to it. Stir continously till it thickens. Then add the vegetable puree, remaining stock or water to get the desired consistency and stir well. Season with salt and pepper and bring to boil. Serve hot.