Easy drink recipes of dragon fruits

In 2011, an entrepreneurial and creative girlfriend who grew up in Shenzhen, China and did her graduate study in Cambridge, England came to live in Singapore for half a year. Having neither seen nor tasted dragon fruits before, she was fascinated by and loved eating them very much.

You tend to grow loving things and people whom your inspiring friends - your influencers - also love.

Since then, I have developed an appreciation for dragon fruits, also known as pitaya / pitahaya / 龙珠果, which are often served cut in lunch or dinner buffets in Singapore.

You will hardly miss dragon fruits sold in tropical markets or supermarkets, thanks to their beautiful vibrant magenta skin.

In contrast to its eye-catching outer appearance, the mildly sweet flesh of dragon fruits offers delicate aroma. The sweetness reminds me on melon, honeydew and pear, but dragon fruits are softer in texture than them.

Widely grown in the tropics, dragon fruit has been reported as potential anti-cancer (PMID 21535651), thanks to its anti-oxidant phenolic content in both skin / peel (more!) and flesh.

Blending pitaya hopefully helps to break its black and crunchy seeds, which are indigestible unless chewed. Please do not forget to treat your olfactory senses to the subtle fragrance of pitaya, before gulping them down to quench your thirst.

In this post, I lovingly share two drink recipes of dragon fruits. Enjoy!



Dragonfruit detox juice (火龙果排毒果汁)
Ingredients:
♥ 1 ripe dragonfruit (火龙果)
♥ 1 stalk organic celery (有机芹菜)
♥ 1 tsp honey (蜜糖)
♥ 150 ml water (过滤水)

♥♥♥

Dragonfruit banana smoothie (龙珠果香蕉冰沙)
Ingredients:
♥ 1 ripe dragonfruit (龙珠果)
♥ 1 ripe banana (香蕉)
♥ 100 ml fresh milk (鲜奶)

Directions:
1. Wash dragofruit, cut into halves. Use a large spoon to scoop out its flesh. Trim away any extra inedible skin. Cut into chunks.
2. Peel & chunk banana.
3. Blend dragonfruit, banana, milk together.

Tips: Since the skin has higher anti-oxidant content, consider using its flesh-facing side as a mask before throwing away.

由于火龙果的皮肤具有更高的抗氧化剂含量, 扔掉之前, 请考虑使用它的肉面对侧作为面膜。



Other recipes that I love:
♥ Dragonfruit and black sesame mochi ice cream by Maya, a scientist by training @ Foodiva's Kitchen, Brunei Darussalam, Borneo
♥ Dragon fruit mock mojito by Elizabeth @ Frugal Mom Eh! Canada
♥ Pitaya sorbet by Yolanda Bertaud @ Byzantine Flowers

Check also our other #5minutemeal recipes.

With love,
ServicefromHeart
Spring 2014

celery apple mandarin (CAM) juice

Sometimes, I do snack once in a while. Perhaps it is an easy access to a vending machine selling relatively inexpensive snacks.

An afternoon in this week, my choice was Made-in-Singapore Combe Snack of BBQ Chicken & Cheese flavour, because it has a Healthier Choice Symbol on its packaging.

After enjoying few bites, I read that it contains tartrazine (E102) -  a synthetic lemon yellow azo dye - which is banned in Norway and Austria.

***

In the evening, Garima and Mohan gave me a bowl of chocolate ice cream. How can we resist such a delicious treat?

***

At the end of the day, what I want next is to detox and cleanse my body. How is about a glass of refreshing celery apple mandarin (CAM) juice?



A lot of fiber... tastes refreshingly sweet salty 



Serving: 200 ml (for 1 person)
Preparation time: 3 + 2 minutes

Ingredients:
♥ 1 green Granny Smith apple (青苹果), peeled & cored
♥ 1 Mandarin Murcott (茂谷柑), peeled & deseeded
♥ 2 stalks celery (芹菜)
♥ 1 tbsp honey(蜜糖)
♥ 100 ml boiled ginger water OR 1 tsp minced ginger (姜) + water

Directions:
1. Soak celery with vinegared-salted water* for a minimum of 2. 10 minutes to remove pesticides, if any. Rinse and dry.
3. Squeeze Mandarin.
4. Blend apple, Mandarin juice, celery, ginger until smooth.
5. Stir in honey. Enjoy!

*Vinegared-salted water: 100 ml vinegar, 1 tbsp salt, 200 ml water.



Other recipes that I love:
♥ cucumber apple celery ginger juice
♥ homemade sprays for fruits and vegetables
♥ Green Apple Ice Pop with lime, sugar & cinnamon stick
♥ yogurt salad with green apple accompanied by onion, Japanese cucumber, carrot, nuts (e.g. walnut / pistachio / peanut)

Check also our other #5minutemeal recipes.

With love,
ServicefromHeart
20140328