Not one but two treats actually. First we visited an arts & crafts village that was great fun for a pottery buff like me. Tlaquepaque (say that fast three times in a row!) has an abundance of art galleries, crafts shops and restaurants set in a charming Mexican-inspired setting. I particularly liked the hand painted lizards and the surprised looking sun in this shop :-)
This was followed by a glass of falooda to soothe our sun baked nerves.
(rose falooda with vanilla ice cream)
Summer in Bombay is made bearable by ice cold treats like the falooda. During April and May everyone seems to be sipping and eating their way through tall glasses of this frothy pink concoction. The combination of chilled rose milk and ice cream is indeed hard to resist.
Falooda appears to have been introduced in India by the Parsis of Iran. The community makes this drink to celebrate the spring equinox on March 21. The drink, though it is more like a sundae is named after the noodles that are used in making it.
Eating a falooda is great fun because of the different texture of each ingredient, in particular the chewy, gelatinous seeds and the soft noodles.
(clockwise from left: tukmaria seeds, rose syrup and noodles)
ROSE FALOODA
(for 1 glass)
1 tbsp of tukmaria (basil seeds/ sabja/ falooda seeds)
2 tbsp of rose syrup
3/4 cup cold milk
2 tbsp of vermicelli (falooda sev)
a scoop of vanilla ice cream
Place tukmaria in a bowl, cover with just enough water and refrigerate for at least an hour or two.
Break the noodles into tiny pieces and boil in hot water (or as per directions) until done, about 3-4 minutes. Cool. Beat milk until it is frothy.
Take a tall transparent glass, add 2 tbsp of rose syrup, then gently spoon in the noodles and the seeds (they should be swollen by now). Pour the milk over this layer slowly. Top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and serve immediately.
* Falooda can also be made in saffron (a pinch dissolved in milk) and mango (substitute mango pulp for rose syrup) flavors
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