Low Calorie Tamarind Soda & A Tribute To Antony Bourdain

I wrote this post yesterday, planning to publish it this morning, when I woke up to the sad news of Antony Bourdain’s demise.  So, I thought I would dedicate this post to him because I know it’s a recipe he would approve of.  To hear of how he died fills one with sadness that a person decides that dying is the only option they have. A timely reminder to all of us to look for each other as family, friends and humans. Not to take it for granted that everyone is fine just because it appears so. Let’s strive to show  empathy, kindness and a willingness to reach out to everyone we meet in life. Antony Bourdain was an amazing man; an inspiration to many, especially in the foodie world. What I loved most about him was the enthusiastic way he embraced new places, new friends and new foods and brought them into the privacy of our living and family rooms. He was full of life and adventure and made simple food seem exotic and exciting. Always a kind word and appreciation for people he met on his travels. I loved watching his show and gathered many snippets from him. Although he is gone, his legacy lives on. RIP Antony Bourdain.  In silence we remember.

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged!  Seriously!! It’s like I have been waiting for this bolt of lightning to zap me! Well I just got zapped out of my blogger’s block (happy dance)!  Tamarind Soda: Sweet, tangy, tart, fizzy with a heady taste of the tropics. If you’ve never tried it, you should give it a shot!  It’s like exotic nectar that doesn’t taste like anything else you ever had.

Tamarind soda is sold in Jamaican, Asian, ethnic grocery stores. Dubbed as natural soda it kind of lives up to its name! It has the natural tamarind fruit and sugar which is a far cry from all the additives you have in coke and other sodas. It’s only vice is the sugar which isn’t really healthy esp. since tamarind soda can be addictive and makes you crave more.

I have had Tamarind Soda literally 3 times in my life. A few years back, when I was working in DC a colleague of mine would bring bottles to work and we would all drink up.  The second time I drank it was last year when I was enroute to the USA at the Bangalore airport. Remember thinking how refreshing it tasted. Third time was today. A colleague gave me some and I was hooked. Went back for a second glass and then begged to have some for my ride home.  Sipping that drink took me back to my childhood days when we would eat fresh tamarind off the trees. We would scour the tamarind trees and pick up the ripe fruit from the ground, break the shell and eat like sweet candy! No washing or prep required. If it was on the ground it was ripe! Raw, sweet, tangy tamarind was a childhood treat that was free and plenty.

As I was driving home drinking the sweet soda I felt a twinge of guilt at consuming all that sugar.  Never mind that I am a dietitian and a borderline diabetic. But it was so addictive, driving home I was dreaming up a low calorie version that I could drink guilt free.  I got home and pulled out the tamarind. I buy the sweet tamarind to make rasam so I always have a stash. I soaked it in hot water and squeezed all the pulp out like I do for rasam. After it cooled down, I added stevia (the only sweetener I trust) added seltzer and lo and behold I had my own version of tamarind soda. If you’re not crazy about stevia you can add some natural honey, agave nectar or raw sugar to sweeten.  The nice thing about making the tamarind pulp concentrate is that you customize the seltzer to suit your needs. I like weak soda so more seltzer and less concentrate works well for me.  All in all I was quite pleased with my experiment.  Tamarind soda is going to be my new summer drink!!

Nutrition Wise:  Tamarind is said to ease stomach discomfort, aid digestion and has a mild laxative effect.  Ancient Ayurveda uses tamarind as a healing drink for fevers, sore throat, inflammation and sunstroke. It is high in vitamins A C E and K and is loaded with B vitamins which help alleviate stress and keep the nervous system running smooth.  It is very high in iron and promotes healthy blood flow to all the organs.

tamarind soda

Print recipe

Serves	2
Dietary	Diabetic, Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
Meal type	Beverage
Misc	Serve Cold

Ingredients

• 6 Pods tamarind fruit
• 12 Oz seltzer water
• 6 Packs stevia (or 2 tsp stevia)

Note

Swap stevia for sugar or honey if you wish

Directions

	Soak tamarind in hot water and squeeze all the pulp
	Add stevia or sweetener of your choice
	Add seltzer water. Mix well

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