In many parts of the world, and in the US particularly, I believe that an Indian summer refers to a rather warm Autumn day. If you have lived through a true Indian summer, you will never describe the days as warm. They are likely to be pretty hot and dry in most parts of India and if you live on the coast, then it would be very hot, humid and sticky. As I’m fond of saying, the only good thing about the Indian summer is the mangoes.
The one other thing about the summer is that you need no excuse to indulge in summer coolers, whether the traditional Indian summertime drinks, ice-creams, milk and fruit shakes, cold coffees, iced tea or more exotic stuff like a frappé
I always thought that a frappé was some sort of a cold coffee until I discovered that it was just a cold blended drink, which could have different ingredients depending on the region where it was made. It turns out that what I call a milkshake (ice-cream et al) also qualifies for a frappé in some parts of the US.
Apparently, frappé means “to chill” in French, and for a drink to qualify as one it must be chilled before it is served or made with cold ingredients. A frappé usually is made with ice cubes or crushed ice and often whipped in a blender of some sort which created a foamy or frothy layer on the top of the drink.
Some kiwis, a small bunch of seedless green grapes, mint in my pots which needed pruning, plenty of ice in the fridge and a real hot and sticky Indian summer definitely called for an ice-cold frappe! And here’s my recipe for it.
This is really more of guide than a recipe for a fruit frappe and you could change quantities, even substitute some ingredients, maybe add or subtract one or two to give you something to suit your tastes if you don’t think you would like this one.
If you cannot find Indian rock salt, use regular salt, or a flavoured salt that would go with your combination of ingredients.
Kiwifruit, Green Grape & Mint Frappé
Ingredients
- 3 kiwifruits medium to large medium , peeled and chopped coarsely peeled, chopped coarsely
- 3/4 cup green grapes sweet and seedless small,
- 1/4 cup mint leaves chopped fresh
- 1 cup ice cubes
- 1/4 cup apple juice
- to taste Sugar , according
- pinches rock salt (not more) A couple of kaala namak/ Indian
- A few sprigs mint fresh for garnishing
Instructions
- Blend or process the kiwifruit, grapes, ice, apple juice, chopped mint, Indian rock salt and sugar until smooth. Pour into tall glasses and serve immediately, garnished with fresh mint.
TAMOJIT GHOSH says
APARNA – LOVELY FRAPPE. ONE COULD TRY TO ADD SOME FLAVOUR TOO …SPICES…