4 healthy Indian breakfast recipes that will get you through the week

It's no joke that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. It really does set the tone for the rest of your day, and a healthy, nourishing preparation in the morning can do wonders for your energy levels and attentiveness. Lucky for us, most Indian kitchens are intrinsically healthy. From having so many superfood spices to your disposal to gluten-free grains and seeds, there's a lot you can work with. Below, we get Harshvardhan Saraf and Subah Jain from the Vedary in Mumbai, to share four easy breakfast recipes (bonus, they're in tune with their satvic food philosophy) you can wake up to everyday. 

Khajur and banana “milk”shake

Ingredients

• 1⁄2 cups coconut milk

• 3 bananas

• 6 dates (seedless)

• 4 ice cubes

• 1⁄2 tsp cinnamon powder

Method

Place coconut milk, bananas, dates, ice and cinnamon into a blender and blend until smooth. Serve immediately.

Palak chila

Ingredients

• 1 cup green split moong dal, soaked for a few hours

• 1 tsp rock salt

• 1 small green chilli, chopped

• 2 cups spinach purée

For the filling

• 4 carrots, thickly grated

• 4 tomatoes, chopped finely

• 1⁄2 cup grated coconut

• 1⁄2 cup coriander, chopped

• 1 tsp rock salt

• Green chutney to serve

Method

1. 1

   Combine the soaked moong dal, salt and chilli in a blender and blend until smooth. Transfer the mixture to a bowl. Add the spinach purée to the mixture and stir well.

2. 2

   Heat an iron pan or tava, sprinkle a little water on it and wipe it off gently using a muslin cloth. Pour a ladle full of the batter on it and spread it in a circular motion to make a thin circle. Cook on a medium flame till it turns brownish-green in colour.

3. 3

   To prepare the filling, simply combine the carrots, tomatoes, coconut, coriander, microgreens and salt. Spread the mix inside the chila, fold in half, and serve immediately with green chutney.

Millet upma

Ingredients

• 1 cup millet (barnyard, proso or foxtail)

• 3 cups water

• 1 cup green beans, finely chopped

• 1 cup carrot, finely chopped

• 1 cup peas

• 1⁄4 cup coriander, finely chopped

For tempering

• 2 tsp black mustard seeds

• 1 tsp cumin seeds

• 2 tsp fresh ginger, grated

• 2 tbsp peanuts, chopped

• 15-20 curry leaves

• 2 small green chillies, finely chopped

• 1⁄2 tsp asafoetida powder

• 2 tbsp lemon juice

• 2 1⁄2 tsp rock salt

• 1⁄2 tbsp peanuts, crushed

• Coconut chutney to serve

Method

1. 1

   Dry roast the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, green chillies, ginger and peanuts in a pot for about five-eight minutes.

2. 2

   Then add curry leaves and roast for another minute.

3. 3

   Add beans, carrots and peas to the pot and sauté with roasted spices for about two minutes.

4. 4

   Add two cups of water to the pot and cover the lid to let the vegetables cook.

5. 5

   After 15 minutes, add the soaked millets and asafoetida with one cup of water to the vegetables and stir. Cover the lid and let the millets cook with vegetables for the flavours to come together. Add more water if needed. Let it cook till there’s no more water left in the pot and the millets are cooked with vegetables.

6. 6

   Switch off the stove and add lemon, salt and coriander and stir well. Cover the lid for another two minutes to let all the flavours come together.

7. 7

   Garnish with roasted peanuts and coriander, and serve with coconut chutney.

Bottle gourd and spinach juice

Ingredients

• 2 cups cucumber, chopped

• 1 cup bottle gourd, chopped

• 1 cup spinach, roughly chopped and tightly packed

• 1⁄4 cup mint leaves

• 2 cups apple, chopped

• Juice of 1 lemon

Method

1. 1

   Simply juice all the ingredients together

2. 2

   Add the lemon juice from the top and serve.

3. 3

   Tip: When juicing leafy greens like spinach and mint, alternate them with watery ingredients such as cucumber and apples. This helps your juicer to keep things moving.

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