Cucumber-Mint Lassi

Summer, Wonderful Summer is wonderful only if Mr. Sun reduces some of his harmful heat rays. Called home yesterday to wish them New Year,Amma was complaining about the scorching heat  in Chennai. Advised them to be careful before venturing out. so, here are some tips, to keep urself a bit cool this summer.

Protect the skin

Sunscreen is essential in the summertime. Buy a good sunscreen that is SPF 15 or higher and put it on your children 30 minutes before they go outside. Reapply sunscreen every two hours and again after your children are in the water and towel dry.A higher SPF number on sunscreen does not mean a longer period of time you’re protected in the sun. The American Cancer Society recommends the Australians’ rule of “Slip, Slop, Slap” – slip on a shirt, slop on some sunscreen and slap on a hat – as the best way to protect your skin from the sun’s damaging rays.

Watch for heat exhaustion
Although children appear to be less affected by weather extremes, they are in fact more susceptible to heat exhaustion or heat stress than adults

Stay hydrated
It is recommended the children and adults alike should drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water per day. Don’t wait until your child is thirsty to give him water. Dehydration can be happening without notice

The Committee on Sports Medicine and Fitness of the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that:
•Children need time to become acclimated to a warmer climate by gradually increasing their expose and exercise in the environment.
•Children should drink water and be well hydrated before starting physical activity.
•Children should drink water or sports drinks periodically during physical activity and play, even if they don’t feel thirsty – 5 ounces every 20 minutes for a child weighting 40 pounds; 9 ounces every 20 minutes for an adolescent weighting 132 pounds.
•Clothing should be light-colored, lightweight and limited to one layer of absorbent fabric to allow the skin to sweat. If clothing becomes wet, it should be changed for dry clothing

Here's Another Chilling Recipe for the Scorching Summer.

Ingredients
One small Cucumber
A Tightfist of Fresh Mint Leaves, washed
2 tbsp Low-fat Yoghurt
1/2cup Buttermilk
Salt to taste.

Method
Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend smooth. You will definitely feel the chillness when you gulp it down, it jus cools your whole system. Give it a try!!!.

Sending this to Thanda Mela by Srivalli.

Fruits Crumble

I really miss the life in the UK especially my dear friends and the fascinating village. It just simply unforgettable. I remember my first time having an apple crumble in my friend's cottage few years back, that's remarkable one! Dining in a cottage with a hot crumble during the cold weather, such a typical English lifestyle. I fall in love with crumble from that day onwards. It was my first time had a hot dessert go with vanilla ice cream, custard or yogurt. I've not been making it after I moved into Singapore. It's just happened that my crumble's mood came back again last weekend although we're having such a hot and humid weather here but I can't wait to make it for our dinner dessert. This crumble recipe I had with me for many years is the best one for me especially the crumble toppings. Crumbly yet buttery rich flavor that goes so well with the bit of sourly fruits. Further more, the scoop of ice cream that slowly melting on the hot crumble that make me feel like sitting in a the English cottage again....

Preheat the oven to 200C. For the filling, you could use apple, pear, plum, figs, etc with some berries like blueberries, blackberries or raspberries. This time, I use plum and pear. Peel, quarter and core the pear and plum into large chunks. Place in a shallow ovenproof dish. I used a small one for serving two person. Adding one orange zest and juice to the fruits. Mix together with hands. Toss over the blackberries, and scatter over some sugar (I didn't add any sugar on it as I feel the fruits is sweet enough for me). For the crumble topping, place 30g ground almond, 70g flour, 45g polenta, 70g cold butter and 55g raw sugar in a food processor and pulse briefly several times, just to mix. The mixture should look like coarse breadcrumbs. Tip out into a bowl and add a splash of water. Use a spoon to mix briefly, it should be quite clumpy. Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the fruits. Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. If you have leftover crumble, store in the freezer or fridge and use it later for your crumble muffins, that's what I like to do. Turn down the heat to 180C and cook for another 10 - 15 minutes until the top is nicely browned and bubbling. If you like the fruits to stay crunchy, adjust the baking time. Otherwise bake longer to have a soft texture of fruits. Serve while it's still hot. The crumble served with my homemade raspberries ripple ice cream. You could serve with custard or yogurt. Enjoy!

Weatherization Assistance Program from the U.S. Department of Energy

It seems like everything costs more these days -- and like we’re all trying to stay afloat with less. For those who qualify, the Department of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) provides a long-term solution to the rising cost of household utilities.

Since the Weather Assistance Program’s inception in 1976, more than 6 million low income families have benefitted from home improvements that not only help make their energy costs more manageable, but also reduce national energy dependency, improve the environment, and encourage economic growth in poor communities.

The Weatherization Assistance Program works with various service providers to install energy-efficient upgrades for qualifying homeowners at no cost. While these are not extravagant improvements—the average spending limit is $6,500 per household—they are effective and generally pay for themselves in just a few years. The Department of Energy monitors the energy savings and compares them to program costs to ensure that spending and value are proportionate.

Weatherization has an impact greater than just helping low-income families save money. The same initiatives that have been part of the Weatherization Assistance Program for decades have helped spawn an entire industry sector dedicated to green construction measures. Energy-efficient construction employs thousands and many of the improvements that have become standard practice in the industry were first developed as part of the Weatherization Assistance Program. In fact, the weatherization program continues to lead testing and advancements in home energy efficiency, making these upgrades more readily available to us all.

The Department of Energy distributes federal dollars to individual states to fund Weatherization Assistance Program initiatives, but each state is charged with setting rules and guidelines for eligibility. States also select Weatherization Assistance Program service providers and review performance for quality. There are more than 900 state and non-profit agencies that make up the nation’s weatherization network.

Many of us have heard of home weatherization—which involves inexpensive improvements like replacing weather stripping around windows and doors—but the services and upgrades offered through the Weatherization Assistance Program are a bit different. The program’s focus is on low-cost solutions to high energy bills. This involves things like heating and cooling systems, electrical systems, and appliances. The Weatherization Assistance Program looks at the whole residence and tries to identify the most cost-effective ways to improve energy efficiency.

Because many of the homes and multi-family dwellings the Weatherization Assistance Program serves are also aging and in need of repair, the weatherization program is concerned with the overall safety of each project. Every major energy system is thoroughly checked for safety before and after installation.

The Weatherization Assistance Program takes a comprehensive approach to green and energy-efficient renovations and upgrades. Each property is subjected to a sophisticated and individualized analysis that takes all aspects of the building’s structure into account. The goal is to maximize energy efficiency while controlling costs and making a difference in the high cost of utilities for struggling families. This approach has also helped drive the scientific advances in energy-efficient and eco-friendly initiatives that have become a hallmark of the Weatherization Assistance Program and have spread to other sectors of the home construction industry.

• Learn More About the Weatherization Assistance Program

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