These ongoing nine days, people prefer Navratri special vegetarian dishes that are also healthy for them. Let’s try some of these dishes and see how to make these at home.

The nine days of Navratri are well spent with multiple colours, festivities and diverse celebrations. People from different regions of our country worship various avatars of Devi Durga. And, as it has been evident for a long time, no auspicious occasion in India can be spent neglecting the gastronomy scene. These days are well-known among the Delhiites as ‘veggie days’. Well, while the old-traditional dishes are hailed till date, there a few new additions which make the vegetarian options for these nine auspicious days a lot more zealous. After a day of fasting, an oily and spicy dish may tickle your taste buds; but it is definitely going to do more harm than good to your health. Thus, eminent chefs have come up and shared some healthy and scrumptious dishes to truly celebrate the win over evil (we guess these days).

Herbalicious Sabudana Khichdi
Ingredients
Overnight soaked sabudana    200gms
Fresh grated coconut    50gm
Herbs:curry leaves, basil, coriander     10gms each
Chopped ginger    1/2 tbsp
Green chillies    2 pieces
Roasted ground nuts    10-12 pieces
Tossed in vrat oil    2 tbsp
Rock salt    as per taste
Garnished with- pomegranate
and coriander    20gms each
Served with spicy green chutney

Method
Take vrat oil in a pan, add chopped ginger and green chillies then add fresh crushed herbs like curry leaves , basil leaves and coriander. After 30 secs, add overnight soaked sabudana , seasonings like oregano, vrat special rock salt and chilli flakes and toss them properly till sabudana turns golden brown, add crushed ground nuts and mix well.
Garnish with Pomegranate, mild flavoured grated coconut and fresh coriander leaves and serve it with Spicy Green Chutney and vrat
special roasted peanuts.

SHINGHADA SHEERA
Ingredients
Waterchesnut          200gms
flour
Ghee    20gms
Sugar                       100gms
Cardamom powder     3gms

GARNISH
Almond flakes    5gms
Pistachio flakes    5gms

Method
Heat the ghee in a pan, add the Waterchesnut flour and cook on a slow flame for 4 minutes or till it turns light brown in colour, while stirring continuously.
Add 2 cups of warm water, mix well and cook on a slow flame for another 4 minutes or till all the water has been absorbed, while stirring continuouly.
Add the sugar mix well and cook on a slow flame for 4 more minutes, while stirring continuously.
Switch off the flame, add the cardamom powder and mix well.
Serve the garnished with almonds and pistachios.

Mixed berry and banana smoothie
Ingredients
Frozen mixed berries    1 cup
Frozen ripe banana    1 piece
Low-fat yogurt        1/2 cup
Fresh orange juice    1/4 cup

Method
Combine all ingredients together in a blender and puree until smooth
Garnish with fruit slices on
the top of the smoothie.