Thursday, March 24, 2011

Bitter Gourd and Apple Juice

Before we left for Melbourne our bitter gourd was starting to produce many female flowers. For UV protection we recycled papers to wrap those small babies. Too much expose to strong UV rays is not healthy. We teach our children to wear hat, protective clothes and put on sunscreen lotion whenever they go outside, so bitter gourd babies need protection as well. Bitter gourd plants have grown more than 3 metre tall, I can't reached the one at the top.

The paper wrap also shelter other beneficial predators in the garden.

Because they are so many other visitors admiring bitter gourd flowers. It help balance the eco-system in our garden.

The weather is mild now and bitter gourd really love it with so many lush growth and produce. We don't have to wrap the fruit at the moment as it has been a wet week. Don't want the fruit to catch cold wearing wet cloth.

Thanks to Cik Manggis (Madam mangosteen) author of jom masak, jom makan makan..for bitter gourd and apple juice recipe. I discovered that you can make a healthy juice from bitter gourd.
Ingredient: 1 apple, 1 bitter gourd , half a lemon, 3 glass of water and ice cubes (optional sugar or honey if you are not counting calories).

Washed and slice the apple and peria and put into the mixer with 3 glass of water.

Squeeze lemon, stir and add ice cube.
After all the process, add some ice cubes and ready to drink. Rayyan and Ilhan had the honour to taste this juice first while my cousin and I supervised them. Since children at their age don't lie, look at Ilhan expression closely.

Bravo! Ilhan finished a glass of bitter gourd and apple juice.
Instead of half a lemon, I used more than one lemon and add some sugar since I like sourish taste more.
What do you think?
A very healthy juice in the morning.

20 comments:

One said...

You are a fantastic Mom. You grow your own veggie and fruits and turn them into delicious food and drinks. Rayyan is really fortunate and it is good to see him enjoying the effort you took.

cikmanggis said...

hehe nampak muka ilhan tu:)good boy.

takaeko said...

The bitter gourd you mentioned is "GOYA (ゴーヤ)"?
I love goyas or bitter gourd which I make a point of enjoying goya's dish when I trip to Okinawa!
The juice of bitter gourd I tasted in Okinawa was literally very bitter but your juice is so sweet that your kid can enjoy it!

meemsnyc said...

Bitter gourd! I grew up eating that, and I never liked it. But dad always insisted! That little guy seems to like it, he's adorable! I'll have to try this recipe, maybe I'll like it as a drink. I like how you wrapped up the gourds. Nice idea.

Mark Willis said...

I have never tried Bitter Gourd, but the name makes it sound rather unattractive! I would say the look on your son's face is "suspicious". What did he say about the drink? Would he prefer orange juice?

Autumn Belle said...

Today you have many creative ideas that I can use. I like the recycle containers and also the juice. It must be good, because even Illhan likes it. You are a supermom! But, how do you find time to study?

p3chandan said...

Not bitter at all? But bitter is good...I think for awet muda my late mom used to say. Must try this drink.Your bitter gourd with that colourful bags on the plants looked so cute and very innovative.

i amsterdam said...

Ilhan seems to enjoy it !! It must be bitter right?? I love "peria katak" though... sedap buat ulam dan goreng :D

rainfield61 said...

A step a day and I shall have a fruitful garden like yours.

Stephanie said...

My favourite juice! But I prefer without any sugar :-D But for kids, perhaps they like it with sugar.

Malay-Kadazan girl said...

Kwee Peng~ You are a wonderful mom too with all your lovely fruits compact with vitamins for the kids.

CikManggis~ Terima kasih sebab berkongsi petua dengan kami ni.

Takaeko~ Yes it is Goya. Okinawa goya is slightly smaller and wrinkle which is much more bitter compare with the one I am currently growing now.

Meemsnyc~ I have just started to like goya 5 years ago. So I am a newbie fan of bitter gourd.

Mark~He saw me making the juice and thought I was making him apple and lemon juice. I am not sure whether he realised that I add bitter gourd in it as well or not. But boy did he surprised me, he finished off the juice without any fuss. We were really wide-eyed and trying very hard to maintain a poker face in front of him.

Autumn Belle~ I am on study leave at the moment. The family caught some virus this week.

p3chandan~Pahit sikitlah tapi kami terkejut tengok Ilhan minum sampai habis. Kami yang adult ni pun susah nak kasi habiskan. Tapi awet muda punya pasal sanggup je.

i amsterdam~I also like peria katak more. Must look for some seeds to plant for next spring.

Rainfield61~Your garden must have many small creatures visiting.

Stephanie~have you tried before with honey? wonder how it taste with honey.

Tatyana@MySecretGarden said...

I wish I could taste that juice! I love fruit and berry juices.

Chloe m said...

That juice sounds and looks delicious!
I would drink that for breakfast anyday!

miruku said...

Bitter gourd juice! Sounds bitter hehe. FYI i've just harvested my evening sun sunflower seeds, although they are not mature enough but my daughter can't wait to taste them. The skin is still a little moist and brown-yellowish. We still have some leftover and thinking to give them away. But i'm not sure can the seeds flower? What is your advise?

kitchen flavours said...

Your bitter gourd plant is fantastic! So many peria! Bitter gourd is my son's favourite too, I have never tried them juiced before, should give this a try. Ilhan is very brave and clever boy, I have known adults to turn away when served with bitter gourd! Thanks to a caring and wonderful mummy, your kids are enjoying the best food possible!

Malay-Kadazan girl said...

Tatyana, Rosey~ I can make one for you;-).

Milka~If you are unsure if the seeds can germinate or not. Try sow some seeds and see whether they will sprout or not.

Joyce~We were lucky this year with peria harvest. The one I planted in containers have given us many produce but on the ground not a single harvest yet.

Stephanie said...

Nope I have not tried it with honey. But I love honey. Like it in milk with cereal... delicious!!

Rosie Gan said...

I see that your garden is giving you a bountiful harvest that you truly deserve. The bitter gourd plant is fabulous, and the fruit even more so.
Rosie

littlekarstar said...

Is the juice bitter like the cooked melon? The plant is actually quite beautiful. I love how you care for it!

Malay-Kadazan girl said...

Stephanie~ I have to check whether I have some honey in the pantry. No apple at the moment either...hehehe..

Rosie~Lucky this year with bitter gourd. But not for long now that we have to wave bye bye to them as it will be too cold for them to grow soon.

Mrs Bok~You can play around with the juice taste with lemon, sugar and honey to make it taste less bitter.