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Journalism of Courage
EVEN as I’m writing this column, I am having my sunbaked mango and eating it too. It’s sweet and the chewy strips of sunbaked mango charge me not only with energy but also potassium and nutrition. Next, it’s going to be sunbaked chikoo and then a pear before I move on to that vitamin power-packed humble Indian gooseberry, amla. Preservative free and easy-to-carry munchies are just what the gourmet ordered. And there is plenty to choose from.
Forget that old garbage about if it’s healthy it must be tasting yucky. Trash it. Here’s some food for thought and for the mind and taste-buds. And (how could I forget?) for the earth too! It’s organic and it’s the product of passion and care. Kavita Mukhi, a nutritionist by profession has devoted thirteen years to nurturing and developing these products. Last September she was backed in her efforts by Hari Chellaram and Tulsi, the London and Hong Kong-based business-couple, passionate about health. They bring not just their financial muscle but also inputs from abroad and together with Kavita Mukhi’s dedicated connectedness to the farmers and the earth are all set to offer us healthier options.
The petite Kavita points out that chemicals and fertilisers in our foods not only ruin our health, lower the nutritive value of the food, and also destroy the soil. Hari Chellaram is delighted by the sheer variety, goodness and traditional value of these foods. Is it any wonder that their company is called Conscious Food?
The good news is that there is a magnificent range of these hygienically packed products to choose from and is available across the country.
Moreover, the well-written label on each product, inform and educate too. Here are a few of my personal favourites which I’ll like to categorise in my own way as munchies. If you’re a compulsive snacker, then you’ll love this chewy, chatpatta and nutrition packed range of sundried amla, chikoo, pear, and mango. There is a grape digestive and ginger/peppermint drops too.
The sweet ones: that dark, dense natural jaggery is to die for. It’s helping wean me off my chocoholic ways and a sip of that hard honey and you’ll never be the same again! Sip on that green tea, remember to stir in the golden sugar.
Spices and pulses: Conscious Food stocks a range of spices and pulses. Their atta (bajra, brown rice, jawar) are worth trying. But it’s the brown unpolished rice that I am really hooked on to. It’s naturally grown, has its nutrients intact, is a complex carbohydrate and gives balanced energy. Sprouted ragi and wheat dalia, muesli and baked snacks and more. You got to find out for yourself.
