Garden cress seeds (or Aliv seeds or Halim seeds as known in various parts of India )are tiny nutty nutrient powerhouse. Famous all around the world for its medicinal properties, from being known as habbat al hamra in Arabic, to its base in Ayurveda to Chinese medicine and more. This fast‐growing plant reaches a height of 15–25 cm and is cultivated in various regions, including India, Asia, Europe, most African countries, and the United States, primarily as a salad plant. The garden cress features sessile leaves, small white flowers, and obovate or broad pods, all of which are edible. These super seeds are versatile. We consume it in form of laddoos, sprinkle roasted seeds on salads, soak it and add it to smoothies, chew it when having cough or cold etc. We use it throughout the year in one form or the other, almost daily. It is related to the family of watercress, mustard and is known for its peppery, tangy flavour and aroma. They are rich in iron, folate, Vitamin C, A, E, fibre and protein. Some health benefits of Garden cress seeds are as follows:
1.Chewing the seeds, serve as a good expectorant and relieves cough, sore throat and symptoms of asthma. 2. Helps in improving haemoglobin levels in the long run and treats anemia.
3. It is a potent laxative that helps in relieving the symptoms of constipation and indigestion.
4. Garden Cress seeds are abundant in essential fats linolenic acids and arachidonic fatty acids and this combination of good fats functions as an excellent memory booster.
5. It is super rich in protein and other essential minerals such as iron and magnesium that prevent hair loss, you can either eat it or apply paste on the hair, for naturally shiny hair.
6. Breast-feeding mothers are encouraged to include food containing garden cress seeds to enhance milk production.
7. It also helps to reduce the breakdown of starch into glucose which in turn leads to low blood glucose levels.
8. It satiates sudden hunger pangs and prevents overeating and hence can play a pivotal role in one's weight loss regimen.
9. It also portrays the presence of anti-microbial properties, which are extremely effective in preventing infections like fever, common cold, sure throat, and other respiratory anomalies, thus enhancing immunity.
10. It is believed that the ingestion of garden cress seeds may assist in regulating menstrual cycles.
Let’s incorporate this in our diet through this easy laddoo recipe.
Ingredients
- Aliv seeds- 1/2 cup
- Water - 1/2 cup
- Dry coconut- 1 and 1/2 cup
- Jaggery- 1 cup
- Mixed nuts chopped- 1/4 cup
- Ginger powder- 2-3 tsp
- Nutmeg powder- 1/2 tsp
- Black pepper powder- 1/2 tsp
- Ghee- 3-4 tsp
Directions
- 1Dry roast the Aliv seeds in a pan till it starts to crackle. Take off heat and allow to cool.
- 2Add 1/2 cup water to these roasted seeds and allow to soak for about 10 mins. They will turn out to be sticky like chia seeds.
- 3To this Aliv seed mixture add 1 and 1/2 cup of dry grated coconut and 1 cup chopped jaggery or jaggery powder.
- 4Take another pan, add 2 tsp of ghee and roast the chopped mixed nuts( I used almonds, cashew and pine nuts) for about a minute.
- 5Add 2 tsp of ghee again and toss the Aliv-coconut-jaggery mixture to the roasted nuts and mix well on low heat.
- 6The jaggery will melt and make it look watery. Continue stirring till the mixture turns a little dry. (About 10-15mins)Remove from heat.
- 7Once the mixture has cooled down, add 2-3 tsp of ginger powder, 1/2 a tsp of black pepper powder and 1/2 tsp of nutmeg powder and mix well.
- 8Make laddoos and store in a cool dry place. Stays good for about a week. Enjoy.
- 9Have a laddo a day and keep the infections at bay!
