This Holi, Drink Vegan Thandai

The festival of Holi signifies joy, love, happiness and friendship. Share the sentiment of the holiday by showing love and respect for animals too: pledge to drink vegan thandai.

To meet the demand for milk and other dairy products, cows and buffaloes are raised on factory farms and spend most of their days confined to tiny stalls. Many farmers inject these animals with the illegal drug oxytocin, believing that the drug will cause the animals to produce unnaturally large quantities of milk. Animals injected with oxytocin often suffer from severe stomach cramps that are similar to labour pains. So that humans can consume cow's milk, calves are often torn away from their mothers or simply abandoned or sold for slaughter.

Also, cow's milk is for cows, not humans. It does a body good to avoid milk and other dairy products. Dairy consumption contributes to the onset of diabetes, obesity and respiratory problems. Soya milk is not only the smart choice but also the kind choice, and it is just one alternative to animal milk. You can also enjoy coconut, rice and almond milks on cereal, in coffee, tea and shakes and in sweets – such as thandai!

Vegan Thandai

1/2 Tbsp aniseed

1 Tbsp almonds

1 Tbsp dried watermelon seeds

1/2 Tbsp poppy seeds

1/4 cup fresh rose petals

2 cups water

1 litre soya milk

3/4 cup sugar

10-12 peppercorns

1/2 tsp cardamom powder

2-3 strands saffron

• Soak the aniseed, almonds, watermelon seeds, poppy seeds and rose petals in 1 cup of water for around 4hrs.
• Boil the soya milk and let cool.
• Grind the soaked ingredients to make a smooth paste. Mix in 1 cup of water.
• Pour through a muslin strainer into a large pitcher. Add the sugar, peppercorns, cardamom and saffron and mix well.
• Pour in the soya milk and chill for 1 hour.

Make 3 servings