Nonta Lassie (salty yogurt drink) recipe—from BITING THROUGH THE SKIN

Last week we did a sweet cool yogurt drink, this week we'll do salty. Try this Nonta Lassie recipe from Biting through the Skin: An Indian Kitchen in America's Heartland, by Nina Mukerjee Furstenau.

Nonta Lassie (salty yogurt drink)

Makes 1 drink

1 cup plain yogurt
1 cup water with ice
salt to taste
fresh cilantro sprig (optional)

Blend the ingredients in an electric blender and serve. Garnish with a sprig of fresh cilantro if desired.

GRASSES IN YOUR POCKET--tips for identifying the grasses of the Midwest

Green Needlegrass
Nassella viridula

Native. May-Jul. Rare. Dry prairies, grasslands, open woods, sandy soils. 35-120 cm, 1-4 ft high. Spikelets plumper than in Hesperostipa, base blunt, awns 19-32 mm long.

IA, (IL), MN, (WI)




Indiangrass
Sorghastrum nutans

Native. Late Jul-Oct. Common. Dry to moist prairies. 50-240 cm. 1.5-8 ft high. Flowering heads rusty red-brown; spikelets hairy, bases rounded; awns 10-22 mm long.

IA, IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI

From the Bur Oak Guide Grasses in Your Pocket, by Anna B. Gardner, Michael Hurst, Deborah Lewis, and Lynn G. Clark

Mishti Lassie (sweet yogurt drink) recipe—from BITING THROUGH THE SKIN

Need something to cool down this summer? Try this Mishti Lassie recipe from Biting through the Skin: An Indian Kitchen in America's Heartland, by Nina Mukerjee Furstenau.

Mishti Lassie (sweet yogurt drink)

Makes 1-2 drinks

1 ripe mango or banana or papaya, peeled and pureed
2 teaspoons honey or sugar (to taste)
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads, steeped in 2 teaspoons hot water (optional)
1 cup water with ice
2 tablespoons lemon juice (to taste)
1 cup plain yogurt

Blend all of the above ingredients in an electric blender, crushing the ice. Lovely served chilled. Optional garnishes for each glass: 1/4 teaspoon crushed pistachio nuts or a sprig of fresh mint.

GRASSES IN YOUR POCKET--tips for identifying the grasses around you

Having trouble identifying grasses in and around Iowa? The Bur Oak Guide Grasses in Your Pocket, by Anna B. Gardner, Michael Hurst, Deborah Lewis and Lynn G. Clark, will help you do just that.

 Beadgrass, thin paspalum
Paspalum setaceum
Native. Jul-Sep. Infrequent to more frequent south. Sand prairies. 25-110 cm, 1-4 ft high. Spikelets all on one side of branches, round in outline, one side flat, one side convex.

IA, IL, IN (MI), (MN), OH, WI

Eastern gamagrass

Tripsacum dactyloides

Native. Jun-Oct. Rare. Wetter areas, limestone outcrops. 100-200 cm, 3-7 ft high. Rhizomes short, knotty; basal part of flowering head branches beadlike.

IA, IL, (IN), (MI), (OH)