Velvety, bitter chocolate cream cheese sits on top of a crisp base of almonds and ground ginger biscuits. Top with nuggets of crunchy almond and fennel seed-studded praline and drizzle with luxurious homemade caramel sauce. 

Have we died and gone to cheesecake heaven? Maybe.

The fact of the matter is, once you’ve tasted chocolate and fennel seeds together, you’ll never look back.

My love affair with the delicious duo all started as a curious fourteen year old when my family were dreaming up desserts to take to our temple for Diwali. My mum made chocolate cupcakes topped with chocolate and fennel ganache and that was all it took; I’d found my first love.

Ever since that sweet little Diwali, I’ve been stuck in a little bubble experimenting with chocolate and fennel desserts. This is my most delicious creation so far. Are you ready?

My original baked cheesecake recipe is adapted from Kurma Dasa’s Great Vegetarian Dishes. This book helped inspire my love for cooking and I doubt my passion would have grown the way it did without it. In this version I’ve strayed significantly from the recipe in the book, but the basis remains the same.

If you’re throwing a dinner party, celebrating a special occasion or just feeling a little bit indulgent, this cheesecake is the perfect way to show off. With its balance of truffle-like, aromatic and sweet flavours and smooth and crunchy textures, one slice just isn’t enough.

Spoil yourself.

Eggless Dark Chocolate Truffle and Fennel Seed Cheesecake with Almond Fennel Seed Pralines and Caramel Sauce
(Serves 12)

Ingredients

For the almond biscuit base:

300g ginger biscuits, ground finely
125g melted butter
100g ground almonds

For the dark chocolate truffle and fennel seed filling:

1kg cream cheese
510ml double cream
375g sugar
135g cocoa powder
85ml lemon juice
1 tbsp cornflour
2 tsp ground fennel seeds

For the almond fennel seed praline:

260g sugar
60ml water
80g skinless almonds, roughly chopped
1 tsp whole fennel seeds

For the caramel sauce:

350g sugar
100ml water
240ml cream, warmed
40g salted butter

Method

1. For the almond biscuit base: combine the biscuits, almonds and melted butter. Press firmly into the bottom of a greased 12-inch springform tin. Dust the sides with ground almonds if you have any left over. Refrigerate whilst you get on with the filling.

2. For the dark chocolate truffle and fennel seed filling: in a large bowl, beat together all of the ingredients until it has thickened. Do not overmix.

3. Pour the mix on top of the chilled biscuit base and smooth the top with a wet spoon.

4. Place the cheesecake in a preheated oven at 160 degrees Celsius for 1 ¼ hours or until firm and golden. If you find that the top of the cheesecake is going too brown, cover with foil and continue to bake.

5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Refrigerate for 8-10 hours.

6. For the almond fennel seed praline: combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil and cook until copper coloured. Add the almonds and fennel seeds stir through. Quickly pour onto a greased baking sheet on top of a baking tray. Spread out and allow to harden at room temperature. Once completely cooled, break up into small pieces using a toffee hammer, pestle or rolling pin.

7. For the caramel sauce: heat together the sugar and water in a large. Bring to the boil and cook until copper coloured. Turn the heat off. Quickly and carefully pour in the hot cream, whisking all the time. This will bubble and spit (which is why a large pan is necessary) so be very careful. Whisk in the butter. For an extra glossy sauce, finish with a few whizzes from a hand-held blender. Pour into a sterilised jar or cream pourer.

8. Make some holes in the cooled cheesecake with a bamboo skewer and pour 6 tablespoons of caramel sauce on top. Leave to soak in for 30 minutes. Scatter over the crushed pralines. Cut and serve drizzled with caramel sauce.

Love cheesecake? Check out these other delicious versions:

Eggless Saffron & Lemon Srikhand Cheesecake
Eggless Blueberry and White Chocolate Baked Cheesecake
Eggless Cardamom and Chocolate Cheesecake

It’s the simple pleasures in life I’ve always appreciated the most; chapattis with mango pickle, paratha dipped in raita and from time to time, maybe peanut butter and banana sandwiches (let’s keep that one between us).

From sitting on a Mombasa beach nibbling on maize, smothered with lemon and red chilli powder, to scoffing cassava fries doused in citrus hot sauce in university halls, these flavours are an integral part of my food memories.

I think it reason this combination works so well is because the chilli heat is mellowed out with the sharp acidity of fragrant lemon. Indeed, it’s not only Indian and East African dishes which take full advantage of this mouth-watering duo – just think about your favourite Mexican salsas and Thai salads made with the native lime.

I never remove seeds or membrane from fresh chillies – I don’t see the point. However, if you prefer to remove them for a mild flavour then remember to adjust your use of lemon accordingly. A general rule of thumb is that the hotter the chilli, the more the lemon will be able to stand up to it. If your chillies are milder, add less lemon to ensure its flavour doesn’t become overpowering. If, by chance it does, a pinch of sugar should help.

For a speedy side or snack, this sautéed cauliflower tossed with fresh green chillies, mustard seeds, turmeric and lemon juice is the perfect dish. Serve it alone, in a lunchtime wrap with falafel and yogurt, or as part of a larger meal with your favourite curries and Indian breads.

Tip: in most dishes, a pinch of sugar and salt balance the chilli and lemon combination perfectly.

Chilli and Lemon Cauliflower
(Serves 2-4)

Ingredients

500g cauliflower, broken into bite-sized florets and boiled until al dente
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp asafoetida
½ tsp turmeric
3 green chillies, sliced finely (or to taste)
Juice of ½ lemon
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp salt or to taste

Method

1. Heat the oil in a non-stick pan and add the mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds have popped, add the asafoetida, turmeric, chillies, sugar and salt.

2. Quickly add in the parboiled cauliflower and sauté on a high heat for 4-5 minutes or until tender. Keep them moving to avoid the spices from burning.

3. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and garnish with chopped coriander.

I stuffed myself with Palak Paneer last night. I feel terrible about it and actually had a bit of trouble sleeping. I think it’s time to give that beautiful cheese a break (at least for a little while, anyway).

On The Rebound

What’s a girl to do when she’s decided to cut the one true love out of her life?

Then it dawned on me; I’m going to replace paneer with something similar, something I won’t feel as guilty about. Hi tofu, remember me? We used to have a healthy relationship before I lost all my inhibitions to full-fat Indian cottage cheese.

Simple Infusions

If you ever asked me what my favourite spice was, I think I’d probably cry. There are so many to choose from and limitless possibilities in terms of creating breathtaking new flavours.

Cardamom is one of those spices that’s never really at the forefront of a curry. Well let me tell you something, it really should be given the chance. A combination of both green and black cardamoms impart musky flavours that are so characteristic of the spice, to a simple curry. They are the shining stars of this dish.

Somewhat unconventionally, I adopted the western method of infusing single cream with the spices to get out of them, the most subtle flavours possible. I then strained the lightly crushed spices out of the cream with a tea strainer, leaving behind a perfectly smooth cardamom-scented cream to add to my luxurious tomato sauce.

Balance

Everyone knows tofu can’t be classed as real food unless it’s drowned in something mouth-wateringly flavourful (sorry, it’s true). In this curry, intense black cardamoms impart a smoky base flavour to hold up the fragrant menthol notes of the more liberally used green cardamoms. Equilibrium. Is. Everything.

I thought about adding vegetables to this but why ruin a perfectly balanced dish with something that would only be there for the sake of it. Forget it; all this mild, creamy, tangy tofu curry needs is the crunch of finely sliced, sweet spring onions to bring it to life.

You won’t even miss the paneer.

Cardamom Tofu Curry

(Serves 4)

Ingredients

600g firm tofu, pressed to remove water and deep fried until golden
2 tbsp sunflower oil
1 small onion, chopped very finely
1 clove garlic, minced
2 green chillies, chopped finely
1-inch piece ginger, minced
4 tbsp concentrated tomato paste
250ml water
1 tsp garam masala
2 tsp salt
1 ½ tsp sugar
2 spring onions, trimmed and sliced finely at an angle
4 tbsp chopped fresh coriander

For the cream infusion:

300ml single cream
9 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed
2 black cardamom pods, lightly crushed
1 dried red Kashmiri chilli, lightly crushed

Method

1. For the cream infusion, pour the single cream into a small saucepan and add the lightly crushed green and black cardamom pods and Kashmiri chilli. Gently bring the mixture to the boil and then remove from the heat. Allow to cool completely and then pass through a tea strainer to remove the cardamoms and chilli. Set the infused cream aside.
 

2. Heat the oil in a large non-stick saucepan and add the onions, chilli, garlic and ginger. Sauté until aromatic, about five minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook for a further 4 minutes, stirring all the time. Pour in 250ml hot water, garam masala, salt and sugar and stir through. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook on a medium heat for ten minutes, stirring occasionally.
 

3. Remove the lid from the pan and quickly whisk in the infused cream mixture, ensuring it does not separate. Add the tofu, spring onions and chopped coriander. Stir for a final time and serve hot with pilau rice and naan.

The prospect of an Indian breakfast is sometimes just the kick I need to pull myself from my cosy bed. This usually only ever takes place on weekends or during time-off from the day job, so it’s always a welcome treat.

Along with a spicy breakfast, there’s nothing more satisfying than using up leftovers. This recipe for Dudhi Na Muthyia hits both of those spots. They’re made using grated bottlegourd (doodhi/lauki), cold leftover rice, chickpea flour and a medley of subtle spices. The dumplings are then formed into log-shapes and gently steamed to lock in plenty of flavour and moisture. Once cooled, the cooked muthiya are quickly sautéed with sesame seeds and curry leaves to add that final dimension of flavour and a gorgeously crisp, golden texture.

So many people prefer them straight from the steamer without sautéing them first – perhaps a consequence of impatience more than anything else. I have been known to finish them off before I actually finish off the recipe, not that I should actually be admitting to this.

I add coarse semolina to these steamed dumplings as it gives them a softer texture in the middle and once they’re sautéed, a better crisp on the outside.

Don’t have bottlegourd? Muthiya taste just as good when they’re made with courgettes, cabbage, carrots or even fenugreek. Use your imagination and don’t be afraid to play with your food.

My favourite way of enjoying muthiya is with a steaming cuppa sweet masala chai and absolutely nothing else.

Dudhi Na Muthiya
Serves 4-6

 For the dumplings:

1 bottlegourd, grated (about 400g)
260g chickpea flour
1 ½ tbsp coarse semolina
400g cold cooked rice or khichdi
140g plain flour
4 green chillies, minced (or to taste)
2 ½ tsp salt (or to taste)
1 tsp turmeric
90ml oil, plus more for greasing
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 ½ tsp sugar
Juice of ½ lemon
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda

To temper:

2 tbsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tbsp sesame seeds
6-8 curry leaves
¼ tsp asafoetida
1 tbsp chopped coriander to garnish

Method

1. In a large, deep pan (one that comes with a steaming basket), boil 1-2L water. Grease the basket with 1 tbsp oil and pop it into the pan so it suspends above the water but doesn’t touch it.

2. Take a large mixing bowl and combine all of the ingredients for the dumplings. Do not add water as the bottlegourd will release plenty as you mix. Keep going, gently squeezing the mixture until you get a batter.

3. One by one, roll into seven logs and place them into the steaming basket. You may need to do them in two batches if your steamer is small. Place a lid on and simmer on a medium heat for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer poked into the middle of one comes out clean. Remove the basket from the steamer and allow to cool completely.

4. Remove the logs from the steaming basket and cut each log into 2cm pieces. Set aside.

5. To temper the spices and sauté the muthia: in a large non-stick pan, heat the oil and add the mustard seeds. Wait for them to pop, then add the sesame seeds, curry leaves and asafoetida. Add the dumplings and sauté on a high heat for 5 minutes or so, turning every so often – make sure you don’t break them when turning. When golden, remove from the heat and garnish with chopped coriander. Serve hot. Note: Dudhi Na Muthiya can be kept in the fridge for up to three days, but I doubt these will last that long.

A love of sweets must run in my blood. Back in Kenya my grandfather worked in a sugar cane factory, boiling up vats of syrup bigger than a fully-grown wildebeest. He even knew syrup temperatures without having to use a sugar thermometer. My grandad’s passion for cooking with sugar led him to become one of the best sweet makers and teachers I’ve ever known.

My other grandfather was head chef to one of the most well-known sugar merchants’ in East Africa. He’d rustle up the most spectacularly orange chickpea flour fudge and be ready to teach anyone willing to learn. Being just a tot when he passed away, my mum passed on his wonderful recipes to me.

Indeed, the very nature of both my grandfathers’ livelihoods depended on the sweet stuff, which is why I put my love of sugar down to it pumping through my veins.

What the fudge?

These diamonds of sweet fudge have a delicious, crumbly and chewy texture from the ground cashew nuts. Laced with ground cardamom and vanilla extract, floral undertones are created beneath a creamy layer of white chocolate. As soon as you take a bite, the fudge begins to melt on your tongue and a burst of subtle flavours take over. Bliss.

Elaborate Indian sweets like jalebi (orange spirals soaked in syrup) and mohanthal (chickpea flour fudge) are abundant, but the beauty of burfi (the type of milk fudge we’re making today) is that it’s one of the simplest, yet most wonderful sweets to make at home. You can even do it in the microwave.

The world of Indian sweets is a vast ocean of colours, flavours, textures and smells. The law of making Indian sweets is that it’s not possible to skimp on the sugar, milk and ghee (clarified butter).

From burfi to rasmalai (sweet paneer dumplings in milk), dairy is the second most important component to whipping up a batch of treats. Heavily reliant on ever-revered cows and buffalo for producing milk, Indians love using it for sweets.

I have an ambivalent relationship with Indian fudge. This sweet pushes my ‘crave’ button at the strangest times. When I take a bite, I’m a chubby six-year old, asking my parents if I can be treated to a trip to Leicester at the weekend.

I remember visiting Leicester’s famous mile of pure Indian indulgence at Diwali time. Bright and colourful lights illuminate the route to beautiful sari shops, aroma-filled restaurants and of course, those bustling sweet shops.

Skipping to the Indian sweet shop is still something I love to do. Their vast arrays of treats in every colour and flavour you can imagine stir happiness inside me.

At the shop, the entire process is similar to buying a pick-n-mix; first you select which sweets you’d like (I usually go for the brightest colours), the shop assistant will box them up in a beautiful package, weigh them and then charge accordingly. Pretty diamonds of cashew nut fudge, along with chocolate and coconut varieties will almost always make an appearance in my box of goodies.

Cashew Nut and White Chocolate Burfi

Ingredients:

600g ground cashew nuts, (coarseness depends on your taste)
200ml water
250g sugar
1 tsp coarsely ground cardamom seeds
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp oil
100g white chocolate

Set aside a 12 inch cake tin greased with the 1 tsp of oil

Method:

1. Bring the sugar and water to boil in a large heavy based pan until the sugar syrup thermometer reaches 115°C/soft ball stage.

2. Quickly and carefully add the ground cashew nuts, vanilla extract and cardamom seeds. Mix together until the mixture resembles a non-sticky dough.

3. Place this mixture in the greased pan and smooth the surface as much as you possibly can because you are going to cover with chocolate. I use a hot metal spoon to get a completely flat surface. Cool overnight, but not in the fridge.

4. Melt the chocolate over a bain-marie and cover the set fudge with the melted chocolate. Smooth over and allow to cool at room temperature, until the chocolate sets.

5. Cut the chocolate fudge into diamond shapes or any other shape you may wish to. Decorate as you wish. I used sugar flowers and edible glitter.

I fell in love with paratha at the age of four, when I was the proud owner of various miniature kitchen utensils that looked like they’d been manufactured in toy town. I’d use my hot pink chapatti board and rolling pin to make baby paratha, which my mum would cook and my pa would wolf down with gusto, whilst telling me I was a great chef.

And that was all it took – I had discovered my love of Indian breads. Forget your typical puff of glitter – for this strange little Indian Barbie, childhood was all about that magical cloud of chapatti flour.

Indian breads, without a doubt, are perceived as the fiddliest things to make at home, especially if you’ve never done them before. Aloo Paratha are made by stuffing mashed, spiced potatoes and onions into chapatti dough and rolling so that the dough envelopes the layer of filling inside. Then they’re lightly sizzled in ghee, butter or oil until golden all over. Once cooked, the filling will remain enclosed in the crisp bread until broken open and then the soft, aromatic filling is revealed in all its glory. In my opinion, they’re one of North India’s finest creations.

These spicy potato breads make for a satisfying meal at any time of the day, although they’re more commonly eaten for breakfast. People all over India enjoy their stuffed paratha with a mug of steaming chai, a dollop of plain yogurt and a spicy chutney or curry. In other words, the pairing possibilities are endless.

So next time, before you reach for the dry, unsatisfying, supermarket naans, think about making these super-simple, Punjabi-style paratha. As the famous Gujarati saying goes, ‘Khakhra ni khiskoli sakar no swaad su jaane?’ (‘A squirrel who eats dried chapattis would not know the taste of sugar.’)

The scoop on paratha

Paratha are popular all over the Indian subcontinent; they come in many variations and have lots of different names. Here are a few popular ones:

Plain paratha: Made using chapatti flour, these unstuffed (but not always unflavoured), flaky flatbreads are made by spreading rolled dough with ghee, folding over and rolling again. The process is similar to making homemade puff pastry.

Stuffed paratha: One of the most loved of all, this variety covers all paratha with fillings, including Aloo Paratha. We’ll take a look at some of the most popular flavours later.

Parotta or barotta: The South Indian equivalent and the most fun to eat by far. These are made in a similar fashion to plain paratha but have a multitude of ‘twisted’ layers which can be pulled apart to reveal yet more buttery layers.

Roti canai: A popular Malaysian street food of Indian influence. Unlike the dough of its unleavened Indian cousin, the Malay version is made using eggs and is allowed to proof before being cooked. The result is a light, crispy flatbread with a fluffy middle.

There is a word in Indian cooking that used to send a chill down my spine every time it was uttered – biryani.

I was never suspicious of the biryani because it’s difficult to cook, but because it’s typically served as a main course. As a little girl, rice had always been a side dish for me – something to go with the daal or to soak up a sauce.

It didn’t matter if the rice was bland because there were other dishes on the table to perk it up. But when I discovered the world of biryani, there was a shift in balance – the rice had become the star of the show and everything it was cooked with had to taste good. If it didn’t, the whole dinner went to pot.

But now I’m a fully-fledged member of the biryani lovers club, I’m here to offer a lesson in how easy preparing it can really be, provided you know the basics.

Spice notes

Spice mixtures for biryanis tend to vary depending on the region in which they’re being prepared and the main ingredients going in. Some essentials include but are not limited to: Cinnamon, cloves, cumin, coriander seeds, black and green cardamom, bay leaves, mace and saffron.

Used sparingly, these spices infuse the rice and vegetables with the most wonderful aromas imaginable. Earthy, rich, spicy and perfumed, a true biryani should release all of these notes as soon as the lid has been lifted and the rush of steam escapes from within.

What I love about the finished dish are the flavours and smells of Southern Asia, the Middle East and Northern Africa all coming together in one harmonious orchestra of edible goodness – it’s a tour of the East in a single bite.

The rice should always be basmati – an aromatic long-grain variety used to prepare almost every Indian rice dish. It’s even used in spiced rice puddings, unlike its western counterpart which favours short grain.

At home, cooking biryani has become somewhat of a ritualistic affair reserved only for special occasions and buttering up certain people. Every component needs to be prepared in advance: The vegetables and rice should be semi-cooked, the spicy sauce made and the nuts toasted.

Sound like a chore? Never forget that if you take your time and give your biryani some love, it will love you back tenfold.

Biri-what-ni?

Thousands of years ago, the Mughals introduced the Indian subcontinent to the science of cooking rice and vegetables (or meat) together. A beautiful Iranian dish quickly became something every Indian dadima (grandmother) excelled at, and every dadaji (grandfather) dreamt of being hand fed by his doting wife each evening.

Today, I’m stepping into dadima’s slippers and in true grandma style, passing my recipe on to you.

Now let’s talk about the one of the biryani’s most noteworthy ingredients, saffron.

Saffron school

-Use saffron sparingly. By weight, it’s the most expensive spice in the world and nobody can argue over prices when each crocus contains three single strands of pure saffron, handpicked by ever-patient and light-fingered saffron collectors.

-Beware of copycats. For years, saffron fakes have been abundant and it isn’t easy to tell whether you’ve been conned out of your pounds when they look so convincing.

-Always buy from a reputable spice dealer or stockist.

-To get the most out of your saffron, place it in a bowl and microwave it on high for 10-15 seconds to lightly toast it and dry it out (be VERY careful and keep a watchful eye on it). Gently rub it through your fingers when you add it to your dish and it will release heaps of extra flavour and colour. Magic.

3 tips for the perfect biryani

- Biryanis are traditionally cooked in clay pots – not only are these hard to come by, they’re also high maintenance. Without having to invest in one of these, I find that you can get similar results by cooking your biryani in a Dutch oven.

- Every biryani should be slow-cooked with a lid on. An old school trick to stop any steam escaping is to seal the lid with a ring of wheat flour dough. This type of cooking is known as dum cooking. Dum simply means ‘warm breath’ to connote the steam inside the pot. Once cooked, the dough seal is broken and the beautiful aromas are released – of course, the bread is eaten along with the biryani.

- Many people cook their biryanis on the stove, but I prefer to bake mine for the simple reason that the bottom of the dish tends not to burn as quickly as it would if it was placed on direct heat. If you prefer to use the stove top method, place your pan inside another, slightly larger pan filled halfway up with water (essentially a bain marie) to promote even cooking.

Controversially, I sauté my potatoes, onions and paneer separately, in a combination of ghee (clarified butter) and sunflower oil for added flavour before adding them to the biryani. I hear you heckling me for my flippant use of ghee but when you’re pouring yogurt and double cream into your sauce, you may as well go the whole hog and make an amazing biryani for a special occasion. I’ve never been one to skimp on the good stuff.

Classic Vegetable Biryani
(Serves 6)

Ingredients (all of these are available in supermarkets)

For the sauce:
400g passata
1 tbsp ground coriander seeds
5 green cardamom pods, seeds removed and ground
2 black cardamom pods, ground (optional)
1 tsp ground cumin seeds
1 ½ tbsp sugar
½-1 tsp red chilli powder
Pinch of ground mace (optional)
4 inch stick cinnamon, broken in half
1 bay leaf
3 cloves
1 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp ginger, minced
2 tbsp concentrated tomato puree
1 ¼ tsp salt
100ml double cream
3 tbsp plain yoghurt

For the rest of the biryani:

255g basmati rice
Pinch saffron
1 medium onion, sliced finely
½ aubergine, sliced into half moons
115g baby potatoes, quartered
100g paneer, cubed into 2cm pieces
5 French beans, trimmed and sliced
100g frozen peas
60g cauliflower florets, broken
10 cashews, toasted in a dry pan
2 tbsp flaked almonds, toasted in a dry pan
1 ½ tbsp desiccated coconut, toasted in a dry pan
1 tbsp golden sultanas
1 tbsp dried apricots, chopped into small pieces
2 tsp salt

Ghee and sunflower oil to fry

Method

1. Wash the rice in cold, running water to remove as much starch as possible. Allow to soak in a pan whilst you make the sauce.

2. Whisk together the passata, ground coriander, cardamom, cumin, chilli powder, mace, sugar, and salt. Heat the ghee in a large saucepan and add the cloves, cinnamon, bay leaf tomato puree, ginger and garlic. Sauté for a few moments, and then add the passata mixture. Stir and cover with a lid. Allow to simmer on a very low heat for 40-45 minutes, stirring often.

3. Heat the ghee and sunflower oil to shallow fry the vegetables one by one. Start with the onions, remove from the pan when golden, then in the same oil, shallow fry the aubergines (until 40% cooked), then the potatoes (until 80% cooked), and then paneer until golden all over. Set aside.

4. Boil the rice in plenty of hot water and 2 tsp salt until 60% cooked. Drain and set aside. Note: You could boil the rice in two batches, adding a little bit of food colour to one. This is a little frivolous and totally optional.

5. Place the saffron in a bowl and microwave in 5 second bursts, checking after each one until the saffron becomes lightly toasted and brittle. Add three tablespoons of hot water to the saffron and allow to steep.

6. Combine the dried fruits and nuts. Preheat the oven to 190°C.

7. Remove the sauce from the heat and quickly whisk in the cream and yoghurt. Add in all of the cauliflower, potatoes, peas, French beans and paneer. Mix thoroughly. You’re now ready to layer up your biryani.

8. Rub some ghee into your dish/dishes (I used mini Dutch ovens)

9. Layer in some onions, aubergines, rice, saffron water, fruits and nuts, vegetables in sauce, repeating until all ingredients are used up.

10. Make a dough using 200g flour, 3 tbsp oil and hot water to bind. Roll into a rope and place onto the edge of your dish. Lightly press down the lid. Alternatively, you can place a piece of foil over the rice and cover with a lid.

‘Dum’ cooking

11. Bake the biryani for 30-35 minutes. The aim of the game is for the rice and vegetables finish cooking at the same time.

12. Break the bread seal and remove the lid when you’re ready to serve. For those final touches, garnish with plain yogurt and fresh coriander.

This biryani is best served with cucumber raita and Peshwari Naan.

Cooking biryani is an art which some chefs spend years trying to fine tune. When they get it right, people flock to their restaurants, hotels and homes, travelling from hundreds and thousands of miles away, just to sample a taste. And that’s when you know your biryani is really good.

Do you have a signature biryani recipe? Now I’ve shared mine, I’d love to read your best tips and tricks.

Please potter about the site and check out the new features. If you have any problems, you know where to find me.

Get your taste buds ready, I’m back in business.

How have you been? I’ve missed hearing from you all so much!

Just a speedy note before I round up all of the dishes from our Mughlai season this weekend (for your eating pleasure). This is going to include all of the royal-inspired recipes plus more, so stick around for some really yummy dishes so you can create a banquet fit for kings and queens.

Yesterday, a KO Rasoi recipe for Saffron and Lemon Shrikhand Doughnuts was featured in the Food Network UK Month of Doughnuts calendar in support of National Doughnut Week (7th-14th May). In addition to this, the recipe also went out in their fabulous food newsletter which you can sign up to here: Sign up to the Food Network UK newsletter in order to get my new Food Network UK recipes delivered to your inbox fresh from the kitchen.

I thought I would join in the fun and go dough-nuts too – and so my recipe for Lemon and Saffron Shrikhand Doughnuts was born. Please visit the site to take a peek at how I created this recipe and as always, have a go yourself. They’re super easy eggless doughnuts flavoured with saffron and lemon, rolled in sugar and crushed pistachios (and a little edible glitter if you’re feeling glam, then piped with creamy pistachio and cardamom shrikhand (spiced sweet Indian yogurt).

I’d love you forever if you also took a second to have a look at my new chef page. It contains some extra info about myself, KO Rasoi and my bespoke recipes for Food Network UK (whether or not you’re interested in that kind of thing is another matter entirely!)

Have a ball going dough-nuts too!

Guess who’s back? Over the next four weeks I’ll be running a series called Indian Cooking Step-by-Step in which I’ll be exploring classic recipes from a handful of Indian regions. Join me as I prepare Khaman – a Gujarati favourite in under 50 minutes.

I’m not too proud to admit that I’m a terrible teacher, but when it comes to cooking Indian food, I can’t help but put my two pence in. I become a wannabe Gujarati (hailing from the state of Gujarat in western India) Mary Poppins who’s full of the old-school tips I picked up watching various female family members squabble over how much ginger to put in the daal.

Khaman are fluffy, steamed, savoury cakes made with chickpea flour and a divine topping of tempered mustard seeds, sesame seeds, curry leaves, shredded coconut and coriander.

The tempered topping is the most magical part of the recipe, as hot oil with sizzling spices is (very carefully) splashed with water, and then drizzled over the top of the delicately-spicy savoury cake.

The result is a light hot and sour cake drenched with an aromatic, sweet emulsion and finished with an intense freshness from the colourful garnish. It makes for the perfect starter when served with my Coriander and Lime Chutney.

Ever attended a Gujarati wedding? Every menu almost certainly features Khaman, along with our other characteristic obsessions: Samosas, fluffy rice and buttermilk soup or daal.

Getting up to be served food, guests will moan about stingy portions of Khaman then, during dinner and without asking, the same people will slip several pieces onto your plate whilst you’re not looking because they come to realise their eyes were bigger than their bellies.

Read more about Khaman and get the recipe here.

Missing you all so much. Happy cooking – I’ll be back in a jiffy.

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