MY INDIAN KITCHEN

ASHIA ISMAIL-SINGER, POTTON & BURTON, H/B, $49.99

It was news to me that Gujerati cooking has subtle Persian influences – rosewater, saffron, pomegranates and cardamom – the contribution of Persian settlers into the Gujerat in the eighth century. Aisha Ismailsinger deftly weaves these into her simple recipes along with strands of her upbringing in a Gujerati family in Malawi, east Africa, and the UK before ending up in New Zealand. Some of the dishes are Indian favourites that you’ll love to have a good recipe for – butter chicken, fish and coconut curry, mung dhal with roti. But Aisha is also happy to play around and ‘bring a hint of the East to a nutritious everyday meal.’ So we get the humble sausage roll come over all exotic with a chilli and coriander paste and a tangy tamarind chutney, and eggs wrapped up in spicy meatballs Scotch-egg style. Treats to finish include a pavlova gently scented with rosewater and cardamom (thank you Persians!), mango and saffron kulfi (ice cream) or a rather surprising beetroot halva. Lush, extravagant photos complete the feast. TW