Dry fruits in halwa, kheer and phirni

Sooji halwa

For four. Heat three to four tablespoons of ghee in a heavy pan. Fry a handful of cashews and almonds until golden, add a spoon of raisins, and lift them all out. In the same ghee, roast half a cup of sooji (semolina) over low heat, stirring, until it smells toasty and turns light gold. Meanwhile, warm one and a half cups of water or milk with a third to half a cup of sugar. Pour it slowly into the sooji, standing back as it splutters, and stir until it thickens and leaves the sides of the pan. Add a pinch of cardamom powder, the saffron milk and most of the fried dry fruits. Serve warm, with the rest on top.

Rice kheer

For four to six. Wash a quarter cup of short-grain rice and soak it for half an hour. Bring a litre of full-cream milk to the boil in a heavy pan, add the drained rice and simmer on low heat, stirring often so it does not catch, until the rice is soft and the milk has thickened. This takes the better part of an hour. Stir in sugar to taste, a pinch of cardamom, the soaked saffron, chopped almonds and walnuts and a spoon of raisins, and simmer for a few minutes more. Serve warm or chilled.

Phirni

Phirni is kheer's smoother cousin, made with ground rice and set in small bowls. For four, soak three tablespoons of rice for an hour, drain it and grind it to a coarse paste with a little water. Bring half a litre of milk to a simmer, whisk in the rice paste and keep stirring over low heat so no lumps form. In ten to fifteen minutes it thickens to a soft custard. Add sugar to taste, the soaked saffron and a pinch of cardamom, then pour it into small bowls, scatter slivered almonds on top and chill until set.

Dry fruits at breakfast

The same jars do just as well in the morning:

• Chopped walnuts and a few raisins over porridge or dalia.
• Soaked almonds with a cup of tea or kahwa.
• Sliced almonds and walnut halves on yoghurt with a little honey.
• Cashews and raisins fried in ghee and stirred into poha or upma.
• Warm milk with a few threads of saffron and slivered almonds.

Almonds, walnuts, cashews and raisins are all in Harud Harvest, and saffron is in Harud Spices.