Miss Dahl’s Voluptuous Delights

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a cup of basmati rice

2 cardamom pods, lightly crushed

1 stick of cinnamon

Honey or maple syrup, to taste

crème fraîche (optional)

For the compote

2 pears

60ml/

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of a cup of apple juice

1 teaspoon of cinnamon extract

There is a theme to my cooking that tends towards baby food. This is a perfect example.

In a heavy-bottomed pan, bring the milk and rice to the boil. Add the cardamom pods and cinnamon stick. Take the heat down to its lowest flame, or use a heat diffuser, cover the rice, and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While this is cooking, peel and core the pears and chop into slices. Bring the apple juice to the boil; add the pears and cinnamon extract. Cook until the pears are tender, 5 minutes or so, adding more juice if needed. Remove from the heat and transfer to a blender, or purée them with a hand-held blender.

Fluff the rice and put into a bowl. Pour the compote on top with a drizzle of honey or maple syrup and, if it’s a particularly grim morning, stick in a spoonful of crème fraîche.

Omelette with caramelized red onion and Red Leicester (#ulink_ae40f5be-4deb-5045-bc20-0b612fcea26a)

SERVES 1

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a small red onion

Olive oil

2 eggs

Salt and pepper

50g/2oz of Red Leicester cheese (any good, sharp, hard cheddar like Monterey Jack will do as an alternative)

I cry like a baby when I chop onions. A few years ago I found a brilliant device from Williams Sonoma online which does all the work for you. You simply peel the onion, put it in the top of the contraption, pop the lid on and turn the handle. Voilà, diced onions without tears.

Roughly chop the onion. On a low flame, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a non-stick frying pan. I use a small fat pan as I like my omelettes tidy and plump. Gently fry the onion, letting the edges brown but making sure the middle stays softly purple. This should take about 5 minutes. When it looks to your liking, take it out and reserve on the side. Remove any crispy bits from the pan.

Beat the eggs and season. On a low heat again, heat a scant bit of olive oil in your frying pan and add the eggs. Let them settle for 30 seconds. Either grate or break the cheese up into rough chunks and put it in the setting omelette. As it melts, pour in your onions and gently fold the omelette in half with a spatula. Depending on how done you like your omelette to be, you can then fry the other side. I like mine very slightly oozing.

Delicious with a dollop of mustard! (And if you are my pernickety brother, Ned, without the onions!)

Tawny granola (#ulink_70de7071-3766-5d16-84ab-22cec3617c50)

SERVES 4-6

Oil for greasing

200g/2 cups of rolled oats

70g/

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a cup of pumpkin seeds

50g/

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a cup of flaked almonds

50g/

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a cup of desiccated coconut

2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

160g/

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a cup of agave syrup or honey

2 tablespoons of apple juice

1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon of ground allspice

1 pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

100g/