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Diwali, widely known as the celebration of illumination, symbolizes the victory of positivity over negativity. This is the most extensively celebrated celebration across India and resembles the atmosphere of the Western Christmas season. Diwali is characterized by pyrotechnic displays, brilliant shades, continuous festivities and countertops straining under the substantial bulk of culinary delights and sweets. No Diwali is whole without packages of confections and preserved fruits passed around friends and family. Across the United Kingdom, we keep those traditions alive, putting on festive attire, going to places of worship, sharing tales from Indian lore to the children and, crucially, gathering with friends from every background and religion. Personally, Diwali is about togetherness and offering dishes that seems extraordinary, but doesn’t keep you in the cooking area for extended periods. The pudding made from bread is my interpretation of the decadent shahi tukda, while the ladoos are perfect to gift or to enjoy with a cup of chai after the meal.

Effortless Ladoos (Featured at the Top)

Ladoos are one of the most recognizable Indian desserts, comparable to gulab jamuns and jalebis. Imagine a traditional Indian halwai’s shop filled with confectioneries of all forms, tint and measurement, all professionally prepared and liberally topped with traditional butter. Ladoos often take a prominent position, making them a popular choice of present for festive events or for giving to gods and goddesses at temples. This particular recipe is one of the most straightforward, needing only a few components, and can be made in no time.

Prep a brief 10 minutes
Cook 50 minutes plus chilling
Makes approximately 15-20

4 ounces of clarified butter
250g gram flour
a quarter teaspoon of cardamom powder
a pinch of saffron (as an option)
50g mixed almonds and pistachios, toasted and roughly chopped
180-200g granulated sugar, as per liking

Heat the ghee in a Teflon-coated pan on a medium heat. Reduce the temperature, mix in the chickpea flour and cook, stirring constantly to combine it with the heated clarified butter and to ensure it doesn’t stick or scorch. Keep cooking and stirring for half an hour to 35 minutes. Initially, the mix will resemble damp sand, but as you keep cooking and blending, it will turn to a peanut butter consistency and smell wonderfully nutty. Avoid hurrying the process, or neglect the mixture, because it can burn very easily, and the gradual roasting is vital for the characteristic, nutty flavour of the ladoos.

Remove the pan from the stove, stir in the cardamom and saffron, if using, then leave to cool until moderately warm on contact.

Incorporate the nuts and sugar to the cooled ladoo mixture, stir completely, then break off small pieces and roll between your palms into 15-20 spherical shapes of 4cm. Place these on a dish spaced slightly apart and let them cool to ambient temperature.

These are ready to be enjoyed the ladoos immediately, or place them in a tight-lid jar and store in a cool place for about seven days.

Indian Bread Pudding

This takes inspiration from Hyderabad’s shahi tukda, a dish that’s typically made by frying bread in ghee, then drenching it in a heavy, luxurious rabdi, which is made by boiling full-fat milk for hours until it reduces to a fraction of its original volume. The recipe here is a more nutritious, simpler and faster option that demands minimal supervision and lets the oven do all the heavy lifting.

Prep a quick 10 minutes
Cook 1 hour or more
Serves 4-6

A dozen slices day-old white bread, edges trimmed
100g ghee, or liquid butter
4 cups of full-fat milk
One 397-gram can thickened milk
5 ounces of sugar, or according to taste
a small pinch of saffron, steeped in 30ml of milk
¼ tsp ground cardamom, or the insides of 2 pods, powdered
a quarter teaspoon of nutmeg powder (optional)
1.5 ounces of almonds, broken into pieces
40 grams of raisins

Cut the bread into triangles, apply almost all except a teaspoon of the ghee on both faces of every slice, then place the triangles as they sit in a buttered, about 8x12 inches, rectangular baking dish.

Within a sizable container, mix the milk, sweetened milk and sugar until the sugar dissolves, then mix in the saffron and its soaking milk, the cardamom along with nutmeg, if included. Pour the milk mixture consistently across the bread in the container, so each piece is saturated, then allow to soak for 10-15 minutes. Set the oven temperature to 200 Celsius (180 fan)/390 Fahrenheit/gas 6.

Heat the pudding for 30-35 minutes, until the top is golden brown and a skewer placed in the middle emerges clean.

In the meantime, heat the leftover ghee in a small pan on a medium heat, then cook the almonds until lightly browned. Extinguish the flame, incorporate the raisins and let them simmer in the remaining warmth, blending steadily, for a minute. Dust the almond and raisin blend over the dessert and serve warm or chilled, just as it is or accompanied by vanilla ice-cream.