Lakhamari

Step 1: Mix 7 oz fine rice flour, 7 oz plain flour and 1 pinch salt in a bowl, add 2 ⅞ oz ghee, melted and rub it in with your fingertips until the mixture looks like damp sand.

Step 2: Add ¾ cup water gradually and knead for 5 minutes to a firm, smooth dough that does not crack when pressed. Cover and rest for 20 minutes.

Step 3: Divide into 12 balls. Roll each into thin ropes about 5 mm thick and lay them over and across each other in a criss-cross lattice about 15 cm wide, pressing the joins and sealing with a coil of rope round the edge.

Step 4: Heat 4 ¼ cups vegetable oil, for deep frying in a wide pan over a low-medium heat to 300°F; a scrap of dough should rise slowly with small bubbles.

Step 5: Fry one or two at a time for 8–10 minutes, turning once, until pale gold, firm and crunchy all the way through. Drain upright on a rack.

Step 6: For the glaze, boil 10 ½ oz white sugar and ½ cup water in a wide pan over a medium heat for 8–10 minutes until it reaches the thread stage (a drop pulled between finger and thumb forms a thread).

Step 7: Dip each lakhamari in the syrup or brush it generously over both sides, then set on a rack; the syrup will dry to a white crust within 30 minutes as it cools.

Step 8: Store in an airtight tin for up to 3 weeks and break into pieces to serve with tea.