Indian saffron and pistachio ice cream (Kulfi)

1. Soak the saffron in 1 tablespoon of lukewarm milk for 10 minutes. Finely chop the pistachios and almonds, setting a spoonful aside for garnish.

2. Bring the milk to the boil in a wide, heavy-based pan, then cook over medium heat, stirring often and scraping the skin from the sides back in, for about 30-35 minutes until reduced by half.

3. Stir in the sweetened condensed milk, the saffron milk and the cardamom and cook for another 5 minutes.

4. Take off the heat, stir in the chopped nuts and let it cool completely.

5. Pour into kulfi moulds, small glasses or ice lolly moulds, cover (or cover with foil and insert a wooden stick) and freeze for at least 6-8 hours, preferably overnight.

6. Before serving, dip the moulds into warm water for a few seconds, turn out the kulfi, sprinkle with the reserved pistachios and serve at once.

Tip: Kulfi is not a churned ice cream: it is a dense, firm, slow-melting milk dessert with a slightly caramel flavour, sold on Indian streets in clay cups ("matka"). The patient reduction of the milk gives it its creaminess, so no ice cream maker is needed, and since there's no egg, it won't turn icy.