Delicious UK – (10)October 2019

NilouferMavalvalacookingcareerhasbeeninspiredbyhermum’sculinaryskill,

her dad’s enthusiasm – and the encouragement of generations of food-savvy aunts

FOOD PHOTOGRAPH:

CLARE

WINFIELD.

FOOD

STYLING:

SOPHIE

AUSTEN-SMITH.

STYLING:

LUIS PERAL

“Families who eat together

stay together”

TASTES LIKE HOME

Fathersanddaughters

sharea bondmadeinheaven.

Mydadinspiredmeinmany

ways,andI thankhimeach

dayformypassionforwork

andlife.Hisjoiedevivrewas

hardtobeat.Heencouraged

metotryanythingonce,and

nevertomissoutonanopportunityinlife.

Dadrelishedmymother’sculinaryskills,and

ourlargediningtableinKarachi,whereI grewup,

wasalwaysladenwithgoodfood,accompanied by

friendsandfamilytoshareitallwith.

LikemanyParsifamilies,we’vebeenblessed

withthe‘cookinggene’.MyauntVillie,now88,

hasbeenmyguruofencouragementeversince

mydadpassedaway 28 yearsago sadlyrather

young.Shestillteachesandbakes,whichiswhat

keepsheryoung.I nowliveinCanadabutwechat

everyday,shareourideas,andoftenshe’lltell

meanoldfamilyrecipe;shekeepsitallinher

memoryanddoesn’tbelieveinwritingitdown.

AuntVilliehandedthiscoconutcake,which

washerownauntJaijee’screation,down

tome.It’smyfirmbeliefthatfamilies who

eattogetherstaytogether.

• Find more of Niloufer’s recipes at nilouferskitchen.com

YOU’LLALSONEED...

• 900gloaftin(23cmx 13cmx 6cm),
  greasedandlined with non-stick
  baking paper

1 Heattheovento180°C/160°Cfan/

gas4.Ina bowl,mixtheflour,baking

powderandsemolina,thensetaside.

2 Putthesugarandcoconutwaterin

a smallpansetovera mediumheat

andheatuntildissolvedandthickened

• 8-10minutes.Removefromthe
  heat,addtheshreddedcoconut,
  groundalmonds,cardamom,a pinch
  ofsalt,therosewater,vanillaextract,
  limezestandjuice,thenstirto
  combineandleavetocool(seetips).
  3 Withanelectricmixer,whiskthe
  eggsandbutterina mixingbowlfor
  5 minutes.It’lllooklikeit’scurdled
  butpersevereandit’llcometogether.
  Graduallyaddthecooledcoconut
  mixtureuntilcombined.Don’tbe
  alarmed– it’squitea runnymixture.
  Foldintheflourmixtureusinga large
  metalspoonuntiljustcombined– don’t
  overworkthebatteratthisstage.
  4 Pourthebatterintotheprepared
  loaftinandbakefor45-50minutes
  untila skewerpushedintothecentre
  comesoutclean.Putinitstinon
  a wireracktocoolcompletely.
  5 If icingthecake,sifttheicingsugar
  intoa bowlandwhiskina littlelemon/
  limejuicetomakea thickicing.Spoon
  overthecooledcake,thensprinkle
  withrosepetalsandzesttoserve.
  PERSERVING403kcals,19.3gfat(10.5g
  saturated),6.8gprotein,49.2gcarbs
  (31.4gsugars),0.6gsalt,2.4gfibre
  Formorewaystousecoconut
  water, see Loose Ends


• 180gplainflour


• 2 tspbakingpowder


• 50gsemolina


• 300gcastersugar


• 120mlcoconutwater


• 100gfreshshreddedcoconut (or
  usefrozen,seetips)


• 60ggroundalmonds


• Seedsfrom 10 cardamompods
  groundina grinder/pestle & mortar


• 2 tbsprosewater


• 1 tspvanillaextract


• Finelygratedzestandjuice1 lime


• 3 mediumfree-rangeeggs


• 125gbutter,softened, plus extra
  to grease

TODECORATE(OPTIONAL)

• 300gicingsugar


• Gratedzestandjuice1 lemon or lime


• 1 tbsp dried rose petals

AuntJaijee’scoconutcake

(Jaijimasinukopranukeke)

SERVES10.HANDS-ONTIME 30 MIN,

OVEN TIME 45-50 MIN

MAKE

AHEAD

Wraptheun-icedcakeincling

filmandfoil,thenkeepinthe

freezerforuptoa month.

NILOUFER’S

TIPS

Buyfreshshreddedcoconut

fromAsianfoodstores,or

usefrozendicedcoconut

(availablefromlargersupermarkets).

Defrostovernightinthefridge,then

whizzina blenderorfood processor

untilfinelychopped.

If youhavetime,leavethebatterfor

2 hoursattheendofstep2 toallow

thecoconuttoabsorbtheflavours.

Leavethespongeun-icedif you

don’t like very sweet cakes.

Fromleft:Niloufer,

her motherShireen,

daughter

Shamineh

andaunt

Villie

76 deliciousmagazine.co.uk