I never thought I'd be whipping up cheese of an afternoon, but what else to do with a glut of milk nearing its sell-by date? I felt a motherly pride when I peeled away the cheesecloth to reveal this tidy round. Isn't the imprint of muslin on the surface quite lovely?

I squashed the cheese under a heavy pot for an hour to remove further traces of moisture, then cubed and fried it before dusting the paneer with garam masala and paprika. My seasonal stroke of genius was adding wild garlic to the spinach when making the palak paneer. Manjula's tutorial is perfect for novice cheesemakers.