Kedgeree a la Diana Rigg's mother

I still have fond memories of this comforting dish. It was a practical store-cupboard standby for my mother, Beryl, when she was stationed in Jodhpur with my father in the 1930s and 1940s.

300g basmati rice, cooked and well-drained
2 tins of sardines in olive oil
2 hard-boiled eggs
Handful of sultanas
About a tablespoonful of flaked almonds
Large onion, sliced

Mash the sardines and the oil from the tin in an oven-proof serving dish.

Add the basmati rice, which has been cooked and well drained. Mix together with the sultanas. Fry the onion gently in a frying pan over a low to medium heat until it is sweet and brown, and spread it on top of the rice; then grill the almonds until they are golden brown (remember to watch these, as they tend to burn the minute you look away).

Then scatter the toasted almonds on top, together with the chopped hard-boiled egg. Cover the oven-proof dish with tin foil and place in the oven at 180C/gas mark 4 for about 20 minutes.

Serve with a fresh green salad and a generous spoonful of Sharwood's hot Bengal chutney.

'Fantastic recipes from my Favourite Friends', by Poppy Fraser, is published by Foxcote Books (www.foxcotebooks.com), priced £12.99