Head chef at Moti Mohal, Anirudh Arora, gave us a tour of his kitchen, before we got stuck into the cooking bit. Paturee, that is; pan fried crab cakes with tiger prawns wrapped in a banana leaf, was on the menu and while Anirudh did most of the cooking, he asked for our expertise (!) occasionally. My services were never asked for, but I was happy to keep my oversized paper hat in place and snap photos.

Anirudh showing us the kitchen.

Fresh ingredients for the Paturee.

The crab and prawn paste wrapped in banana leaves.

After we’d finished our session, we moved to the bar for a cocktail making masterclass with Simon La’Moon. Here, the bartender clearly saw my talents in the field and asked me to tear some basil leaves for the very tasty Gin Shikanjvi. The drink was incredibly refreshing with strong hints of cumin and black pepper, that complemented the fresh basil and mint. The non-alcholic milk drink Thandaii was delicious too and had a slight festive touch, with cardamom being the prominent flavour. One could easily throw in some alcohol in this one too…

Simon is mixing it up.

The Gin Shikanjvi, inspired by the Grand Trunk Road.

The non-alcoholic Thandaii.

After sipping Simon’s cocktails, we sat down, ready to enjoy a true Indian feast. I don’t think anyone knew what Moti Mahal had in store for us, and I probably wasn’t the only one to wish for jeans with an elasticated waistband by the end of the night.

This little wonder was the first to reach our palates. The Bhalla Papadi Chaat – crisp friend pastry and chick peas drizzled with creamy yoghurt, tamarind and mint chutney, was one of my favourite dishes. The crunchiness of the pastry, teamed up with the smooth yoghurt and sweet sauce made a lovely sensation.

The Paturee we helped making. This was quite spicy with chilli powder and chilli flakes adding oomph to the tiger prawn and crab cakes. The western touch to this dish was grated potatoes, which we were told made the cakes less dry.

I got over-excited when the Tandoor grilled guinea fowl marinated in royal cumin, fresh garlic and smoked red chillies appeared. So excited that I forgot to take a photo. But I can assure that the guinea fowl was tender, flavoursome and spicy, yet not too hot for my sensitive Scandinavian tastebuds.

The photo above shows lotus stem tossed with peanuts and coriander (in Punjabi style), and this was the true winner in my humble opinion. The crunchiness of the fried stems together with the nutty flavour of the peanuts made it impossible to resist. I had way too many servings…

Which is why I might’ve had less of this Suvey Aur Palak Ka Gosht – stewed lamb with spinach and dill. The perfectly cooked melt-in-your-mouth-lamb, was very nice, but it didn’t rock my world as much as the lotus stems. A very creamy Dal Makhani (black lentils slow-cooked overnight on charcoal) was however to my great surprise, excellent. Normally, I would overlook the simple Dal, but this was extremely satisfying.

The last dish was Methu Murgh Biriyani – chicken tossed with fragrant basmati rice, fenugreek leaves, ginger and homemade garam masala. I’m not much of a rice fan, which is why I rarely order Biriyani. But with a big dollop of creamy raita (cucumber and yoghurt) this was very nice indeed. Feeling like I was about to burst, but never one to say no to dessert, I waited anxiously for the last thing on the menu.

Luckily, it was a fruity selection of mini kulfis. A frozen milk-based dessert, these were just about what I could handle. I grabbed a blackberry stick and enjoyed the creamy texture, but couldn’t actually discern much blackberry flavour. Next time I would probably go for the pistachio.

I literally rolled home after a very delicious meal. If the Indian Cookbook offers only a fraction of these delicious recipe, I say it’s a good investment. And it saves you from bad curries too.

Moti Mahal holds regular Indian cookery masterclasses as well as cocktail classes. Book well in advance as these sell out quickly. For more Indian cookery classes check out Ooh.com. Ren of Ren’s Kitchen offers a half-day vegetarian cookery class, Swinton Park holds a Friday evening Curry Club and Absolute Indian run a Divine Dinner Party class.

Tell us what you’ve got planned!

Rock school

School rocks when it’s a rock school! If you’ve got a budding guitarist, bass  or keyboard player, drummer or singer, Rock School gives them the chance to play in a band with youngsters their own age, with a recording and live performance at the end of the week.

Rock School has world class and famous musicians helping the bands get to the highest standard possible, whilst having a great time. Held in a top recording studio with four sound proofed rooms, Rock School lets your little rockers loose on top of the range equipment.

Children are far more hardy than us wimpy grown-ups and quite rightly they think surfing in October is fun.

Let them get wet, get tired and have fun at these surfing lessons at the O’Neill Academy at beautiful Watergate Bay.

There’s a great cafe for grown-ups to clutch coffees in, or book in for lunch at Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen and eat well while you watch your little ones surf.

Feed the birds

If you want something closer to home, how about cooking for birds ready for winter? Our friend Deb at Carrots and Kids blog has come up with this tasty toast treat for birds and it’ll only cost a few pence.

On your bikes

How about time out for all the family on the Taff Trail in the Brecon Beacons? This great bike route is traffic free and you’ll be met with the bikes and equipment - including baby seats, trailers and a range of trailer-bikes or kids bikes.

Spotting wildlife and enjoying lovely views, you’ll ride along the towpath of the Brecon and Monmouth canal, cycle through pretty villages and forests, and along an old tramway. At £75 for a family of four, we think this is really good value.

Walk on the wild side

The Ramblers website has lots of walks suitable for children. Anyone planning walks over half term? Tell us where you like to walk and how you make it fun for the kids. We’d love to share these ideas here on Ooh.com!

A crafty way to spend half term

Our friends at The Makery are experts when it comes to showing kids a good time. We particularly like their fabric jewellery workshop and sock pets class.

Classes range from £5 to £12 and we know that once you’ve heard how good a time your kids have had at The Makery, you’ll want to book one of their fantastic sewing classes for grown-ups.

Spoon people

Here’s another great idea, this one from Amy who writes a blog about cooking, kids and life in general. Spoon people. All you need is a wooden spoon, some stickers and with s0me crafty little fingers you’ve got an hour or more of creativity!

Here are some very fine spoon people.

What have you got planned for half term? Share your ideas here on Ooh.com!

The site gives off a food festival or farmer’s market vibe, complete with extremely tempting photos of specialty foods. There are delicious brownies, tasty tapenades, organic chutneys and specialty oils to end up in your shopping cart – it could get pretty pricey if you’re hungry!

On each product page you can read the producers’ personal stories of how and why they started, what it is that makes their foods so unique and special and discover their favourite recipes. Holly Caulfield from Chocoholly seems like a cool chick, as does The Coffee Fairy.

As the site is still very new we’re waiting to see even more products on there. The drink section is particularly strong, whereas the bakery treats could boast more. However, as more and more artisan producers discover the site, we bet it will be quite hard to make a decision among all this deliciousness.

Cold smoking courses

Firefighter Turan has been a passionate food smoker for many years (yes really, a food smoking firefighter – who better?!). He’s now turned his passion into a part-time job and runs 1 day cold smoking courses.

Wild food walks               

One of our favourites: wild food walks in Cornwall. Explore the rugged habitats of West Cornwall, looking for wild herbs, vegetables, fruits, nuts, fungi, flowers and seaweeds with expert forager Caroline.

Cake decoration

Learning to ice and decorate a cake: one of those things I’ve been meaning to learn for ages, and a fun skill that saves you from having to buy awful supermarket birthday and celebration cakes. I’m signing up for this cake decorating class for beginners…

Indian cookery class

Chef Renuka Patel teaches groups of no more than 3 people to cook Indian dishes such as lamb kebabs, sag aloo and chappatis. A place on this half day class might make a good birthday present for a husband/boyfriend/partner who’s a bit too quick to reach for the Indian takeaway leaflet?

Fungi foray

One of the most popular courses on Ooh, these 4 hour fungi forays will give you practical experience identifying different species of fungi, especially the common edible and poisonous ones.

Wine tasting

This introductory wine tasting workshop crams the A to Z of wine into one informative, fun day.

Butchery and carving

Sharpen your knife ready for this butchery and carving skills day that will focus on game - just in time for Autumn.

For lots of other food and drink courses and classes, start your search here.

Like a big metal Kinder surprise, the trailer is filled with wine from Kiwi vintners Cloudy Bay, cheffery by (Michelin-star awarded chef) Tom Aikens and music from an old school jazz trio. For £8.50, picnicers have the chance to try one of the five tasting dishes specially created by Tom for this event, paired with a glass of wine from Cloudy Bay. Seems like a fairly good exchange.

So head over to Parsons Green, turn off your phone, bring along your picnic rug, best friend, dog and the papers and enjoy a spot of  Dorset crab with chilli and ginger or maybe the paprika squid with lime and a glass wine.

(image courtesy of The London Foodie – who was among the expert food bloggers asked to decide the final five dishes for the menu )

Spend the rest of the day cloud gazing and enjoying the Jazz, or wander over to the award winning White Horse pub, to sample one of their 135 different types of beer from around the world. They have a license for the green as well,  so take your beer back to the picnic rug for some more cloud gazing.

The Cloudy Bay Shack will be located on Parson’s Green on Saturday, July 24^th and Sunday, July 25th, open from 11am to 8pm. If you miss it you can always head to Tom’s Kitchen in Chelsea, any other day in August where you can sample the same summer tasting dishes.

Fancy learning the tricks of the trade, check out Ooh.com for a brilliant selection of foodie events and classes near you.

Sunday pie making club, Muswell Hill London

(First Sunday of each month)

Held in an real old school bakery in North London, these relaxed classes will give you the confidence to whip up a Sunday pie any day of the week.

Wild Food Walk, Cornwall

(See listing for dates in July and August)

Guided food foraging and cooking along the rugged backdrop of West Cornwall.

Curry in a Hurry cooking classes, Edgware, London, HA8 9LU

( See listing for dates in August)

Spend a day with Ren in her own kitchen, learning how to replicate your favourite Indian dishes.

Mastering meat in Cumbria, Near Kendal, Cumbria

(contact seller for dates )

Learn the tricks of the trade in this hands-on course with a master Butcher Andrew Sharp (he also runs a London meat course).

Make bread by hand, Cycle Cafe, Greystock, Lake District

(Contact seller for dates)

Arrive on your bike, kick off with fresh coffee and home made biscuits, before learning everything you knead to know about bread baking.

Looking for some more ideas? You could try Cupcake baking classes in London, visit the Al Fresco food festival or Chefs Table at Swinton Park in Yorkshire. Take a wine tasting course or why not book a lesson in baking and taking afternoon tea in an 1860’s Victorian House.

We have hundreds and hundreds of food and drink related things to do throughout the summer months. See ooh.com for full listings and keep an eye on the blog for inspiration.

Sundays are for Lovers is the latest coffee table number from independent art and design collective and book publishers Lines and Shapes (also check out their: 3191: Evenings and 3191: a year of mornings)

It’s a beautiful collection of photographs, stories, recipes and ideas from artists, photographers and writers on how they spend their ever so sacred day of rest.  Inside you’ll find something to tempt everyone – lot of laziness, breakfasting, slouchy clothes and neighbourhood loafing going on – as well as accounts of the more rewardable DIY and art projects.

And then, almost as if these things were meant to be, we find this new listing appears on the site for a Sunday pie making club in an old school bakery on Muswell hill in London. The only pie making class in London and recommended personally by the editor of Delia Smith online, these classes should be worth checking out one fine Sunday.

An activity that surely combines all the best things you could do with your Sunday…it’s creative, sociable, relaxing and involving comfort food. If only you could do it in your pyjamas the world would be a better place…. in fact if you ask nicely you probably could.

For more inspirational and imaginative things to do on a Sunday, all over the world, check out the 1000’s of things to do on Ooh.com

Noodle Chef, Thailand: A strainer full of noodles, fresh off an open fire, commands the total concentration of a cook in Bangkok’s Chinatown. Photograph by Dean McCartney, source National Geographic

Chef Elisavet, whose Greek cookery courses are featured in Red Magazine’s June issue, is launching the not-to-be-missed Greekfoodlovers’ Supper Club on June 5th in Shoreditch.  It will be a great opportunity to taste delicious Greek food and meet other foodies that love Hellenic cooking too.

The menu, which includes dolma, tzatziki, moussaka, meatballs and Greek salad, as well as a selection of Greek desserts is seriously mouthwatering – so no need to visit The Real Greek, you’ve got the real deal right here!

The beauty of a supper club is that you don’t have to do any tedious household chores, and you can bring your own drinks. Quite a nifty concept, and the price isn’t bad either. For £35 you’ll get a 3-course home-cooked meal and service charge is included. Deal of the day if you ask us!

Make sure you book  now before places go – and we predict they will in a jiffy! Click here for more information and to reserve your spot.