I AM so thrilled. I have just heard the news that my son Piers has graduated from Britain's Nottingham University with an honours degree. I am the proudest mother in the world at this moment and decided it was incumbent on me to let you know. I realised from an early age that my boy would be going places as from babyhood he started showing huge promise for great achievements.

I think that he must have been about two-years-old when I can remember being very impressed for the first time by Piers and this was because of his potty training acumen (he'll love this!).

Our method of teaching him was by rewarding him with a few Smarties if he did the biz in the right place. He cottoned on to this one very quickly.

He also cottoned onto the fact that apple juice was the same colour as what he was meant to be doing in the pot. At one stage I thought that he definitely had some kind of a urinary tract infection as he must have gone about a dozen times in one morning and the large family-size box of Smarties was rapidly depleting.

It was only when he had obviously run out of apple juice and I spied him, out of the corner of my eye, desperately trying to uncork my bottle of Pinot Grigio to dump some of that into the pot that I realised what was going on and the game was up. I thought that this was pretty smart especially as he had got the colour spot on. If he had decided to use grape or orange juice he would definitely have been scooted off to the hospital, as I would have been convinced that his bladder was seriously unwell.

I think that Piers definitely scored ten out of ten for ingeniousness for that early exercise in duping his parents, a skill that he has managed to continue to perfect (with great constancy) ever since.

Piers has also had from a very young age a huge mania to win every single sporting event that he has ever competed in. A great desire to win is a wonderful asset to have as I think that it serves to aid one in many walks of life especially later on.

To strive to succeed is good in my opinion. However in so saying my boy used to take things a little too far.

Sports Day at the age of five or six was a nightmare for Patrick and me. We just dreaded every day that brought us nearer to the date of this scheduled event.

All hell would break loose if he didn't win every single race and the tantrums would last for days afterwards if he didn't.

There was one boy called Matthew Meyer who was just as bad as Piers and between the two of them Sports Day became like a dawn shoot out at O.K Corral.

All the other children were terrified, I think more of what these two would do to each other than anything else and God forbid that anyone else should win anything apart from Matthew or Piers.

The sack race was the most interesting of all in terms of being a spectator to this clash of the pint-sized Titans. The two boys would both try and step on each others sack to try and trip one another up, leaping around like giant bullfrogs and at the end the runner-up would try and throttle the winner.

Oh dear, Sports Day was not a barrel of laughs.

Luckily as the years went by so did this huge desperation to win and things calmed down considerably although that keenness to do well has never disappeared. Well done my boy!

Speaking of childhood stories there is one last little titbit that actually concerns me as a young girl of probably about seven and who had just learned to read. My parents used to love this story and tell it to anyone who would listen.

Every Sunday I would be taken to Sunday School (probably so that my parents could have a nice lie-in) and once a month we would all be taken to church for the 11 o'clock service. I used to love the going to church bit as I was enthralled by all the pomp and ceremony but most of all I adored the stained glass windows.

I would sit enraptured by all the glorious colours and was especially mesmerized by the angels' wings. One Sunday I came home after being absorbed in one particular window that depicted a scene of baby Jesus in the arms of his mother Mary and made a great revelation that I knew what Jesus' last name was.

My parents were intrigued especially as I don't imagine that anyone really has much knowledge on this particular subject. "Well what is it then?" my father asked. "His name is Jesus Tucker," I replied.

"How on earth do you know that?" my father continued.

"I know," I said, "because I saw this lovely stained glass window with Jesus and Mary and some angels and the words underneath said 'In Loving Memory of Mary Tucker'."

My recipes this week all pertain to dishes that Piers will and does enjoy. I hope that you do too.

Bobotie

Serves 4-6 (This is a South African dish of spicy hamburger, savoury custard and fruit. It is absolutely delicious and great to serve for a crowd as it can all be done ahead of time and then just popped into the oven)

1 tablespoon olive oil, 1/4 - stick unsalted butter, 1 apple, peeled and diced, 2 pounds hamburger meat, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs, 2 tablespoons mild curry powder, 1/2 cup raisins, 2 tablespoons toasted, slivered almonds, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric, 1/2 cup milk, 6 bay leaves Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat the oil and butter in a pan over a medium heat, adding onion and cooking for 2-3 minutes or until soft. Add the apple and cook for 2 minutes.

Add the hamburger and cook for about 3 minutes or until it is nice and browned. Stir in 1 egg, breadcrumbs, curry powder, raisins, almonds and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Pour into and 8 X 12-inch baking dish, cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Beat together reaming egg, turmeric and milk.

Remove dish from the oven, discard foil and pour the egg mixture over the top. Lay the bay leaves down the centre and bake for a further 15 minutes or until golden

Aloo Gobi (The best Indian cauliflower and potato dish)

Serves 4

1 small head of cauliflower or 1/2 a large one, cut into florets, 1/4 cup of vegetable oil, 1 tablespoon black mustard seeds, 2 cloves garlic, minced, 1 tablespoon curry powder, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, 1 teaspoon garam masala, 4 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes, a big handful of frozen peas, 3 small mild chillies, (or to taste) seeded and chopped, small bunch coriander, chopped, coconut shavings

Bring a pot of salted water to the boil and add the cauliflower, return to the boil for a minute and then remove with a slotted spoon and leave in a colander. Keep the cauliflower water to one side.

Heat a large saucepan that is big enough to hold all of the ingredients at once.

Add a good splash of vegetable oil and when it is hot, add the mustard seeds, curry powder, turmeric and garam masala, fry for a few seconds and then add the potatoes, garlic and just enough of the cauliflower water to cover them and some salt.

Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the potatoes are just cooked. Add the peas, chillies and cauliflower, stir and replace the lid and cook until everything is cooked and soft and the liquid has reduced.

Season well with salt and pepper, sprinkle with lots of chopped coriander, some coconut shavings and serve.

Todd English's Gingered Slow Braised Lamb Shanks

Serves 4

1/4 cup olive oil, 4 X 12-ounce lamb shanks, 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt, 1 1/4 teaspoons black pepper, 1 anchovy fillet, minced, 2 tablespoons chopped, peeled fresh ginger, 8 garlic cloves thinly sliced, 1 fennel bulb, trimmed, cored and thinly sliced, 1 medium onion, thinly sliced, 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds, 3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, 2 teaspoons ground cumin, 2/3 cup dry red wine, 1 cup balsamic vinegar, 3 roasted tomatoes, 1/2 cup canned chick peas, 3 fresh rosemary sprigs, 10 cups water or chicken or beef broth

Preheat oven to 275-300 degrees. Place a large skillet over a medium-high heat and when it is hot, add 2 tablespoons of the oil. Sprinkle the lamb shanks with 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper and add them to the pan. Cook until the are nice and brown on all sides, about 4-5 minutes on each side.

Set aside and discard the oil.

Wipe the skillet clean and reheat it. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil. Add the anchovy fillet, ginger and garlic, stirring well after each addition and cooking until the garlic is golden, about 3 minutes.

Add fennel, onion, fennel seeds, pepper flakes, cumin and remaining salt and pepper, wine and the vinegar.

Stir well and cook until the sauce has reduced somewhat, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and chickpeas and then return the lamb shanks to the pan.

Add rosemary and water or broth, bring to a simmer and transfer to the oven.

Bake uncovered until the meat is falling off the bone, about 3 hours. Place a shank on each plate and spoon over some sauce.