Nina Parker has turned her passion for food into a successful career. Using expertise honed through working with well-known chefs in restaurants both in the UK and France, Nina has started her own London-based food company, NINA, which specialises in decadent ice cream and cakes.

For the dip:

1. Mix all the ingredients for the dip (saving a few mint leaves to garnish) together in a bowl and taste to check the seasoning. Set aside in the fridge.

For the beignets:

1. Put the flour in a bowl and slowly stir in the water to make a batter. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Heat the sunflower oil in a large, deep saucepan over a medium-high heat until a pinch of flour sizzles as soon as it’s dropped in the pan.
3. Salt the aubergine slices generously, leave them for a few minutes, then pat dry with kitchen paper.
4. Toss half the vegetables in the batter, allowing any excess to drip off. Place them carefully in the hot oil to deep-fry in batches, using a long metal spoon to move everything around and turn them over to fry all sides evenly. Fry for 2 minutes, until golden, then remove and drain on kitchen paper. Continue with the rest of the vegetables.
5. Season them generously with salt and serve with the yoghurt dip, topped with the remaining mint leaves and lemon wedges for squeezing on the side.