SIMPLE FRIED CLAMS

The only problem for this recipe is that you need really good clams  - basically the rule is this: the worse the ingredient, the more you needs to process it, add to it and make the recipe  'full packed of flavours' as many chefs now say…but when you get hold of a really good ingredient the less you do to it the better.

You need:
- 750 g of good clams
- olive oil
- two cloves of garlic
No need to add salt.

Clean the clams either by hand or by putting them in a  big bowl of water and salt for at least two hours. Fry two cloves of garlic in three table spoons of live oil, when the garlic is soft, add the clams. As soon as they open up they are done. It should only take 3-4 minutes. Discard any clams that do not open up. Eat immediately.

The children find it interesting to see show the salty water makes the clam loose any sand, and also watching the clams open up.

CHOCOLATE MADELEINES

Since we now have a madeleines tray we have tried a few different recipes.
You need
- 3 eggs
- 125 g sugar
- 165 g plain flour
- 60 ml milk
- 220 g butter (200 for the madeleines themselves and 20 gr for brushing the tray)
- half a teaspoon of baking powder
- a pinch of salt
- 18 small pieces of chocolate (more of less half a square - we did it with milk chocolate as it is my children's favourite, but this should taste better with bitter dark chocolate)

Preheat the one at 220 degrees.

Mix the sugar ad eggs and beat well. Add the milk. Mix separately the flour, salt and baking powder and fold it into the sugar and egg mixture. Melt the butter (200 g) and add it to the mixture as well. Put it in the fridge and wait for 30 minutes to an hour.

Melt the 20 g of butter and paint with it the madeleines tray. Put a little bit of the mixture in each madeleines mould until they are half-filled. Put the piece of chocolate in and cover it with the rest of the mixture (you may need to press the chocolate down a bit with your fingers so that it is covered by the mixture).

Put the tray in the oven and lower it to 180 degrees. Bake for 12 minutes and unmould immediately as soon as you take them out of the oven. Eat them warm.

The children liked trying different recipes, but all agreed that the classic lemon madeleines (see recipe that we published a couple of weeks ago) is best by far.

ONION SOUP

Another French classic that children love in the winter. You need:

- 500 gr onion (sliced thinly)
- a table spoon of olive oil
- 50 gr of butter
- a pinch of thyme leaves (we used dry thyme)
- a bay leaf
- a glass of white wine
- two teaspoons of sugar
- a tablespoon of flour
- bread (sourdough or baguette): one slice per person
- grated cheese (around 250 gr)
-water (around 750 ml)
-salt

Heat the butter and olive oil in a frying pan and fry the onions over medium to high heat for 5 to 7 minutes. You really should use a frying pan for this, as if you try to do this in a soup pan the onions will not fry properly ( they will produce moist and therefore they will 'boil' instead of fry)The trick is to get the onions golden-brown (keep watching the onions while they fry as it is really easy to burn them). Then add  the sugar and flour and mix well. Add the white whine and wait for 2-3- minutes until it starts to evaporate. Transfer it all to a soup pan, cover with water, add the thyme, bay leaf and salt and let it all boil over low heat for 40 minutes.

Before serving the soup, toast the bread. Put the soup in the bowls, add the bread on top and then sprinkle generously with the grated cheese. Put the bowls under the grill  and wait until the cheese gets golden (3-4 minutes, depending on the strength of your grill) Serve immediately.

It is a bit difficult to get the children to help much on this as slicing onions is no fun (supermarkets now sell sliced onions  though). Also, be careful if they help you to put the bowls under the grill (in fact, put the bowls on a tray or you will burn yourself).

MADELEINES

We are having a bit of a French theme for a couple of weeks. These madeleines are very lemony and truly moreish. You need a madeleines' tray  - we have a silicon one that we bought some time ago and had never used until now.

You need:
- 2 eggs
- 120 g butter
- 100 g sugar
- 100 g plain flour
- one teaspoon of baking powder
- zest and lemon juice of one lemon

Preheat the oven at 240 degrees.

Mix the sugar and eggs. Then mix the flour with the baking powder and fold it into the eggs and sugar mixture. Melt 100 g of butter and add it to the mixture. Then add the zest of the lemon and the lemon juice.

Melt the remaining butter and brush it the madeleines tray with it. Put the mixture into the madeleines tray (one table spoon for each madeleine). Put it into the oven and turn the oven down to 200 degrees as soon as you put the tray in. Bake for 10 minutes. This mixture should be enough for 22-24 madeleines.

COURGETTE RIBBONS

We have tried a new gadget to make vegetable ribbons (a zoodle cutter bought in Amazon - easy to handle, small and around £17). You need:

- 3 courgettes
- 200 g raw prawns
- two cloves of garlic (sliced)
- three table spoons of olive oil
- a handful of parsley
- one leek (chopped thinly)
- juice of half a lemon

Heat two table spoons of oil in a large pan (medium heat). Lower the heat, add the leek  and let it fry until the leak is soft. Cut the courgettes into ribbons (you do this by twisting them in the zoodle cutter like if you are sharpening a pen, it takes a minute per courgette more or less). Add the courgettes to the pan, increase the heat and let them fry for 10 minutes.

In a separate pan heat (medium)  the remaining spoonful of olive oil and fry the sliced garlic for a minute until it gets golden. Add the prawns and let them fry for 5 minutes. Right at the end add the lemon juice, and the chopped parsley, let the sauce bubble for 30 seconds and add it all to the courgettes.

Toss it all together and serve.

VEGETABLES CAKE

This is a nice and easy starter. We got the recipe  from my mother over Christmas. She had got it from the internet (since she has finally discovered it!) but I am afraid she could not remember the source.

You need:
- 15 french beans
- 2 carrots
- one large onion
- one courgette
- 2 eggs
- 210 ml of cream (we use single cream)
- salt
- black pepper
- 2 table spoons of olive oil

For the sauce:
- a bowl of mayonnaise ( see our 2 minutes mayonnaise recipe)
- 2 piquillo peppers

Preheat the oven at 170 degrees.

Dice all the vegetables (see size in the picture below). Parboil the beans and carrots during 6 minutes in boiling water. In a separate pan heat the oil and fry the onion for 5 minutes under low heat, then add the courgette over medium heat for another 4 minutes and then get rid of the oil.

Beat the eggs, add the cream,  the add all the vegetables and the salt and pepper. Put the mixture into a loaf tin covered with baking paper (no need to grease it) . Bake 5for 40-4 minutes at 170 degrees.  When you take it off the oven wait until the cake gets cold before you un-mould it.

For the sauce, blitz the mayonnaise with the piquillo peppers either in a food processor or with a hand held blender.

'SQUID IN ITS INK' (CALAMARES EN SU TINTA)

New year special: one of our favourite dishes. Though children may initially dislike the colour of this dish, they just need to taste one mouthful and it will easily become one of their favourite foods. Try it with plain rice. Or with lots of bread. But whatever you do, do not show to the kids the inside of the squid, nor the ink, or they might be put off from squid for ever.

You need:
- 500 gr squid (clean and cut into mouth-bite pieces)
- the ink of each squid (ask the fishmonger to give you the ink- they come inside a kind of white bag, like a little sausage). If you cannot get the natural ink, some fishmongers sell small plastic sachets of artificial ink which tastes very good too (and makes the dish even darker)
- tomato sauce ( see our recipe - 8 table spoonfuls)
- olive oil
- a clove of garlic
- parsley
- half a glass of white wine
- a tiny bit of hot water

Put a couple of olive oil spoonfuls in a pan. Add the calamari and let them fry (over high heat) for 4-5 minutes. They will release some water - wait until all the water evaporates. Add the tomato sauce. Then mash the garlic clove with the parsley (with the pester and mortar), add the wine and pour it all over the squid.
Now, put the ink bags into a small colander, pour a bit of hot water on them and mash with the back of a spoon so that the ink falls on the squid.
Let it all simmer for 15 minutes over low heat.
This dish keeps well for a couple of days in the fridge ( and it is probably better the day after you prepare it)
Do not add salt to the squid as they are naturally salty.