Donuts, ED style

Two Elizabeth David recipes have snuck onto the menu this week. A delicious ox kidney casserole, that I didn't dare give to the kids.  The cooking this week has been a lot about the childrenand what they like to eat, it got me thinking about how to get kids eating and to engage with food.  I believe the answer is so simple: involve them.  I think this means eating together and letting them help with cooking, then they learn that food is something to be celebrated.  This week with the kids I have made fish fingers, some skinned plaice  from Williams egged and breaded, so simple but so much nicer than the Captains version.  We made a very extravagant chocolate cake which was a good lesson in the value of ingredients.  The kids have made for themselves pizza, fruit salad and smoothies.  My eldest daughter particularly loves to make food for friends, and will take great pride in making her "smoothie surprise" when her friends are over.

Today we made doughnuts together, the boy has developed a nasty habit for them, particularly caramel ones.  Today we used an Elizabeth David recipe much to their groans.  We made the sweet dough and left it to rise.  During this time we cleaned up the old doughnut jammer Tom remembers using as a child and filled it with the last of the summers homemade strawberry jam.  After we had deep fried the buns, rolled them in sugar, squirted in the jam we scoffed them without licking our lips.

At last my boy has declared we've made an Elizabeth David recipe he'd love to make again.