We do our utmost to use seasonal and local fruit and veg here in the kitchen. We have a fantastic supplier in Arthur David , and they make sure we are offered the best through their special deals.
This week's specials included English vine tomatoes and fresh French apricots.
We cut the tomatoes in half, scoopped out the juice and seeds then sliced up the flesh. Using an idea that I read from Raymond Blanc, I lined a sieve with a clean cloth and placed all of the juice and seeds inside. Leave this to drain over a jug. The juice is just amazing; clear, flavoursome and full of the taste of summer.
As for the apricots, we cooked them down with butter to make a great compote and we will then use this to make an ice-cream.
More to follow tomorrow as we put the ice cream together.

Today I went out to pick the sage I was going to be using in our vegetarian  mushroom quiche. The flowers seemed so vibrant growing on the sage plants and so, inspired by herb gardener Jekka McVicar, I used the sage flowers to decorate the finished quiche.
I have to say the flowers themselves had very little flavour (this may be because I had washed them well to drown any visiting bugs) but the amount of conversation and interest this one simple act sparked meant it was really worth it.

Sparking an interest in food and healthy eating isn't just confined to the kitchen here at Whitehall Primary. The above photos are just a snap shot of what I saw as I walked around the school this morning.
It is so important that learning how to eat healthily and enjoy food isn't just left to the lunchtime staff, it needs to be part of the curriculum and the life of the school.

Sometimes what might seem like a simple dish can be made to taste exquisite by taking care over the smallest details.
For example, the pupils wanted to have a tuna pizza on the menu and, as this helps us include more fish (and, even better, oily fish), I was more than happy to work on a recipe.  I knew that I didn't just want to use tinned tuna as I was after a better flavour and also I wanted to serve fish that would count as oily fish (which tinned tuna doesn't).
After seeing various chefs using a confit technique (cooking in oil over a low heat) I thought I would try the same with tuna steaks. We cook them at about 65c submerged in light rapeseed oil and flavoured with garlic, lemon, bay leaf, black peppercorn and herbs (today it was fennel seed). Once cooked it is drained and left to cool whilst  I reserve some of the cooking oil to mix in with the flaked tuna before it goes on the pizza.  It is more time consuming than opening a tin of tuna, but boy is it worth it!

Every Tuesday at school is burger day. When the idea was first suggested to me that we could serve burgers I wasn't overly excited as I wasn't sure it fitted my thoughts on healthy eating. Then I realised how popular this would be with the pupils, and that means more pupils having a healthy school lunch, I started to plan how to make it a good meal.
One of the items the pupils wanted on their burger was ketchup and so I devised a recipe for a healthy version of ketchup, using apples to replace most of the sugar and using spice and gentle heat to create  different flavour.
Today I made a batch using 9 kg of tomatoes, and as they were put into sterilised jars they will keep and mature in our dry store . 

Here at Whitehall Primary we try to change the menu around 3 times a year, with our menu being determined by what's in season, what the pupils like, what's healthy and what we can prepare within our time, space and budget.
Since the last menu change 3 weeks ago we have had some homemade lasagne in the freezer so rather than waste it we planned an Italian themed day with lasagne, homemade garlic bread and, for dessert, a selection of homemade ice creams.
We have been making the ice creams and sorbets over the last 2 weeks, making use of what we have a surplus of and what seasonal fruit we can get hold of.
The final menu included pear sorbet, plum sorbet, rhubarb sorbet, banana ice cream, rhubarb and ginger ice cream and Marshfield vanilla. This meant we could also challenge the children to try new flavours whilst always having the safety of a quality vanilla Ice cream.

 One of my hopes when I started as Head Chef was to set up a Kitchen Garden, close to the kitchen where my staff and I can have easy access to fresh herbs.  The amazing Kole Morgan was already doing a lot of gardening with the pupils and has been kind enough to grow food we can use at times , but I needed a close to the kitchen spot and the car park is ideal (but not for the pupils).
I started the garden in October with a few surplus plants from my home (sage and rosemary) and over the spring I have added in flat leaf parsley, curly parsley, fennel, thyme, lemon thyme, mint, apple mint and winter savoury.
The garden itself is an ideal little sunny, sheltered spot and although not visited regularly by the pupils if I am out tending the plants as they go home I always get one or two coming over to see whats going on.

Each day at around 1:15 I pick up a bucket of scraps and tell my staff I am heading to my "Happy place."  They know this means I am heading to the school compost heap.
​Leaving at this time is important as it means it is still playtime, and each day as I cross the playground I get into all sorts of conversations with the pupils about where I am going and what is in the bucket on this particular day.  As you can see from the photos today's buckets contain banana skins,  teabags, potato peelings and all sorts of other goodies.
​My original plan when I started at the school was to set up a wormery just outside the kitchen, but actually taking time each day to involve the pupils in what Kole Morgan (the school gardener) has already set up is a much better idea.  It has also allowed me to talk with my own kitchen staff about why composting is important and now they are really on board and are keen to keep using the compost bucket in the kitchen.

We are now into week 3 of our new menu at Whitehall Primary, and that meant a brand new dish being tried today.
​Monday is always Meat Free Monday and we have been trying to introduce new flavours and textures by serving vegetarian empanadas.
​Making them at home seemed really easy, but upscaling the production to 160 empanadas meant a very busy morning for my kitchen staff and I. Stressful, but really rewarding.
​We served them with 2 simple, seasonal salads of grated carrot (plain and simple) and a beetroot and apple salad.
​If you want to try it out, a first version of the recipe is included below.

Before I became  Head Chef at Whitehall Primary I had been working freelance at the school, helping them develop their cooking in the classrooms.
As part of my role in the school I still go into the classroom to help train new teachers in the school in how to teach cooking in the classroom. Today was a classroom day, so after leading my team in preparing a classic fish pie (coley, smoked salmon trimmings, prawns and hardboiled eggs), I left them to serve whilst I helped the Y3 teacher set up his classroom for an afternoon of cooking.
It was great to be back teaching, and the class really enjoyed getting stuck into making nut-free pesto with penne pasta.  One of my favourite things about these sessions is that you get a real chance to inspire the kids about food and you have some brilliant discussions around food issues.
If you would like to try the recipe I have included it below.