Every parent knows the foods and recipes their children enjoy most. Here are three great ideas from Annabel’s children.

Lara loves... Chicken on the griddle with mouth-watering marinade
Makes 4 portions time to prepare 8 minutes time to cook 15 minutes

Lara has invented her own special way of eating this. She heats tortilla wraps either in a microwave or dry frying pan for about 15 seconds, mixes together a little mayonnaise and white wine vinegar and spreads this onto the tortilla wraps. Then she cuts the griddled chicken into strips and arranges the chicken along the centre of the tortillas. Add some shredded lettuce and a couple of halved slices of tomato and simply roll-up the tortillas. It’s great for lunchboxes! 4 chicken breasts

Marinade

1tbsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed
2tbsp soy sauce
2tbsp runny honey
1tbsp brown sugar
Some freshly ground black pepper
1/2tbsp olive oil
A little vegetable oil

Optional

2 tortilla Wraps
2tbsp mayonnaise
1tsp white wine vinegar
Shredded iceberg lettuce
Tomato

Cover the chicken breasts with cling film or greaseproof paper and flatten slightly with a mallet or rolling pin. Mix together all the ingredients for the marinade and leave for an hour. Remove the chicken and strain and reserve the marinade. Heat the griddle, brush with a little oil and cook the chicken for 4 to 5 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Pour the marinade into a small saucepan, bring to the boil and then simmer for a further one minute (add a little water if necessary). Serve the chicken with the sauce.

TIP You could serve with a selection of griddled vegetables or try Lara’s way and make some tasty chicken tortillas.

Nicholas loves... Multi-layered cottage pie
Makes 6 Portions
Time to prepare 15 minutes
Time to cook 1 hour
Suitable for home freezing

My son Nicholas is a big meat eater! He can easily eat three huge platefuls of this old-fashioned comfort food. You can either make one large Cottage Pie or you can make several individual portions in ramekin dishes to freeze for use later. Red meat provides the best and most easily absorbed source of iron.

250g swede and 200g carrots, peeled and chopped (you can use just carrots)
A generous knob of butter
21/2tbsp vegetable oil
450g minced beef
1 large onion, finely chopped
100g leek, finely chopped
100g red pepper, finely chopped
150g button mushrooms, diced
2 cloves of crushed garlic
4 medium tomatoes, skinned, de-seeded and chopped
1tbsp tomato purée
2tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2tsp dried mixed herbs
1 beef stock cube dissolved in 350ml boiling water
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
675g potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
50g unsalted butter
6tbsp milk
Salt and a little white pepper
200g frozen peas, cooked
1 beaten egg

Cook the swede and carrots in boiling, lightly salted water for 20 minutes or until tender. Drain and then blitz in a food processor with the knob of butter until smooth.

Heat 1/2tbsp of the oil in a large non-stick frying pan and sauté the minced beef for 7 or 8 minutes or until the liquid has been evaporated. Remove the beef from the pan and set aside.

Heat the remaining 2tbsp of oil in a fairly large casserole and sauté the onion and leek for 3 minutes. Add the red pepper and sauté for 2 minutes, then add the mushrooms and garlic and sauté for 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes and sauté for 3 minutes. Add the tomato purée, Worcestershire sauce, herbs and beef stock and simmer for about 30 minutes. Season to taste.

Meanwhile, boil the potatoes for 15 to 20 minutes, then drain. Return the cooked potatoes to the empty saucepan and mash together with butter, milk salt and pepper until smooth.

Place the puréed carrots and swede in the base of a glass ovenproof dish (approximately 18cm diameter/ 7.5cm deep) or use mini dishes to make individual portions. Arrange the meat on top, then cover with a layer of cooked peas and top with a layer of potato. Brush the potato with the beaten egg and cook under a pre-heated grill for 6 to 7 minutes or until the top is browned.

Scarlett loves... Train cake
Makes 16 portions time to prepare 2 hours

Scarlett wanted this cake every time she had a birthday! It requires no cooking and can be created in very little time. You will need two fairly long cakeboards – approx 30cm x 40cm (16in x 12in) – these are available from Squire’s Kitchen. Call 01252 734309 or visit www.squires-group.co.uk

The Grass

2 x 250g packets dessicated coconut
1 x 38ml edible green food colouring
Water
75ml apricot jam

Chocolate Buttercream

75g softened butter
125g icing sugar
1tbsp cocoa powder
1tbsp milk
5 x 205g Cadbury’s chocolate roll filled with chocolate buttercream
1 milk chocolate marshmallow teacake
1 chocolate Rolo
1 x 227g packet Liquorice Allsorts
1 packet Liquorice Catherine Wheels
1 box chocolate sticks eg: Matchmakers
1 x 150g box Cadbury’s white chocolate finger biscuits
1 x 150g box Cadbury’s milk chocolate finger biscuits
20 milk-chocolate coated Mini Swiss Rolls
6 raspberry jam sandwich creams

The Fuse Wire

Cotton wool balls
1 x 150g packet of fizzy strawberry and cream lances
Mini packets of assorted sweets
1 x 21g pot Supercook sugar flowers (cake decoration)

To make the grass, thoroughly mix the desiccated coconut with a few drops of the green food colouring and a few drops of water. Warm the apricot jam and brush it over the surface of two 40cm x 30cm (16in x 12in) silver cake boards. Strew the green coconut over the cake boards so that they are completely covered.

To make the chocolate buttercream, beat the softened butter until creamy. Sift the icing sugar and cocoa powder into the bowl and beat together with the butter. Finally, beat in the milk.

Cut about 5cm (2in) off the end of one of the large chocolate Swiss rolls and secure this on top of a whole large chocolate Swiss roll to form the engine with some of the chocolate buttercream or a cocktail stick to form the cab.

Secure a chocolate marshmallow teacake with a Rolo to form the chimney. If you like, arrange some cotton wool balls on a short length of fuse wire and attach these to the chimney so that it gives the appearance of steam coming from the train.

Attach two Liquorice Allsorts to form the windows of the cab. Attach a Liquorice Catherine Wheel to the front of the cab with some buttercream.

Lay out the track using two parallel lines of chocolate sticks in a zig-zag pattern and lay white chocolate and milk chocolate fingers alternately across the track to form the railway line. You will need to allow for the engine and four carriages.

Put five mini milk chocolate rolls at the front of the track to form the bumper and the wheels of the engine and balance the engine on top.

Attach three raspberry sandwich cream biscuits to each side of the train’s engine with some of the buttercream to form the wheels of the train and decorate the front with Liquorice Allsorts.

Cut a thin slice off the top of the remaining large chocolate Swiss rolls to form the carriages of the train and spread the flat surfaces with some of the chocolate buttercream.

Lay each of the carriages over the mini Swiss rolls along the track. Pile the sweets onto the open trucks. Arrange some of the sugar flowers to decorate the grass covered cake board.