JAMIE’S Ministry of Food in Bradford has been cooking up a way to keep youngsters busy over summer.

The community teaching project, at John Street, has seen children aged eight to 14 making a variety of recipes from Jamie Oliver's collection, including salmon tikka and Spanish tortilla, with ingredients sourced locally from the Oastler market.

“This has been our busiest ever summer for kids cooking. By the time the six-week break has finished, the Ministry of Food will have cooked more than 180 meals," said said project manager Soraya Overend. "We've had to put on extra classes because our first sessions sold out so quickly. It’s great to see so many kids excited about learning to cook healthy and nutritious meals for themselves."

Sarah Sheffield, mum to nine-year-old Elliott, added: “It’s great to learn a life skill that perhaps we don’t get time to teach at home. This will hopefully lead Elliott on to making tasty, healthy meals in adulthood.”

* Ministry of Food courses, for both adults and children, continue in September. Call (01274) 435279.