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Answers: I am a doing a project for school on these three countries. What kind of foods from those countries would be appropriate to bring in for a grade 8 class?

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I hope these recipes for a Spanish soup, an English main course and a French dessert is what you are asking for.

A specialty from Spain is a cold soup called
Gazpacho here is the recipe for 8 servings:

Ingredients

3 cups tomatoes, red ripe, seeded and diced
2 cups red bell pepper, diced medium
2 cups red onions, diced medium
1/2 cup celery, diced medium
2 cups cucumber, diced medium
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 cups organic vegetable juice
Pinch cayenne
1 teaspoon cumin

Method
Mix diced tomato, peppers, red onions, celery and cucumber together in a medium bowl. Divide the mixture in half and separate in two bowls.

Add garlic to one of the bowls and empty into blender. Add vinegar to the blender and puree until smooth.

Add the vegetable juice, cayenne and cumin to the blender. Blend.

Add the puree to the bowl of diced vegetables.

Refrigerate overnight. Garnish with lemon and cilantro.

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An English specialty:
Shepherd's Pie for 4 servings

Ingredients:

450g/1lb Lean Minced Lamb
(Minced beef can be substituted if preferred)
1 Large Onion, chopped
3 Tomatoes, chopped
1 Heaped teaspoon Dried Mixed Herbs
3 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
150 to 300ml / 5 to 10 fl. oz. Stock (depending on taste)
450g/1lb Potatoes
25g/1oz Butter (optional)
2 tbsp Oil
50g/2oz Mature Cheddar, grated (optional)

Instructions
1. Peel the potatoes and cut into chunks. Place in a Large pan of salted water, bring to the boil and cook for 20 minutes or until soft. Preheat the oven to 200C, 400F, Gas mark 6.

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan and fry the onions until soft and golden. Add the mince and brown then add the chopped tomatoes, mixed herbs, Worcestershire sauce, stock, salt and pepper. Stir well, partly cover and cook for at least 15 minutes. The longer you cook the mince, the more developed the flavor will be.

3. Drain the potatoes and mash well, adding the Butter if using.

4. Place the mince in an ovenproof dish and top with the mashed potato. You will find it easier to place small spoonfuls of potato around the outside first, gradually smoothing these together, then placing more spoonfuls in the centre, again gradually smoothing together.

5. Dot with butter or top with the grated cheese, if using and bake in the centre of the oven for 30 - 40 minutes until golden brown.
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Originally invented by the Tatin sisters at the beginning of the 20th century, it's no wonder that the "tarte tatin" has become a French classic… It is just so good!

Apple Tarte Tatin Recipe:
Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: about 1 hour 20 minutes

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. Firm Apples
2/3 cup Granulated Sugar
3 oz. Butter (room temperature)
Butter for baking dish
A little Lemon Juice
Crust: I have included a wonderful crust recipe, at the end of the tatin instructions. However, if you don't want to make your own pie crust, just use a good pre-made one!

How to Make It:

Preheat oven to 400°F
1. Peel apples and lightly coat with lemon juice, so that they don't brown.
2. Put sugar and 3 tbsp. water in a pot and let caramelize.
How to caramelize? Let sugar melt into water on a very low flame. Once melted, turn up the flame a bit, don't stir, but tilt the pot and move it around from time to time. Once the syrup has a pale honey color, you can stop, it's caramelized. If you want a darker caramel, just be careful that you don't let it burn.
3. Add butter to caramel and stir until it melts. Take off heat and pour caramel into a buttered pie dish.
4. Cut apples into halves. Cut each half into three even pieces. Place apples in pie dish, so that they are squeezed tightly together. You want to do this step as quickly as possible, so that the caramel doesn't harden too much. If you want, you can begin slicing apples while you are making the caramel. Just be careful to check caramel, so that it doesn't burn.
5. Bake for 40 - 45 minutes. During this time you can prepare the crust, then roll it out so that it is a drop larger than your pie dish, and refrigerate it for 30 minutes. Even if you are using a pre-made crust, you still want to spread it out to the right size, and then refrigerate for 30 minutes.
6. Take tatin out of oven, and let apples cool off a bit. Once cooled, place crust on top, tuck the edges into the dish, and bake for 30 minutes or until crust has browned.
7. Remove from oven and let cool. Then, place a serving dish on top of the tarte and carefully flip over, so that the apples are facing up.
8. Serve warm, with crème fra?che (or vanilla ice-cream) on the side.
Voilà!

How to Make Crust:

1. Mix salt, sugar, and flour.
2. Cut chilled butter into small pieces and mix into flour with finger tips. Stop working batter once it looks like "sand".
3. Make a well and pour in eggs. Incorporate into flour using your fingers and a spatula.
4. Once homogenous, form a ball, place on a floured surface and knead for 10 seconds. Reshape into a ball, roll out with a rolling pin, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Voilà!

Again, if you don't feel like making your own crust, just use a good pre-made one!

Tip:
You can make your tatin ahead of time; just make sure that you place it on a dish that can go back in the oven, so that you can warm it up right before serving. You can serve it cold, but it does lose some of its charm!

Bon Appétit !

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england-rice & boiled beef
france-roast duck & rice
spain-rice & red beans

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ice cream

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Something kid friendly & healthy: this depends on how open minded your kids are...

English food: for kids -- scones, crumpets, english biscuits (cookies) and crackers, marmalade (other jams/jellies), decaf teas

France: any dessert (tarts, macaroons, madeleines), cheeses, breads, crepes, sparkling apple cider

Spain: tapas (bread, cheeses...), marinated olives, empanadas, marcona almonds, gazpacho, fruity non alcoholic sangria....

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Here are some good examples of cuisine from those countries:

England - A "Full Breakfast" (scrambled eggs, bacon, sausages, black pudding, mushrooms, baked beans, hash browns, other things such as tomatoes and toast), fish and chips, yorkshire pudding, tea, scones, cheeses (cheddar in particular).

France - baguette (a type of bread), Blanquette de veau (veal in white sauce w/onions), Coq au vin (chicken in red wine),
Pot au feu (beef stew with mixed vegetables), Bouillabaisse (fish soup), eclairs, croissants, Crème Br?lée, chocolate mousse, many regional dishes and desserts.

Spain also has alot of regional dishes but - paella, chorizo, gazpacho ( a soup), Tortilla de patatas (egg omlette w/ potatoes), churros

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