Top 10 French school dinners:

I often claim that french school lunches are an extravagance of quality ingredients, well prepared into delicious dishes. So to test this theory I asked my daughters to list their favourite meals at school. The results were a bit disappointing, but the comparison with other countries may be interesting (they have lived in France long enough to have no knowledge of school dinners in the UK as a comparison)

Steak frites - sorry to say that steak and chips came first!

Spaghetti bolognaise

Friande - I don't know what this is but apparently it's some kind of crispy cheese pancake (from the freezer section!)

Flan - the curious rubbery dessert that the French like so much

Ratatouille

Paella

Moules frites - at last, something a bit French!

Riz au lait - yep, rice pudding

Soufflé au fromage (cheese soufflé)

Cordon bleu et purée - sounds exotic? Cordon bleu is a funny breadcrumb covered turkey and cheese food (not the height of French cuisine) and purée is mashed potato. To put the 'nail in the coffin' of this list, they both insisted it had to be purée made from powder, not from real potatoes. Indeed, apparently many french school children don't realise that puree can be made with real potatoes...