Mini burgers and more: Jamie Oliver's kid-friendly fare

Coarsely grate the onion, then put it in a large mixing bowl. Pop the crackers into a sealed sandwich bag and bash them with a rolling pin until fairly fine, then tip into the bowl with the parsley, parmesan, egg, minced meat and a tiny pinch of salt and pepper.

With clean hands, scrunch and mix everything together until well combined. Halve the mixture, then divide each half into four equal-sized pieces. Wet your hands, then pat and roll each piece into burger-shaped patties, roughly 2-cm thick.

Place the burgers onto a lightly oiled baking tray, pat with a little more olive oil, cover with cling film and pop in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up.

Place a large frying pan on medium heat. Once hot, add the burgers and lightly press down on them with a fish slice so they’re in full contact with the pan. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes on each side, or until they are to your liking.

Meanwhile, halve and toast the burger buns. Serve your burgers in the buns, piled with your favourite toppings, and with the smashed salad on the side. Delicious served with baked sweet potato wedges.

Pile the apple, fennel, carrot, cucumber, radishes, beets and coriander in the centre of a clean tea towel. Pull the corners up then bash everything with a rolling pin. Open up the tea towel and break up any larger pieces, then tip onto a nice serving board or platter.

Add a little of your favourite jam jar dressing (see below) and gently toss together — remember to dress it lightly, you can always add more dressing but you can’t take it away. Store any leftover dressing in the fridge for another day. Tuck in!

I like to make my dressings in jam jars because it’s so easy to see what’s going on — you can shake them up easily and any leftovers can be kept in the jars in the fridge. With the exception of the yoghurt dressing, they are based on a ratio of 3 parts oil to 1 part acid (vinegar or lemon). Generally, this ratio is a really good benchmark for making any dressing, but it’s always sensible to have a little taste once you’ve shaken it up. If the seasoning is there but you’re finding it a little too acidic, you’ve cracked it, because once the dressing is on the salad leaves it will be perfect.

French dressing:

Peel and finely chop ¼ of a clove of garlic. Put the garlic, 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons of white or red wine vinegar and 6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil into a jam jar with a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Put the lid on the jar and shake well.

Yoghurt dressing:

Put 1/3 cup of natural yoghurt, 2 tablespoons of white or red wine vinegar and 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil into a jam jar with a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Put the lid on the jar and shake well.

Lemon dressing:

Put 6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil into a jam jar with a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Squeeze in the juice of 1 lemon. Put the lid on the jar and shake well.

Balsamic dressing:

Put 6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar into a jam jar with a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Put the lid on the jar and shake well.