Crispy salt and pink peppercorn baby squid with lime and schezuan pepper yoghurt

Sharp lime, tempered with cool yoghurt. Schezuan pepper is it's antithesis. It does something strange to the mouth. Numbs the tongue and tingles the taste buds.

Baby squid, dusted with flour, crushed pink peppercorns and salt. Fried until golden brown.

This didn't stay around for long.

Sea bream with fennel, crispy tentacles and caramelised kumquats

Kumquats are an unusual fruit. A sharp, lemon-like citrus centre, encased with a distinctly orangey casing that, instead of having a bitter outer rind like an orange, is sweet and fragrant.

Citrus always compliments fish well so, when I spotted these kumquats at Borough market, I thought they would make the perfect pairing with a pan fried fillet of sea bream and sauteed fennel.

The kumquats were caramelised until sticky and the sea bream was topped with crispy garlic tentacles from baby squid.

Leiths day one - squid , chorizo and orange & almond cake

Tonight was day one of a cookery course I signed up to at Leiths. On the menu was a warm salad of pan fried squid and chorizo with chickpeas, lemon and rocket.

We were taught how to prepare the squid (and the art of removing its innards without puncturing the ink sac) and how to pan fry it to perfection (only turn it once and cook for 3 minutes max).

 Next up was an orange and almond cake... made with rice flour, semolina and orange pulp (heated for 10 minutes and then blitzed in a blender). The cakes were left to cool and then an orange and cointreau syrup added to the top. The result is a deliciously buttery, moist cake that I have just devoured.

Next Monday's update... cerviche of sea bass, and greek parsley pasta with wild mushrooms, spinach and warm red salsa.