Sweethearts and shrivings

A WEEK full of incident awaits us. Sunday will be dear old and banished Valentine's day, and Tuesday is 'Shrove', pancake day when a lot of curious races and traditional rites take place. Even Westminster School gets into some messy fight over the delica- cy. Cooks used to keep their first six pancakes as an offering: 'One for Peter, two for Paul and three for Him who made us all.' Isn't that quaint? The next day will be Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent and time for the big Fatso Fast.

I thought you might celebrate St Valen- tine's with artichoke hearts, making a beautiful dish for your beloved.

Using one large artichoke per beloved, cook in boiling water with the addition of two tablespoons of white wine vinegar or lemon juice for about 40 minutes. They are cooked when the outer leaves pull off easily. Drain thoroughly upside-down until cool enough to handle. Discard any nasty little leaves. Pluck off the good leaves and arrange neatly around personal plates or on a huge platter, depending on the amount of people. Remove the hairy choke carefully with a teaspoon, rub each heart with lemon juice and place in the centre of the leaves so that they rather resemble a green sunflower. Fill the hearts with hollandaise sauce or good homemade mayonnaise, place two or three hard- boiled quail's eggs on these little nests, sprinkle with paprika and serve with more sauce on the side for dipping. An obvious labour of love and stunning to behold.

For Shrove Tuesday, go grand and old-fashioned and make the Queen of the Pancakes:

Crêpes Suzette

For the crêpes:

1/4 lb of plain flour

large pinch of salt

I/2 pint of milk and water (1/4 pint of each)

2 eggs 2 oz unsalted butter For the sauce: 2 oz cube sugar 2 large oranges 2 oz unsalted butter 1 tablespoon of Cointreau or Grand Marnier 2 tablespoons brandy

Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl, make a well in the centre. Beat in the eggs and half the milk and water with a wooden spoon until quite smooth; add the rest of the liquid. The mixture should be the thickness of cream. Leave to rest for 30 minutes if possible. Using a six-inch frying pan with a heavy bottom, make 12 small pancakes, using the butter for frying, a tiny amount each time. Pour the batter in with a gravy ladle, just enough to cover the base of the pan, fry gently on both sides — toss if you dare — until golden brown. Keep warm on a covered plate over a saucepan of simmering water as you proceed. Rub the sugar cubes over the oranges until they are bright yellow from the zest. Crush and put into a big frying pan with a tablespoon of water, dissolve gently then simmer/boil until golden brown. Add the juice from the oranges until all is melted together, then gradually the butter and the liqueur. Re- heat the pancakes separately in the sauce once in, fold each one in four and push to the side. When they are all in the pan pour the brandy (heated) over them, set ablaze and serve immediately.

Finally, for Ash Wednesday and on- ward:

Lenten leek tart

An eight-inch flan ring, ready with a short or quiche pastry case blind baked 3 lbs leeks 1 large clove of garlic 3 egg yolks

1/4 pint thick cream

2 oz freshly grated parmesan cheese salt, pepper, nutmeg 2 oz butter

Clean and slice the white part of the leeks and the garlic, let them melt gently in a pan with the butter. Spread the mixture into the pastry flan. Beat the egg yolks and cream, add the parmesan and season with freshly ground pepper, salt and grated nutmeg. Pour over the leeks and dot with pieces of butter. Bake in a preheated oven at Gas 4, F 350, C 180 for 30 to 40 minutes until firm and golden — serve after ten minutes' rest.

Jennifer Paterson