A CULINARY quest to find Oxfordshire’s best young cooks has begun.

The Create & Cook Competition, set to run in schools across the county, was launched at the White Hart restaurant in Fyfield.

The contest will see pupils aged between 12 and 14 going head to head to create delicious meals from locally-produced ingredients.

Young cooks will be challenged to hunt out ingredients from Oxford’s farmers’ markets, farm shops and local allotments to create their menus.

White Hart owners Mark and Kay Chandler treated an audience of local secondary school teachers to a cooking demonstration using ingredients from Oxfordshire suppliers and made caramelised pears with perry, as well as a Stinking Bishop mousse served with cobnut shortbread.

The competition is being run by fit2cook food education and is sponsored by The Midcounties Co-operative.

Fit2cook director Min Raisman said: "The Create & Cook initiative is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate local food and for budding young chefs in the region to showcase their skills in the kitchen."

The winning menus will be announced in Spring 2018, with the final being held at Brookes Restaurant Cookery School at Oxford Brookes.

To take part, visit createandcook.co.uk