We've had some struggles in our family, so it was especially nice to enjoy a wonderful family night. Fiona had the inspired idea of cooking along with Jamie Oliver's live webcast for Home Cooking Day. If you'd met our 9 and 10 year old boys, you'd imagine that trying to get them to stay up later than normal to do some cooking would be an utterly barmy idea - but it worked. In fact, it was one of the best family evenings we've had.

However, it was almost disastrous: the live webcast was supposed to start at 7 pm. We had the ingredients ready, the work space cleared, utensils to hand, and the kids under control (you have no idea how difficult this invariably is). But 7 pm came and went - still no webcast. 7.10 - nothing. 7.15 - zilch. Disaster loomed. But then it started, and we were OK.

Here's what Fiona has to say:

Jamie Oliver, man, are you trying to make or break my family? Having two children with ADD (attention deficit disorder) caused a slightly difficult start when the live feed came in 10 minutes late. But mum remained cool with the help of a few glasses of Wither Hills Sauvignon Blanc. Once live, the children were gripped, as were we. Hilarious fun flying around the kitchen trying to find the right things (this is where the Wither Hills didn’t help), especially as (those who are yet to try this be warned) we hadn’t weighed out the ingredients in advance. The children thought the food was fab because they had created it. In summary, cooking together with a live webcast was like a team-building exercise for the family. Well done Jamie O – in addition to trying to improve the diets of the nation’s children, you are also doing some family therapy. I was so inspired I have intruded on your blog – I won’t do this too often. So next Thursday, 7pm, worldwide (would be a very early breakfast in Australia), do it. And enjoy.

She omitted to mention that one of our cats stole the proscuitto ham off the salad plates while we weren't looking, and the other cat nicked some tuna from the pasta. But that's family life for you. It's now 10 pm, and younger son is still awake, so maybe we won't repeat this excersize every week!