A bowl of roast quails with spiced yoghurt

1 hour plus marinating ■ Serves 4 ■ EASY

I once made a bowl of roast quails for my book group. Since then, I seem to have gained rather a reputation for 'doing bowls'. It's a relaxed way of serving things: you just plonk the bowl on the table and let people sort themselves out. This only needs good bread and some sort of green salad and you're all set, although a bowl of coucous salad with dried figs and orange (recipe opposite) would also be nice.

olive oil 150ml
garlic 4 cloves, crushed
ground cumin 2 tbsp
paprika 1 tbsp
cayenne pepper ]h tsp
lemons juice of 2
quails 8, oven-ready
Greek yoghurt 350ml
coriander leaves 2 big handfuls
milk

■ Mix the oil, garlic and spices with the juice of one lemon and a good sprinkling of salt. Put three-quarters of the mixture into a mixing bowl large enough to hold all the quails, add the birds and toss everything together. Cover and leave to marinate for 1 hour, turning everything over in the spice mixture occasionally.
■ Add the rest of the mixture to the yoghurt with a couple of decent pinches of salt, the coarsely chopped coriander leaves and as much of the remaining lemon juice as you think it needs - you may not want it all. Thin a little with a splash of milk, then put it in the fridge while you cook the quails.
■ Heat the oven to 220C/fan 200C/gas 7. Give the birds a final toss in the marinade, then scoop them out and pin the legs together with wooden toothpicks. Arrange in two roasting tins, leaving a bit of space between the birds so they roast rather than steam. Sprinkle generously with more salt flakes and put in the oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the skin is puffed and crisp and the legs pull away easily from the body.
■ Tip into a large serving bowl or plate, pour over any juices from the roasting tins and sprinkle with salt flakes. Eat with the yoghurt, your fingers and an appetite.

A bowl of roast quails with spiced yoghurt