This recipe is for one of the best fish pies I have ever made and it’s incredibly quick to do. And the pudding recipe is pure genius. It needs only four ingredients and it’s better than a load of the fancy desserts I’ve eaten in restaurants.
FANTASTIC FISH PIE
Serves 6
5 large potatoes, peeled and diced into 2.5cm cubes
2 free-range eggs
2 large handfuls fresh spinach
1 onion, finely chopped
1 carrot, halved and finely chopped
A little extra-virgin olive oil
290ml double cream
2 good handfuls grated mature cheddar or parmesan cheese
Juice of 1 lemon
1 heaped tsp english mustard
1 large handful flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
450g haddock or cod fillet, skinned, boned and sliced into strips
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Ground nutmeg (optional)
Advertisement
Preheat the oven to 230C/450F/Gas Mark 8. Put the potatoes into a pan of salted, boiling water and bring back to the boil for 2 minutes. Carefully put the eggs in the pan and cook for a further 8 minutes until hard boiled, by which time the potatoes should also be cooked. Meanwhile, steam the spinach in a colander over the pan. This will only take a minute. When the spinach is done, remove from the colander and squeeze out any moisture.
Remove the eggs from the pan, cool under cold water, then peel and quarter them. Keep to one side. Drain the potatoes in the colander. In a separate pan, slow-fry the onion and carrot in a little olive oil for about 5 minutes, then add the cream and bring just to the boil. Remove from the heat and add the cheese, lemon juice, mustard and parsley. Put the spinach, fish and eggs into an appropriately sized earthenware dish and mix together, pouring over the creamy vegetable sauce.
Mash the cooked potatoes — adding a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper, and a touch of nutmeg if you like. Spread on top of the fish. Don’t bother piping it — this is a homely, hearty dish. Place in the oven for 25-30 minutes, until the potatoes are golden. Serve with some nice peas or greens, not forgetting your baked beans and tomato ketchup. Tacky but tasty, and that’s what I like.
PINEAPPLE WITH BASHED-UP MINT SUGAR
Serves 4
Advertisement
1 ripe pineapple
Natural yoghurt, to serve
4 heaped tbsp caster sugar
1 handful fresh mint leaves
Buy a ripe pineapple. It should smell slightly sweet and you should be able to remove the leaves quite easily. Cut off both ends and peel the skin with a knife, removing any little black bits. Then cut into quarters and remove the slightly less tasty core. Finely slice the quarters lengthways, as thin as you can. Lay out flat in 1 or 2 layers on a large plate. Don’t refrigerate, just put it to one side.
Take the plate of pineapple and a pot of yoghurt to the table after dinner, then return with a pestle and mortar. Chuck in the sugar and the mint leaves, then bash the hell out of them — your guests will either be really impressed, or think you’ve gone mad. The sugar will change colour and it will smell fantastic. It normally takes about a minute to do if you’ve got good wrist action. Sprinkle the mint sugar over the plate of pineapple — and make sure you don’t let anyone nick the pineapple before it’s ready. Pass the pot of yoghurt around and add as little or as much as you like.
Adapted from The Accidental Foodie by Neale Whitaker (Murdoch Books £25). Available from the Sunday Times Books First at the special price of £22.50 (inc p&p), call 0870 165 8585