Fish in Herb Butter Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds fresh white fish fillets
• Salt, to taste
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 3 Tbsp minced shallots
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 2 Tbsp, cut into 4 pieces, cold, unsalted butter
• Fresh thyme leaves (or any fresh herb for flavor)
• Minced fresh chives
• Lemon wedges (use Meyer lemons if available)

Method

1 Pat the fish fillets dry with paper towels. Lightly salt the fillets on both sides.

2 Heat oil in a large, stick-free skillet on medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, carefully add the fillets to the pan. Brown the fillets gently on both sides. Fish is cooked when it flakes easily and is no longer translucent. Fish fillets will cook up very quickly, no more than a few minutes on each side, so don't walk away from the pan while cooking. Once done, remove the fillets from pan and place on a warm plate.

3 Add shallots to the pan and sauté until soft. Deglaze the pan with white wine and scrape up the browned bits at the bottom of the pan. Add butter and gently swirl to make a sauce. Add herbs, and squeeze a little lemon juice into the sauce. Spoon over the sole.

Serve immediately.

Breaded Fishfingers

Ingredients

500gm white fish (boneless & skinless)
1 egg
1tsp salt
2 tsp all purpose flour
2tsp lemon juice
Oil for deep frying
1/4 tsp white pepper
1/4 tsp mustard powder
Breadcrumbs for coating

Recipe

Cut the fish into finger shaped pieces
Marinate the fish with pepper, lemon juice and salt
Refrigerate for 15 minutes
Make a paste of flour and beaten egg
Dip and coat each fishfinger in the mixture and roll it in the breadcrumbs
Deep fry until golden brown

Great served alone with tartare sauce, or in sandwiches.

I

Ingredients: • 500 gm Fish (boneless and skinless) • 1 Egg • 1 tsp Salt • 2 tsp All Purpose Flour • 2 tsp Lemon Juice • Oil for deep frying • 1/4 tsp White Pepper • 6 tsp cooking Sauce • 1/4 tsp Mustard powder • Bread crumbs for coating How to make Fish Fingers: • Cut the fish into finger shaped pieces. • Marinate the fish fingers with pepper powder, lemon juice and salt. • Keep these in refrigerator for about 15 minutes. • Now make a paste of flour and beaten egg. • Dip and coat each fish finger in this mixture and roll it in the bread crumbs. • Dip them in beaten egg and roll with the breadcrumbs properly. • Heat oil in a pan. Deep-fry the pieces till they turn golden brown. • Fish fingers are ready. • Serve it with tartar sauce or tomato sauce

Caponata Picnic Sandwiches

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 celery stalk, chopped
• 1 medium eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• Salt
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1(14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 3 tablespoons raisins
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon drained capers
• 1 loaf ciabatta bread, cut crosswise into 6 equal pieces
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 6 slices (1/3-inch-thick) drained fresh water-packed mozzarella

Directions

Heat 1/4 cup of the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add the celery and saute until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Add the eggplant and saute until beginning to soften, about 2 minutes. Season with salt. Add the red pepper and cook until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Add the onion and saute until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the diced tomatoes with their juices, raisins, and oregano. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Simmer over medium-low heat until the flavors blend and the mixture thickens, stirring often, about 20 minutes. Add the vinegar, sugar, and capers. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Cut the bread pieces horizontally in half. Grill the bread cut-side down on a grill pan over medium-high heat until golden, about 2 minutes. Rub the whole garlic cloves over the toasted side of the bread. Add a slice of mozzarella to bread bottom, spoon the caponata on top, cover with the other bread half, and serve.

To take for a picnic: Wrap the sandwiches separately in plastic wrap or parchment paper. Chill until ready to serve, or keep at room temperature up to 1 hour.

Gorgonzola Pasta

Ingredients

60g fresh tagliatelle
150ml chicken stock
100ml cream
30g Gorgonzola cheese
¼ lemon
7g rocket
1tsp parsley
2 slices white bread,
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 button mushrooms
Olive oil

Preparation

1. Reduce the stock with ½ clove of garlic by about 2/3 or until sticky.

2. Add the cream, then bring to the boil to thicken.

3. Add 2 drops of lemon juice and the mushrooms.

4. Bring to the boil and remove from the heat.

5. Stir in the Gorgonzola.

6. Cook the pasta in boiling salted water with olive oil.

7. Strain the pasta; add it to the sauce and sprinkle with parsley.

8. Whizz the bread in a food processor to give breadcrumbs.

9. Fry these with olive oil and the remaining garlic until golden.

10. Use these to cover the pasta.

Broccoli and Stilton Soup

Ingredients

2 Tb olive oil - vegetable oil is fine
1 1/2 Tb minced garlic
2 lbs fresh broccoli - chopped
1 medium onion - minced
2 tsp thyme - I used dried thyme
5 cups vegetable stock
1/4 cup crumbled Stilton cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Heat a stock pot on medium heat. Quickly saute minced garlic, add onions and saute for 5 minutes. Don't let the garlic burn as it will turn bitter. Add chopped broccoli and thyme to the pot. I peeled the tough broccoli stalk, chopped it up as well and added it to the pot. It cooks through and will not be stringy. Let it cook for another 3-4 minutes or so and add vegetable stock and crumbled creamy Stilton cheese. Bring the soup to a bubble and boil with the lid on the pot for 7 minutes. The broccoli should be cooked by now. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Turn off heat.

The next step is crucial as you could end up scalding yourself if you are not careful. I am speaking from experience as I have been a victim of hot soup. Let the soup cool down a bit before you puree it in a blender or food processor. Immersion blender would work like a charm here because all the ingredients have been chopped up into small pieces.

English Onion Soup

Ingredients

• A good knob of butter
• Olive oil
• A good handful of fresh sage leaves, 8 leaves reserved for serving
• 6 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
• 5 red onions, peeled and sliced
• 3 large white onions, peeled and sliced
• 3 banana shallots, peeled and sliced
• 300g of leeks, trimmed, washed and sliced
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 litres of good-quality hot beef, chicken or vegetable stock
• 8 slices of good-quality stale bread, 2cm thick
• 200g freshly grated cheddar cheese
• Worcestershire sauce

Method: How to make English onion soup with sage and cheddar

1. Put the butter, 2 glugs of olive oil, the sage and garlic into a thick-bottomed, non-stick pan. Stir everything round and add the onions, shallots and leeks. Season with salt and pepper. Place a lid on the pan, leaving it slightly ajar, and cook slowly for 50 minutes, without colouring the vegetables too much. Remove the lid for the last 20 minutes - your onions will become soft and golden. Stir occasionally so that nothing catches on the bottom. Having the patience to cook the onions slowly, slowly, gives you an incredible sweetness and an awesome flavour, so don't be tempted to speed this bit up.

2. When your onions and leeks are lovely and silky, add the stock. Bring to the boil, turn the heat down and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. You can skim any fat off the surface if you like, but I prefer to leave it because it adds good flavour.

3. Preheat the oven or grill to maximum. Toast your bread on both sides. Correct the seasoning of the soup. When it's perfect, ladle it into individual heatproof serving bowls and place them on a baking tray. Tear toasted bread over each bowl to fit it like a lid. Feel free to push and dunk the bread into the soup a bit. Sprinkle with some grated Cheddar and drizzle over a little Worcestershire sauce.

4. Dress your reserved sage leaves with some olive oil and place one on top of each slice of bread. Put the baking tray into the preheated oven or under the grill to melt the cheese until bubbling and golden. Keep an eye on it and make sure it doesn't burn! When the cheese is bubbling, very carefully lift out the tray and carry it to the table.
Enjoy!