Posh Fish and Chips

So it's that time of year again - Masterchef time! Is it just me or does it seem to be showing a lot more than last year? Not that I'm complaining... Around this time of year I get it into my head that I need to make my dishes look arty and cook fondant potatoes and make foams from everything. Alongside my healthy diet, I decided to "masterchef-ify" classic fish and chips.

Posh Fish and Chips

Serves 2

Ingredients

2 fillets of Plaice

400g potatoes

A handful of frozen peas

A Squeeze of Lemon Juice

1 clove of Roasted Garlic

1 tsp Tarragon
1tsp Fresh Rosemary, finely chopped
20g butter
Salt and Pepper to taste

Method

Fish
Start by creating a foil package for your plaice fillets. Then carefully lay the fillets down and cover with lemon juice, tarragon, salt and pepper. Seal the parcel.
Place in a preheated oven at 200C for 25 minutes.

Potatoes
Cut your potatoes into chunks and place into cold, salted water.
Bring to the boil and simmer until the potatoes are soft.
Drain the potatoes and return to the saucepan.
Add 20g butter, rosemary and salt/pepper to taste.
Mash the potatoes rustically so they are not smooth but more "crushed".

Pea Puree
Heat the peas in a pan of boiling water for 5 minutes until tender.
Place in a food processor with a squeeze of lemon juice, your roasted garlic, salt and pepper.
Puree the ingredients while the peas are still hot.

Pea Soup with Crispy Pancetta

I was listening to Jay Rayner's 'The Man Who Ate the World' on the way to my physio appointment this morning and during his time in Paris, he came across a dish in Guy Savoy where the peas in his pea salad had all been individually split. This got me obsessing with peas all day. I needed some peas in my life - stat.

We had some deliciously thin pancetta to use up also, so I thought the remedy to my cravings would be to make an indulgent pea soup and use pancetta as croutons. I did a lot of internet research to find the best pea soup recipe and decided to try Felicity Cloake's "Perfect Pea Soup" recipe for The Guardian. She uses bacon in the recipes but I took this out and replaced it with the pancetta topping. So here is my adapted version.

Pea Soup with Crispy Pancetta and Creme Fraiche

To Serve Two

Ingredients

15g butter
2 spring onions, chopped
4 rashers of pancetta
225g frozen peas
375ml of vegetable stock
Squeeze of lemon juice
Creme fraiche, to serve

Method

• Melt the butter in a pan and add your spring onions. Allow them to soften in the foamy butter. 
• Add the peas and let them defrost a bit. 
• Add your hot stock and allow to simmer for ten minutes.
• Add a squeeze of lemon juice and stir.
• Using a stick blender, smooth the soup and allow to rest on a low heat whilst you make the croutons.
• Bring a small frying pan to a high temperature and add the pancetta. They will crisp in under a minute so make sure they don't burn. 
• Dish the soup into bowls and add a small quenelle of creme fraiche to the centre. 
• Lay your crispy pancetta on top! 

South Indian Tilapia Curry

The idea of curry generally summons up thoughts of heavy, rich dishes full of strong spices and melt in the mouth meat accompanied by a Singha beer and a naan. Recently I've been trying to shift a few pounds and failing miserably by myself. The problem with loving food is that I have very little self control when someone puts something tasty in front of me. So I decided to join Weight Watchers. Greg from Masterchef did it. It's fine. So far I'm a week in and have lost two pounds (yay!) and have been working my way through their recipe catalogue. My favourite so far is their recipe for South Indian Curry - healthy and delicious. 

South Indian Tilapia Curry

To serve 2

Ingredients

2 fillets of Tilapia Fish

1/2 Medium Onion

1 Garlic Clove

1 tsp grated Ginger Root

1 tsp Ground Coriander

1 tsp Hot Curry Powder

100ml Coconut Milk

200ml Chicken Stock

200g Diced Potatoes

75g Green Beans

1/2 Red Pepper

20ml Fresh Lime Juice

Freshly Ground Black Pepper - to taste

Method

Heat some oil in a large pan and slowly cook the onion until translucent.

Add the garlic, ginger, chilli and spices. Toast for 30 seconds - be careful not to burn them!

Stir in the coconut milk, add the stock and bring to the boil.

Add the potatoes, reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are just cooked (about 10 minutes).

Add the green beans and red pepper and cook for 3-4 minutes. 

Add the fish and cook for a further 3 minutes until just cooked through. 

Season with lime juice and black pepper and serve with a lime wedge, rice or bread.

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