Luxurious fish pie

Tender chunks of delicate fish, juicy prawns, and quail's eggs in a creamy sauce with a cheesy mash topping. This has it all...

Recipe (Serves 2-3)


Ingredients:

• 350g mixed fish (I used salmon, haddock and smoked Alaskan pollock)
• 8 raw prawns
• 6 quail's eggs, boiled, shelled and halved lengthways
• 1 leek, finely sliced
• 25g fresh spinach, roughly chopped
• 700g potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 50g cheddar, grated 
• 2 tbsp crème fraîche
• 2 tbsp vermouth
• 1 tsp wholegrain mustard
• 1 tsp stock powder (I used Marigold Swiss vegetable bouillon)
• 1 tsp dried tarragon
• 300ml milk, plus a little extra for the potatoes
• 3 tsp cornflower, mixed with a little milk
• 2 good knobs, butter

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200c
2. Boil the potatoes in salted water until soft
3. Soften the leeks in a knob of butter for 5 minutes, then add the spinach and tarragon and stir until the spinach has just wilted
4. Remove from the pan and put into a small baking dish
5. Heat the milk, vermouth and stock powder then add the cornflour paste and stir until bubbling
6. Lightly drop in the fish and poach for two minutes
7. Return the leeks and spinach to the pan and stir in the crème fraîche, season to taste.
8. Pour the mixture into the baking dish and add the raw prawns and quail's eggs
9. Drain the potatoes, and mash with the milk and the second knob of butter
10. Drop the mash in pieces on top of the fish mixture but do it as loosely as possible to achieve lots of rough edges that will crisp up in the oven.
11. Top with the grated cheddar and bake for 20 minutes until golden and bubbling.

Serve with some steamed broccoli and a chilled glass of sauvigion blanc.

Tip: Many supermarkets sell a fish in a fish pie mix which is perfect for this recipe.