A Change Of Direction

Gerry's recent announcement of a career break has had me thinking. I'm proud of the View From The Pier and what we've achieved with it, but it's a good idea to freshen things up a bit

So I'm excited and pleased to announce that starting today, April 1st, The View From The Pier is changing direction. We are now a site dedicated to food and cookery, with a focus on sustainable ingredients. With that in mind, and as it's Friday, let's start with a fish dish: Cod With Peas And Parsley. This Spanish-influenced dish will brighten up dinner time, and it's a snap to put together. So whaddya say? Let's get cooking!

In a cold pan, combine a couple of cloves of sliced garlic with a good glug of olive or English rapeseed oil. Bring them to a gentle simmer over a medium heat, while you finely chop a handful of flat leaf parsley. When the garlic is golden and fragment, stir a tablespoon of flour into the pan, and mix to form a roux. Let it cook until the raw smell of flour is gone–it should take no more than a minute. Throw in your parsley at this point.

Then add a glassful of white wine (a white Rioja would be perfect for this) and simmer briefly, before adding a little stock (fish, preferably, but chicken stock will do). You should end up with a sauce that's about as thick as double cream.

Now throw in a handful of frozen peas, and let them cook for another minute.

OK, time for the fish. A couple of fillets of sustainably-caught cod (or hake makes a great and even more ocean-friendly alternative) cut in half width-wise. Add them to the pan, skin-side down, and let them cook for three minutes. Turn them gently at this point (the fish should be fragile and may fall apart a little) and cook until the fish is cooked through–another three minutes should do it.

Once you've turned the fish, a great addition is seafood. Clams work brilliantly, but prawns or mussels will also do the job admirably. If you're using prawns or clams, cook until they open, for prawns until they go pink.

And that's it! Finish with a little more chopped parsley over the top, and serve with bread or rice to mop up the sauce. I think that's a great little dish to celebrate Spring flavours, and quick enough to serve as a weekday supper.

Here's a link to the full recipe.

Happy eating!