I had so much on to do today that I wanted to make us something really quick and easy for our supper. You can't get much quicker than fish!
Cooked properly without too much trouble you can easily be enjoying a lovely piece of fish in less than half an hour! Lemon & Garlic Butter Baked Cod is one of my favourite ways of preparing Cod.
I know I say that all the time when I am cooking fish, but the plain fact is I LOVE FISH, in pretty much any way shape or form and I love eating and cooking it.
And fish is so very good for you. My mother always said that fish was brain food. I always believed her. As a child when we were eating fish for supper, I always imagined that my brain was expanding and becoming exponentially smarter with every mouthfull.
Kids can be so very impressionable. I don't think that it was a bad thing that our mother made us think that fish made us smarter. It created a great love for fish and helped it to become a favourite! I love cooking and eating it.
Every way is my favourite way! I especially love LOVE Cod. It is so sweet and succulent, very mild flavoured. It lends itself beautifully to all sorts of treatment. I would rather have a good piece of Cod rather than a piece of lobster any day of the week!
We get our Cod from Seafresh. They are online purveyors of quality fish. They have beautiful North Atlantic Cod Loins which are thick, firm and delicately flavoured. I just love them. In all truth I have never had a bad piece of fish from them.
Everything has been beautiful. I think I have tried just about everything in their line of products and nothing has disappointed me yet.
Seafresh has access to some of the best quality products
from Britain and around the world, largely due to the good relationships
they have fostered with their suppliers since 1996.
It was in 1996 that they began
with the very simple concept of selling high quality frozen foods to
their customers right in the comfort of their own homes. I've been enjoying their fabulous products for over a year now and I have to say I have never been disappointed.
I can't say the same thing about shop bought fish. I really can't. Most of the time I have been hugely disappointed.
And when you are talking about something which has as hefty a price tag as fish has, you really can't afford to and don't want to be disappointed!
This is a really quick and simple way of preparing fish. It works well with Cod and would probably work with most varieties of fish.
I think milder flavoured fish such as Cod or Sole really work well with these flavours, but I can see it also working well with Sea Bass or Haddock.
It involves seasoning the fish and popping it into a baking dish. You can butter the baking dish if you wish, but I never do.
Spooning a simple lemon, olive oil and garlic sauce over top, dotting it with cold buter nd a few lemon slices and then baking it to perfection.
It doesn't take long . . . 15 to 20 minutes if you are using thawed fish. This timing will give you cooked perfection.
My fish is not refrigerator cold either. I usually let it sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes or so before I begin.
The lemon, garlic and butter flavour the fish beautifully and mingle with the juices of the fish to make a fabulously tasty sauce to spoon over top.
I never eat the lemon, but it does look really pretty sitting there, and of course it imparts a lovely flavour to the fish as well.
Oh my but this is some gorgeous. Quantities are given to serve two people, but it can very easily be doubled to serve more. Its that easy with simple things . . . and this is simple.
To serve more, just double up on everything. More butter, more lemon, more garlic. Oh my, just saying that gets my tastebuds tingling. Butter, lemon and garlic, a trinity of good taste!
I served them with twice baked stuffed potato halves that I had made yesterday and some tenderstem broccoli. This was a fabulously delicious meal, quick and easy and a real husband pleaser.
Todd never minds when we have fish for supper. He knows that it is going to be delicious and perfectly cooked. I have had lots of practice at getting everything just right!
I just realised I have never given you my recipe for Stuffed Twice Baked Potatoes. I'll have to remedy that! Its very simple. For four, just bake two large baking potatoes until they are tender and yield slightly to the touch. About 1 hour at 225*C/425*F. I put them right onto the oven rack, pricking them first with a fork.
Once they are soft I let them cool until I can handle them and then I cut them in half lengthwise. I scoop out the flesh and mash it together with salt, pepper, butter, sour cream, sometimes some cheese, chives or spring onion and then I restuff the potatoes, sprinkling the tops with some paprika.
Back into the oven for about 10 to 15 minutes and Bob's Your Uncle! Stuffed Twice Baked Potato perfection that will go with just about anything!
Lemon & Garlic Butter Baked Cod
Yield: 2
prep time: 5 Mcook time: 15 Mtotal time: 20 M
This is incredibly easy and so very delicious.
Ingredients:
- 2 cod loin fillets
- 1 TBS extra virgin olive oil
- the juice of one lemon
- 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
- fine sea salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
- 2 TBS cold butter, diced
- 4 slices of lemon
- chopped parsley to garnish
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Butter a baking dish large enough to hold the cod fillet in one layer with some space between them for the air to circulate.
- Pat the fish dry with some paper towel. Season all over with salt and black pepper. Place into the dish, top side up.
- Whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil and garlic. Spoon over the fish evenly. Dot the fish with the cold butter. Lay two slices of lemon on top of each fillet.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the fish flakes easily and is opague. Serve hot, sprinkled with parsley and with some of the pan juices spooned over top.
Just look at how nicely cooked that is. Tender, moist and flaky. This was one very beautiful piece of fish, thanks to Seafresh.
A few things about Seafresh:
- Same Day dispatch on orders received before 1 PM.
- All packages are carefully hand packed.
- Free delivery on orders above £50, £8 on orders below that amount.
- Responsibly and sustainably sourced.
- Air Blast Frozen at source within 4 hours of being caught.
- Wide variety to choose from.
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These Crispy Two Potato Tacos are one of my favourite things to eat. I adore Mexican flavours, and I adore potatoes, both the sweet and the white.
Combining the two, potatoes and Tex Mex flavours, is like a marriage made in Heaven! I just don't think you can get much better!
They are so very easy to make as well. They can be somewhat time consuming as you have to bake your white and sweet potatoes first, in order to make the filling.
But really that's not hard work. It just involves washing them, pricking them and then baking them. Easy peasy lemon squeasy!
If you don't want to heat up your oven, by all means bake them in the microwave. A large baking potato will take between 7 and 10 minutes depending on how large your potato is.
DO prick them also. They will explode if you don't. Trust me on this. The last thing you want to be doing is cleaning exploded potato off of the insides of your microwave oven. That stuff can get into every single nook and cranny and be very difficult to clean up. Blah!
Rub them with a bit of olive oil, and then season them with some salt and black pepper. I like to season them generously. But then again, I do most things generously.
Place them in the microwave in a microwave proof dish. Cook them on the full power setting for five minutes and then flip them over. (Use tongs or an oven mitt! They will be HOT!!)
Cook for a further 3 minutes or so at which time your potato should yield slightly to a light pressure. You can do more than one potato at a time, but bear in mind you will need to increase your cook times by approximately a further 5 minutes all told.
Sweet Potatoes will not take as long to bake. I would check them after three minutes before flipping (if doing one) and then continue as above, again cutting the bake time down by half.
While your potatoes are baking you can be softening your onions for the filling
Once you have the potatoes baked, skinned and coarsely mashed, this goes really quickly. Just stir in the other ingredients to combine.
Cooking the tacos is really easy also. Once you have the filling all prepared, simply divide the filling between each taco shell. (I like soft taco sized tortillas). Brush the outsides of your tortillas first with a bit of olive oil.
Just spread the filling onto one half of each tortilla, sprinkle with cheese and then fold the other half of the tortilla over top to cover. You can press them down lightly if you want, but don't use a lot of pressure or the filling will seep out.
All that is left now is to grill them until they are toasty golden brown in a heated skillet. You will need a largish skillet if you are going to cook any more than one or two at once.
Just pop them into a heated skillet and pan grill them on both sides until toasty and heated through. It is such a simple thing. I keep them warm in a low oven until I have them all done. (150*C/300*F)
On this particular day I serve them with Green salsa and sour cream, which was really really tasty. You can serve them with whatever you enjoy most with your tacos however.
I have to say we also love them splashed with some Green Tabasco Sauce. That stuff is so yummy. It has a bit of a bite but not as much as the red Tabasco. I love it on scrambled eggs and on anything really. Its really quite moreish.
I just adore these. They are crisp on the outsides, soft, cheesy and spicy on the insides and whatever topping or accompaniment you choose to enjoy with them just makes what's already delicious even tastier. Guacamole is very good.
Be prepared to fall in love. These incredibly tasty but simple tacos are incredibly tasty. You may never go back to a meat taco again! Just saying!
Two Potato Tacos
Yield: 4
prep time: 5 Mcook time: 1 H & 30 Mtotal time: 1 H & 35 M
These tacos are fabulously tasty, with both white and sweet potatoes, and plenty of zip! Serve hot with your favourite taco accompaniments for a real taste treat!
Ingredients:
For the Filling:
- 1 large Sweet Potato
- 2 baking potatoes
- 1 head of garlic
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
- 1 TBS butter
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp oregano flakes
- 1 tsp coriander flakes
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 2 tsp chipotle chilies in adobe sauce
- 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese grated, I use strong (60g)
- 1/2 cup of jack cheese grated (65g)
To Finish and Serve:
- Olive oil
- 8 corn and wheat tortillas (six inch size)
- Your choice of taco garnishes (chopped tomatoes, shredded lettuce, salsa, sour cream, olives, chopped onion, etc.)
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Wash the potatoes well and prick with a fork. Place on a baking tray. Cut the top off of the head of garlic. Put it onto a square of foil. Drizzle with the olive oil and wrap the foil up over it, twisting it closed. Place onto the baking tray with the potatoes. Put the tray into the oven and roast until the potatoes are fork tender. Check the garlic after about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove if it is done. It should take approximately 1 hour to bake the potatoes. Remove from the oven and let cool until you can handle them.
- Melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until tender. Scoop the flesh from the sweet and baking potatoes into a bowl. Add the cooked onion, cumin, oregano, coriander, smoked paprika, chipotle chilies and balsamic vinegar. Mash coarsely to combine well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the cheeses.
- Lay out the tortillas. Divide the filling amongst them spreading it out onto one half only of each. Fold the other half over to cover and form a taco. Brush both sides with olive oil. Wipe the skillet clean and then reheat over medium heat. Cook two tacos at a time until golden brown on each side and the filling is heated through and the cheese has melted. Keep warm while you cook the remaining tacos.
- Serve hot with your choice of taco garnishes. Enjoy!
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English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are
reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you
may report it to me at: theenglishkitchen@mail.com
Are you a fan of crisp and nutty? How about buttery and sweet?
If so, prepare yourself to fall completely in love with these fabulous Sugar Crusted Almond Bars!
Not only are they deliciously crisp, nutty, buttery and sweet, but they are also very quick and easy!
And yes, incredibly moreish. So do be warned, its almost impossible to eat just one. Resistance is futile.
The base for these quick and easy bars is refrigerated croissant dough, but you could also use a sheet of puff pastry if you are so inclined.
I like the croissant dough however. It bakes up beautifully golden brown without having to brush on an egg wash.
You just crack the containers open and unroll them onto a baking paper lined baking sheet.
I can never get them to unroll straight so mine end up a bit wonky. I am not sure about you, but this creates a bit of charm from where I am standing.
There is a great beauty in their imperfections.
The almond topping is equally as simple to make. If you can melt butter, then you can make this.
Its just melted butter, sugar and flaked almonds . . . cooked together in a saucepan until the sugar has melted and the almonds have begun to toast.
You will need to keep a close watch on the mixture as it can turn quite quickly and be burnt before you know it. So watch . . . this gets scattered over the top of the pastry.
Let it cool a bit first as it is quite hot . . . sugar you know . . .
Just look at how crisp and flaky they are . . . mmmm . . . .
Perfect to be enjoyed with a nice hot cuppa!
Nobody needs to know how quick and easy these were. It can be our little secret. Be prepared for the applause!
Sugar Crusted Almond Bars
Yield: 24 bars
prep time: 15 Mcook time: 16 Mtotal time: 31 M
If you are a fan of crisp and nutty, and crunchy sweet, you will love these quick and easy bars.
Ingredients:
- 2 cans of refrigerated croissant rolls
- 1/2 cup butter (120g) (don't attempt to use margarine)
- 2 cups flaked almonds (340g)
- 1 1/3 cups sugar (250g)
- icing sugar to dust
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Line a large flat baking sheet with some baking paper.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium low heat. Add the almonds and sugar. Cook for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring frequently until the almonds just begin to turn golden brown. Remove from the heat immediately.
- Break open the tins of croissant dough and unroll them on the baking sheet, pressing the perforations closed and joining them together.
- Scatter the almond mixture evenly over top of the dough.
- Bake for11 to 16 minutes, until crisp and golden brown. Allow to cool for half an hour then sprinkle with some icing sugar and serve. Cut into squares to serve.
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The
English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are
reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you
may report it to me at: theenglishkitchen@mail.com
Thanks so much for Visiting! Do Come Again!!
Its that time of year again. The time of the great garden Zucchini glut. It happens every year about this time. We end up with zucchini (or courgettes as they are loving called here in the UK) coming out our ears. We don't even have to grow it ourselves because everyone else who is growing it will soon start happily dumping it on us. I got one given to me just the other day!
Our blackberries are coming fast and furious on our canes at the moment. They seem to be a bit earlier this year than before, but I say that every year. Blackberry Liqueur is something I have always wanted to try making and so this year I thought I would actually do it.
It was actually relatively easy to make. You simply mash a quantity of clean berries and then leave them to macerate for a couple of days with a bottle of wine.
It says to use a medium bodied wine. I looked that up and a medium bodied wine would be a Merlot, Shiraz, Tempranillo or Nebbiolo. I wouldn't really know one wine from another as we are not wine drinkers really, but I used a Shiraz.
I do know that in cooking they say you shouldn't use any wine that you would not drink, and so I used a moderately priced one. Not the most expensive, but not the cheapest either!
You clean your berries really well, removing and discarding any leaves or stems, etc. and then you mash them in a large non-reactive container. I used a large glass bowl. That's when you add the wine.
Give it all a good stir and then leave it to macerate for 48 hours. Cover it of course so nothing falls into it. I used a clean tea towel.
At the end of that time you strain the juice twice. Once through a fine mesh sieve to remove all the seeds, etc. and then again through a bit of cheesecloth to make sure absolutely no debris remains and you have a nice clear liquid. Any solids left behind might go mouldy, so you really need to be careful there are none left.
After that you heat it gently with a quantity of sugar, until the sugar melts . . . and then you add some alchohol. Vodka or gin. I used vodka.
At that point it is ready to decant into clean and sterile bottles, ready to seal and store in a dark place, ready for gifting, or keeping depending on your religious affinity.
As with most of these things, the longer they sit the better they get, or so I am told. I did share a bottle with my next door neighbor and she thought it was quite nice!
I call that a win!
I used Kilner clip top square bottles, and filled five of them.
Very pretty and jewel-like. Very festive. I suspect it will be really nice by the time Christmas rolls around.
Homemade Blackberry Liqueur
Yield: 1 scant litre (35 oz)
prep time: 48 hourcook time: 8 Mtotal time: 48 H & 8 M
This sweet and fruity liqueur is amazingly easy to make. It is also known as Creme d Mure. It would make the perfect gift for all your friends who drink alcohol this Christmas and is the perfect thing to make from some of that Blackberry Glut.
Ingredients:
- 5 cups blackberries, picked through, de-stemmed and washed (700g)
- 26 1/2 ounces of a medium bodied red wine (750cl bottle, I used Shiraz)
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar (300g)
- 1/2 cup of vodka or gin (120ml)
Instructions:
- Measure your berries into a large glass or other non-reactive bowl. Mash them with a potato masher and then pour the bottle of wine over top. Cover with a clean towel and leave to macerate for 48 hours in a cool dark place. Give them a bit of a mash every now and then.
- When 48 hours is finished, strain everything through a mesh sieve to remove all of the berries and debris. Strain again through some cheese cloth to make sure you have a clean juice without anything extra in it.
- Pour the juice into a large saucepan. Add the sugar. Heat gently to a simmer and leave to warm over low heat for about 8 minutes, until all the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and stir in the alcohol.
- Leave to cool completely and then decant into clean sterile bottles. Store in a cool dark place. If your bottles are sterile it should keep for a very long time, if not then keep an eye on it and use it within a year.
I labeled my jars with the Innoveem Labels for Jars.
They worked really well. These are a nice size and perfect for this purpose. I have used these before and I can attest that you really can remove them without any sticky residue being left behind and they are very easy to write on. I think all of the shapes are quite attractive!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: theenglishkitchen@mail.com
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