Cod poached in Merrydown Cider

Merrydown cider, the premium cider made from juicy eating apples, has just launched its new Great Summer Celebrations recipes featuring nine delicious seasonal dishes.

The easy-to-make recipes are designed to help us all make the most of summer entertaining as the dishes combine classic British recipes with the quintessential English drink, cider.
When the sun doesn’t shine, the toad in the hole with cider red onion gravy is a great choice, whilst the delicious crispy cod with cider batter recipe is sure to impress any discerning diner.
I received a couple of bottles of Merrydown Cider as part of the Great Summer Celebration and decided to combine the cider with some of the lovely cod I received as part of the Fish is the Dish, Healthy Happy Hearts challenge to eat fish twice a week to increase Omega 3.  There are lots of recipes for poaching fish in cider online and in the Great Summer Celebration there is a recipe for "Devonshire Cod with mushrooms". The new recipes and many more favourites are available to download online now at www.greatsummercelebrations.co.uk in a handy recipe book.

Labels: Fish is the Dish, Healthy Happy Hearts, Merrydown Cider, Omega 3, Summer Celebrations

posted by Janice @ 19:30 5 Comments

Posh Hake in a Hurry!

One of the things I love about fish is how quickly it cooks.  You need do very little to your fish fillets and have meal on the table in a very short time.

As part of the Fish is the Dish, Healthy Happy Hearts  I am eating two portions of fish a week to raise my levels of omega 3.  I was looking for a quickie recipe for Hake, I searched on the Fish is the Dish recipes  and found this super easy Hake in a Hurry recipe provided by my friend Karen from Lavender and Lovage.

This recipe is very adaptable as, if you have enough time, you can add whatever you have to hand to the breadcrumbs.  I added chopped parsley, black garlic and spring onions.  I just blitzed them with the bread when making the breadcrumbs and it added a lovely herby flavour to the topping.


Karen covers both sides of her Hake but, as there was skin on the bottom of the Hake fillets, I simply placed the fish skin side down in an oiled roasting tin and topped with the breadcrumb mixture.

 Then all that is required is to pop it in the oven for 15- 20 minutes while you prep the vegetables or salad, sipping from a chilled glass of white wine or the aperitif of your choice!

I made this last Friday when I came home from work and tweeted to Karen that I had made Hake in a Hurry and what I had added, it was she who decided that this was 'Posh' Hake in a Hurry!

Labels: breadcrumbs, Fish is the Dish, Hake, Hake in a Hurry, Healthy Happy Hearts

posted by Janice @ 20:40 3 Comments

Fish and Chips: the healthier takeaway option

We all know that fish and chips is a healthier takeaway option than other choices like pizzas, burgers or kebabs. If you live in the countryside like me, it's not easy to access takeaways, they don't deliver you have to go and collect!

That's why I prefer to keep some breaded cod or haddock in my freezer along with some oven chips and frozen peas.  In 30 minutes you can have a comforting plate of Fish and Chips ready and on the table.

If you have more time and want to make your own, you might want to check out some of the recipes on the Fish and chip style fish recipes on the Fish is the Dish website:
Fish n Chips  Jubilee Fish and Chips by Nick Coffer  Spooky Witch Fingers



Fish is the Dish has been educating people across the UK about the health benefits of eating fish for over a year now, and they are delighted to announce that after months of hard work, their Healthy Happy Hearts Challenge is finally complete and underway!

Labels: cod, Fish and Chips, Fish is the Dish, haddock, Healthy Happy Hearts, peas

posted by Janice @ 10:00 2 Comments

Seafood Risotto for a Healthy Happy Heart

 I love seafood, it is probably the thing I would choose when eating out over any other type of food.  While I cook and eat prawns and fish quite frequently I have never actually prepared mussels from scratch before, it was a bit more time consuming but the mussels were much tastier. 




I'm taking part in an initiative organised by Fish is the Dish called Healthy Happy Hearts   Eating seafood gives great health benefits, in fact there is a whole section of the Fish is the Dish website dedicated to them http://www.fishisthedish.co.uk/health Health benefits include better heart, brain development, muscle repair, good skin and hair and so much more.

The Food Standards Agency and experts throughout the world recommend we eat two portions of fish per week, one of which should be oily fish.  So I've signed up to do just that and tell you about how I get on.


 My first dish is a Seafood Risotto containing, mussels, prawns and salmon fillet. The risotto was delicious, adding coconut milk to the mussel liquor and fish stock made the rice rich and creamy.  If you buy mussels already cooked and shelled, they are generally a bit rubbery and tasteless. These were soft and sweet and adding the salmon at the end so it just cooks in the heat of the risotto makes it soft and flaky.

Seafood Risotto (serves 6)
450g mussels in shells, cleaned
50g butter
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
2tsp jerk spices
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
225g arborio rice
300ml fish stock (I used Essential Cuisine)
400g coconut milk
2 tomatoes peeled, deseeded and diced
225g raw prawns, peeled
225g salmon fillet, cut into small cubes
125g frozen peas
25bsp chopped fresh coriander
1 tbsp lemon juice, or to taste

1. Put the mussels in a large pan with a dash of water over a high heat.  Cover with a tight-fitting lid and steam for 4-5 minutes until cooked; discard any mussels that remain closed.  Strain the liquid through a fine sieve into a clean pan.  Refresh mussels under cold running water and reserve.
2. Melt the butter in a large pan and fry the onion with the garlic and spices for 10 minutes until softened.  Add the rice and stir-fry fr 1 minute until glossy.
3. Add the stock and coconut milk to the mussel liquor; bring to a simmer.
4. Add the tomatoes to the rice, then start adding the coconut liquid, a ladleful at a time, stirring constantly.  Continue in this way, allowing each addition of the liquid to be absorbed before adding the next, for about 20 minutes.
5. Add the prawns, squid, tomato and peas with the remaining liquid; cook for 5 minutes.  Remove from the heat.  Stir in the mussels, coriander and lemon juice.  Cover the pan and leave to rest for 5 minutes.  Check the seasoning before serving. 

FOR A PRINTABLE RECIPE PLEASE CLICK HERE

More Healthy Happy Heart Dishes

Labels: coconut milk, Fish is the Dish, Healthy Happy Hearts, mussels, prawns, rice, risotto, salmon

posted by Janice @ 20:31 6 Comments