Attempt #47: Baked Cod with Avocado, Shrimp, Cream and Cheese

The combination of cod, prawn and avocado is already fantastic to begin with. The recipe calls for baking this mouth watering combination with cream and cheese.
 
The result:

 

It does look very appetizing. However, I find that the cream and cheese was just too strong for Cod. Cod by itself is already a very smooth, creamy fish and I feel that we should enjoy its natural flavour and texture without the zing and zang of all the cheese and cream.

 

Ingredients (Serve 2):

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Sea Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 8oz cod fillets, skinned and pin boned

1 small handful of fresh basil, ripped

1 Avocado, peeled, pitted, halved and sliced

5 1/2 oz good peeled shrimp, cooked or uncooked

½ cup plus 2 tablespoon heavy cream

5 1/2 oz good Cheddar cheese

 

Method:

Preheat the oven to 425F. Rub a baking dish or roasting pan with a little olive oil, season the cod on both sides and palce in the dish. Sprinkle the fillets with the basil, avocado and shrimp. Drizzle over the cream and grate over the cheese. Cook at the top of the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown and bubbling. Season to taste with dea salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve simply with a green salad.

Attempt #9: Cod potato and spring onion stew

Who would have thought that a little bit of orange zest would make a difference in the taste of the stew!

I bought my cod fillet from a friend and wanted to try something different apart from steaming the cod seasoned with garlic, pepper, soya sauce, sesame oil and fried shallots. Browsing through Jamie’s site, I thought this recipe looks simple and different.

Result:

Very very interesting. And more importantly, the kids love it. It could be that the recipe calls for milk to be added into the broth and this thickens the stew making it creamier and tastes almost like their own formula milk! J  

The idea of adding in the anchovies was a good way to add the element of saltiness to the stew. And because I did replaced the white wine with apple juice and the final touch of grating the zest of the orange to the stew, it makes the whole dish flavoured with a kind of salty, zesty and fruity taste to it.  

Jamie's rendition:

Ingredients:

• 1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 leek, washed and finely sliced
• extra virgin olive oil
• 2 medium courgettes, halved lengthways
• 1kg potatoes, peeled
• 2 anchovies
• 1 wine glass white wine
• 565ml milk
• 565ml stock
• 1kg cod fillet, skinned and pin-boned
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• a handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
• a bunch of spring onions, finely sliced
• juice of ½ a lemon

Method

In an appropriately sized large pan, slowly fry your onion and leek with around 5 tablespoons of olive oil for 5 minutes until soft and tender. With a teaspoon, remove and discard the fluffy tasteless core from the courgettes and grate the rest into the pan. Chop the potatoes into rough 2cm dice and add to the pan. Give everything a good stir and then add the anchovies. Turn the heat up and add the white wine. Allow to cook down by half before adding your milk and stock. Bring to the boil and simmer for half an hour until the potatoes are tender. At this point, add your cod and simmer for a further 15 minutes until the flesh flakes away; feel free to stir and break up the fish, but it's quite nice to leave some big chunks as well. Season carefully to taste. Divide between your bowls, and serve with a small handful of parsley and spring onion dressed with a little olive oil and lemon juice.

Try this: Sprinkle a little orange zest over the parsley and spring onion. It really works with the cod.