Recipe l Glenisk Family Fish Pie

Billy pretty much eats everything that we eat now. It's really handy and a lovely stage. If anything it makes us eat healthier dinners. 90% of what we cook is made with Billy in mind. Lots of vegetables, fresh produce, no added salt (until Billy's portion has been taken out) and variety is the spice of life so I do try to mix it up as much as possible.

I've always been a fan of fish. In recent years I've come to appreciate it even more though. I know a lot of people who don't like fish because they have never really given it a chance, and for that reason I've wanted it to be a "normal" every day food for Billy. I'm trying to give it to him twice a week in different forms. It's no surprise, but he absolutely loves it. I've made risottos, casseroles, stews and curries. He devours them all.

I have a "thing" about balanced meals. Particularly when it comes to Billy. I don't feel happy with his meals unless they have vegetables, protein and carbs. It's just something I seem to have programmed in to me. I'm not obsessive, but for example if his dinner didn't have vegetables in it (very rarely) I would give him some fruit after. A couple of blueberries, some banana, that type of thing.

I really wanted to make a fish pie this week. I had been looking at a couple of different recipes and realised that it could be very easily adapted to suit a baby. A "one pot" dish essentially, comprising of vegetables, fish and potato. Perfect for Billy, perfect for us, and something which would be handy to freeze for Billy's future meals.

I had made the Jamie Oliver fish pie previously but I just found it to be lacking something. A bit of creaminess, and some peas. So I took that recipe as a foundation point, and adapted it to the following recipe. It was a huge hit for the whole family. Billy loved it and I am thrilled to have another recipe "in the bag" that I can easily whip up mid-week. For me it's all about cooking healthy, wholesome and delicious food without spending half the day in the kitchen. This recipe really fits that bill.

Glenisk Crème Fraîche turns this recipe up a notch. I've often looked at it on the shelf in the supermarket wondering what I would use it for. I had no idea that it was so versatile, both in savoury and sweet foods. It gives it a more delicate texture, a subtle creaminess. And speaking of Glenisk,why not enter their excellent competition where you could win a €200 Irelandhotels.com voucher for a family getaway. I am delighted to see that such a fantastic family-run company are sponsoring this years Irish Parenting Blog Awards which take place in April 2015. Great products, great company, and now... great Fish Pie.

For this recipe, you will need

300g of fish. A mix of white fish, salmon, and a smoked fish. I actually used the Aldi fish mix. It cost about €2.50 and it was the perfect amount for a 'serves 2-3' fish pie like this one.
3 Carrots
2 sticks of Celery
200g of Cheddar Cheese
1 Lemon
800g Potatoes
300 ml stock (I used salt-free baby stock from Boots.
4 Tablespoons Glenisk Crème Fraîche
Tablespoon of chopped fresh Parsley
Salt/Pepper to taste

Method

Grate the carrots and celery and add to a large bowl. Add the fish and mix up.
Using the smallest part of the grater, grate the zest of one lemon and add to the bowl.
Add the juice of the lemon, the cheese and the parsley to the bowl. I also add some frozen peas at this stage.
Add the stock and Crème Fraîche to the bowl and mix well.
Place this mixture at the bottom of a deep casserole dish.

6.

6. Peel the potatoes and cook in a pot of boiling water until soft. When cooked mash them, add a dollop of butter, drop of milk and some salt/pepper to taste.

7. Spread the mashed potato on top of the fish mixture and place in centre of oven where it should cook for about forty minutes at 180'C or gas mark 4.

Voila! I sprinkled some black pepper on top. That's what the little specks are.

Note - I used baby stock from Boots so as to avoid adding salt to the dish. This is because I wanted to share some with Billy who is 9.5 months old. I made the recipe as explained above, but only added a bit of salt when I removed Billy's portion of the "fish mixture" part of the pie. I made him a separate little pie with it and added the mashed potato to that.

Our fish pie (left) and Billy's (salt free) fish pie (right) just before I topped them with mashed potato

A portion for the freezer as well as a portion for that nights dinner. Both for Billy.

Labels: fish pie, glenisk, Recipe