And they do not come better, or more warming, than…
Smoked Mackerel Dauphinoise!
When I saw this latest painting by Bonnie Lalley – she has been enduring arctic temperatures and blizzards over where she lives in the States, poor thing! – I was put in mind of one of my favourite comfort fish dishes – one to curl up by the fire with and watch the snow fall outside – or in my case the pouring rain – and savour for its benevolence.
For 4
600 gm potatoes peeled and sliced – not too thinly!
250 gm smoked mackerel – skin removed and flaked
2 bay leaves
200 ml milk
300 gm double cream
Black pepper
1 tbsp grain mustard
Arrange the potatoes in a shallow baking dish. Mix in the mackerel. Add te bay leaves and a good grind or two of black pepper.
Mix together the milk and cream and pour over the potatoes and mackerel.
Bake in a preheated oven – 190c – for about 50 minutes to an hour. The cream mixture should be bubbling and the potatoes pierced easily by a knife.
Serve with rocket and baby salad leaves with a swirl of balsamic over them and a little olive oil.
The picture below does not do the dish justice – but last night it warmed us to the core – it is a dish that brings an instant sense of well-being to all gathered around the supper table.
And there is a serene simplicity to this dish, just like the painting of the American farmstead snowed in.
Reblogged this on Bonnie Lalley artist illustrator writer and commented:
Another wonderful installment of the chef Keith Bradbury blog!
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Loved the painting, and the recipe!
Jane x
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Thanks, Jane! Appreciated.
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That painting reminds me of my grandmothers house. Her breaded pork chops rolled in egg and cracker crumbs were my comfort food of choice… yum…
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Sounds good to me!
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Beautiful painting.
The dish looks great and reminds me of an almost similar dish I had in Sweden, with the difference of using nchovies instead of the herring. They call it “Johnson’s temptation”, no less… I think Dauphinoise works better 😀
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I like the other title too – sounds like a Sherlock Holmes Mystery!!
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I need this tasty fish dish in my life, even that I am not undersnowed! 🙂 Yummmm!
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You do indeed!
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😉
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