Smoked Haddock and Quail Egg Pie
– How to cheat

If, like me, you happen to live near a Waitrose, heaven is boiled quail eggs, ready-peeled. If you don’t, you can replace them in this recipe with 2 large hens' eggs, hard-boiled and roughly chopped. I’m not going to recommend you boil quail eggs and peel them yourself, as it’s a real fiddle and not at all suitable for a recipe for cheats. And, incidentally, I find the best way to get mashed potato on to a fairly liquid base is to use a 6-inch (15 cm) diameter soufflé dish, so you don’t have to spread it too far.

Serves 2-3

Ingredients

12 oz (350 g) smoked haddock
1 x 130 g pack Trésors De Cailles Apéri Quail (12 hard-boiled quails' eggs)
1 x 200 g tub of ready-made cheese sauce
1 level tablespoon drained capers
1 x 450 g pack ready-made mashed potato
2 tablespoons ready-grated extra-strong cheddar cheese
1 heaped teaspoon butter, at room temperature
2 tablespoons milk
salt
cayenne pepper

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6, 400°F (200°C).

You will also need a 6 inch (15 cm) soufflé dish, well-buttered.

First place the haddock in a frying pan over a medium heat, cover with boiling water and, when it comes back to the boil, simmer for 6-8 minutes. Then drain and, when it’s cool enough to handle, remove the skin and place the flakes of haddock in a bowl.

Now add the cheese sauce to the fish, followed by the quail eggs and capers, plus some salt and a good pinch of cayenne, and mix well. Then pour the whole lot into the soufflé dish.

Next, in another bowl, mix the mashed potato with a large fork, adding the milk and butter. When it’s all well distributed, spoon small amounts in rough blobs all over the other ingredients to cover. Finally sprinkle with the grated cheese and another good pinch of cayenne, then bake on the centre shelf of the oven for about 30 minutes or until it is bubbling and brown on top. Serve either with spinach or fresh shelled peas.

How to Cheat Hero Ingredients: