Baked Cod in a Chorizo Lime Crust with Crushed New Potatoes and Balsamic Roasted Tomatoes – 9sp

I love fish and when I spotted this little recipe in the Hairy Bikers ‘Eat for Life’ Cookbook, I knew I would have to give it a whirl. The recipe didn’t really suggest any accompaniments that I fancied so I put together some of my own. These, coupled with only a few tweaks to the original recipe made for the most amazing dish. You would never think that this was a healthy ‘diet’ recipe. Amazing!

Ingredients

Serves 2 – 9sp per serving (Flex)

For the cod

2 x 100g cod fillets, skin removed

Freshly squeezed juice and finely grated zest of ½ large lime

40g chorizo sausage, skinned chunks

1 slice of day-old bread (or lighted toasted bread if you don’t have old bread!)

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

½ tbsp fresh Parmesan cheese, finely grated

¼ tsp sea salt

Pinch of crushed chillies

To accompany

400g new potatoes, halved

Pack of green beans, trimmed

Half a bag of spinach

1 tsp light butter

2 large tomatoes

1 garlic clove

Splash of balsamic vinergar

Salt and pepper

Lime wedges, to serve

Freshly ground black pepper

Method

Pop the fish in a bowl and squeeze the lime juice over it. Make sure it is coated in the lime juice and then cover and chill in the fridge while you make the crust.

Boil the kettle and pop a pan of boiling water on a simmer.

To make the crust, spray a frying pan with 1kal and fry the chorizo for a minute or two until the fat starts to ooze out of the chorizo. Tear the bread into pieces and add it to the pan mixing with the chorizo. Fry for a few minutes until the bread has absorbed some of the fat from the chorizo. Pop onto a plate and leave to cool for a few minutes.

Pre heat the oven to 180c.

Put the bread and chorizo into a food processor and whizz into crumbs. Then add the garlic, lime zest, Parmesan, salt and crushed chillies with a good twist of freshly ground black pepper. Whizz again to combine the ingredients.

Take a baking tray/dish, spray with 1kal and lay the fish on the tray with the marinating juices. Spoon the chorizo mixture on top of the fish and pressing it on firmly. Pop in the oven for 15 minutes until the fish is cooked and the crust is crisp.

(If you are having the balsamic roasted tomatoes, pop them in the oven at the same time in a baking dish covered with a crushed garlic clove, seasoning and a glug of balsamic vinegar).

While the fish is cooking, boil the new potatoes for 12-13 minutes (mine were small so didn’t need long). For the last 3 minutes add the green beans to the same pan and for the last minute pop a colander over the pan and steam the spinach to wilt.

Drain everything and pop the spinach and green beans to one side.

In the same frying pan you did the chorizo in, turn the heat up high, spray 1 kal and add the potatoes. Crush lightly with a potato masher to roughen the edges, season and then fry until the edges are nicely browned. Pop onto the plate.

In the same pan, add the butter and once melted add the spinach and coat. Pop on the plate. Then fry the green beans for a few minutes in the same pan to add a little colour. Top the spinach with the green beans. (If you are having the tomatoes, pop face down into the frying pan to brown and finish).

Remove the fish from the oven and sit on top of the spinach/green beans.

Serve with some extra lime wedges.

Enjoy!