spinach and mackerel dauphinoise

my love affair with smoked mackerel continues unabated!

this recipe is much richer than many of the others i’ve posted but is perfect for the cold snowy weather we’re experiencing in scotland at the moment. we’re on holiday and spending the week in strathdon (40 miles west of aberdeen), staying in a beautiful cottage that belongs to our good friends john and hutch (thank you both again!) and warming, comforting food is definitely the order of the day.

i’m not a big fan of rich creamy dishes, or potatoes really, but this dish is a star and i’ll definitely be making it again. it’s one of those dishes i want to make for everyone i know who loves food - it’s really that good, so you should definitely try it.

you could use double cream in place of the crème fraiche but i prefer this as it has a tanginess that cuts through the richness of the mackerel. let me know what you think when you try it…

spinach and mackerel dauphinoise (serves 3-4)

450g potatoes, peeled and sliced into 4mm thick discs

225g peppered mackerel, skin removed and flaked into bite size pieces

225g spinach, wilted

2 bay leaves

400ml low fat crème fraiche

1 tablespoon grain mustard

preheat the oven to 190c.

lightly butter an ovenproof dish and cover the bottom with a layer of potatoes. top this with the wilted spinach. mix the remaining potatoes with the mackerel and place on top of the spinach. place the bay leaves on top.

mix the crème fraiche and mustard and spoon over the potatoes and mackerel. bake for 1 hour until bubbling and the potatoes are cooked through.

Comments

[jane]

this looks good abby, i think it'd be good with roasted vine tomatoes.

[abby]

hi jane, that sounds like a great accompaniment.

[julia]

Abs, I made this over the weekend as it reminded me of a traditional swedish dish, janssons frestelse, which is often found on the easter table. the janssons is made with julienned potatos, anchovies, onion and thick cream, and is rather fabulous. But i liked this dish at least as much. i upped the quantities of spinach and mustard, and added a bit of nutmeg. it was fabulous--tobes and i both loved it, and i'll cook it for my parents when they're next here, to see what they think about the janssons variation.

[abby]

hi julia, janssons frestelse sounds great, perhaps you could email me a recipe and i'll try it out?

[carolyn]

I made this recently - wonderful!

[abby]

carolyn - i'm so glad!