Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Fishy business

Post Thumbnail

Forget coffee, tea or an icy shower, if there’s anything guaranteed to give restaurant owners Mitch Tonks and Mat Prowse a boost in the morning, it’s their breakfast grappa.

Since travelling around Europe years ago, on the hunt for culinary inspiration for their celebrated Seahorse restaurant in Devon, the two friends have continued the boozy ritual, which is popular in food markets in Italy and Spain.

“The secret is, it’s only one drink,” says award-winning chef Tonks, who fronted Good Food series, Mitch and Matt’s Big Fish Recipes, with former rugby star Matt Dawson.

The pair’s customary drink is part and parcel of the atmosphere they create in the restaurant, with dancing on tables and musical interludes from their maitre d’ Mark Ely encouraged.

Tonks and Prowse have just released a new recipe book (The Seahorse, Absolute Press, £25) based on the dishes they serve in their restaurant.

“Everything you hear about fish, whether it’s sustainability or cooking it, is all negative,” says Prowse. “But it’s not. It’s easy to cook. Very simply with the sustainability thing, just find yourself a good fishmonger and trust they’re doing that bit for you.”

Fancy trying your hand at some simple fishy dishes? Here are three recipes from the book.

SEA BASS WITH BRAISED COURGETTES

SERVES 4

FOOD Seahorse 105282

100ml plus 1tbsp olive oil

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

4 courgettes, cut into quarters then cut into 2.5cm chunks

A good handful of basil, roughly torn

4 sea bass fillets, about 180-200g each, skin on

1 lemon

Salt and ground white pepper

1 lemon, cut into wedges, to serve

Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas 6.

Heat the 100ml of olive oil in a saucepan over a medium heat. Add the garlic and sweat for a minute without colouring. Next, add the courgettes and basil, then season with salt and white pepper and mix well. Cook the courgettes for about 15 minutes, stirring regularly until most of the water from the courgettes has evaporated and they have stewed down, leaving some in chunks and some completely broken down. Take off the heat and set aside.

Heat a large ovenproof frying pan with the tablespoon of olive oil over a medium heat. Place the sea bass in the pan skin-side down, season with a little salt and cook for about 12 minutes until the sea bass skin starts to take some colour and begins to crisp.

Carefully turn the fillets over and place the pan into the oven and roast for about five minutes, or until the flesh turns white and flakes easily.

To serve, reheat the courgettes over a low heat until they are just warm. Add a good squeeze of lemon and put a generous spoonful onto each warmed plate. Put the sea bass on top and serve with a lemon wedge.

RED GURNARD WITH PEPERONATA AND SALSA VERDE

SERVES 4

FOOD Seahorse 105224

50ml olive oil

4 red gurnard fillets, about 180-200g each, skin on

FOR THE PEPERONATA:

50ml olive oil

2 red onions, sliced

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1tsp dried oregano

1tbsp tomato puree

1/2tsp ground cumin

2 red peppers, deseeded and sliced

2 yellow peppers, deseeded and sliced

A pinch of saffron strands

FOR THE SALSA VERDE:

A handful of flat-leaf parsley

A handful of basil

A handful of mint

2 garlic cloves

1tbsp capers

1tbsp red wine vinegar

12 salted anchovy fillets

1tsp Dijon mustard

4tbsp olive oil

Salt

For the pepperonata, heat the olive oil in a lidded saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onions, garlic and oregano and sweat for five minutes, or until soft. Add the tomato puree and cumin and cook for a further two minutes. Next, add the peppers and saffron and mix well, then cover the pan with a lid and stew the peppers for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Uncover and cook for a further 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Check the seasoning then remove from the heat.

Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas 6. To make the salsa verde, place all the ingredients except the olive oil into a food processor and pulse-blend them to a rough paste. Add half the oil and blend again to combine, then add the remaining oil and repeat.

To cook the fish, heat the olive oil in a large, ovenproof frying pan over a medium heat. Add the red gurnard and cook for about two minutes until golden on one side.

Carefully turn the red gurnard over and place the pan into the oven and roast for six to eight minutes (depending on size and thickness of fish) until cooked.

Remove the fish from the oven and serve with a spoonful of the peperonata and the salsa verde.

CARAMEL AND ESPRESSO PANNACOTTA

MAKES 12 ESPRESSO CUPS

FOOD Seahorse 105268

FOR THE PANNACOTTA:

4 gelatine leaves

220ml freshly made espresso

220ml full-fat milk

120g caster sugar

100ml brandy

360ml double cream

FOR THE SYRUP:

100ml water

300g granulated sugar

125ml freshly made espresso

25ml brandy

Place the gelatine in a small bowl and pour over enough cold water to cover. Soak for five minutes, or until soft, then drain and squeeze out the excess water.

To make the pannacotta, warm the espresso, milk and sugar in a saucepan over a low heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar has dissolved. Add the softened gelatine and stir to dissolve in the warm liquid. Take off the heat and allow to cool (not completely cold, just tepid). Add the brandy and cream and mix well until combined, then pour into espresso cups and allow to set for at least four hours in the fridge.

For the syrup, make a caramel: pour the water into a deep heavy-based saucepan, add the sugar, stir and put over a gentle heat to dissolve the sugar; keep stirring until it is fully dissolved. Once the sugar has dissolved, bring to the boil, and boil until the syrup is a light golden colour. Take off the heat and allow to cool slightly, but not get completely cold.

Carefully pour the 125ml of espresso into the cooled syrup and stir until smooth, then add the brandy. Stir to combine and allow to cool.

To serve, pour a little of the syrup over the top of the pannacottas to completely cover the surface.