Ingredients

Serves 4

QTY	UNIT	INGREDIENTS
Hake Fillet
640	g	Hake Fillet (160g each)
100	ml	Créme Fraiche
1	ea	Lemon (for juice)
		Seasoning

Leek Ragout
2	ea	Leeks
2	ea	Shallots
1	bn	Thyme
100	ml	White Wine
100	ml	Fish Stock
200	ml	Cream
		Seasoning
200	g	Cooked Clams

Boulangere
1.2	kg	Potatoes
200	g	Onion
10	g	Thyme
1	ltr	Chicken Stock
		Seasoning

HAKE FILLET

Baked in Crème Fraiche and served on Boulanger Potatoes with Leek Ragout, Palourd Clams, and Asparagus Spears.

METHOD:

Hake Fillet:

Cut the hake into 160g fillets removing all the bones and scales. Brush each fillet with a light coating of the Crème Fraiche and season well before placing on a tray and into a preheated oven at 180 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes until the fish has a little give in the centre. Now squeeze a little lemon juice over the top of each fillet and allow to rest in a warm oven before serving.

Leek Ragout:

Firstly, Cut the leeks into small dice and rinse in cold water. Pour the white wine into a hot pot and place in the roughly chopped shallots along with the thyme, bring to the boil and reduce by half. Now add in the fish stock and reduce by half again. Now add in the cream and bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer until the sauce has reduced enough to a thick consistency. In a separate pot add a little olive oil and place over a moderate heat. Add in the diced leaks and gently sweat them leeks down, stirring continuously until they have softened. Now add the sauce to the leeks. Check the seasoning, adding a little lemon juice as well to cut through the cream. Now add the clams and bring back to the boil before serving.

Boulangere Potatoes:

Peel and slice all the potatoes into thin rounds and do the same to the onion. Grease an earthen ware dish and lay down a layer of potato slices on the bottom followed by a little seasoning and chopped thyme, then a few of the onion slices. Continue layering like this until the dish is almost full. Pour over the chicken stock until it just comes to the top of the potatoes. Cover the dish with tin foil and place in a pre-heated oven at 160 for 45 minutes after which remove the foil and return to the oven for a further 15 minutes. Allow the potatoes to cool a little before trying to cut into portions.

Presentation:

Place the Potatoes in the centre of a large bowl. Surround the potatoes with plenty of the leek ragout and pick out the clams, placing them around neatly to garnish the dish. The perfect vegetable to go with the this now is Asparagus, place a few blanched asparagus spears around the bowl now before perching the Hake on top of the potatoes. Finish the dish with a little sakura cress.

Enjoy!