Monday 21 January 2013

#FaveFamilyRecipes Competition : Rainbow Fish Pie



BritMums has teamed up with Tilda to promote its initiative with the United Nations World Food Programme to donate 300,000 meals to mothers in Bangladesh, to help give their unborn children the best start in life. Low birth weight can seriously affect babies’ physical and cognitive development, so it’s essential  that they receive vital nutrition from the start.

For every specially marked pack of Tilda Pure Basmati Rice (1kg) sold, Tilda will provide one nutritious meal to a new or expectant mum. In addition, Tilda will also be launching a Mums Helping Mums Cookbook app, available to download from the Tilda website from 1st March.

They've asked bloggers to send through their favourite family recipes for possible inclusion in the app so I've been trying to decide which Madhouse Family fave dish to send through. I asked the rest of the family what they thought and they said "that fish pie you made last week" ! OK, here goes then !


Rainbow Fish Pie

So named originally because of the brightly coloured vegetables hiding in with the fish, but this invariably makes the kids think of the lovely Rainbow Fish book. If it helps get them enthusiastic about eating fish and vegetables, I'm not complaining - and I'm willing to rename my Cheesy Fish Pie!

for a family of 6

ingredients :

about 250g white fish ( that's about 4 fresh fillets - we usually use cod but feel free to buy whatever is on offer - whiting, hake, plaice, coley, etc)
150g smoked fish (mackerel, kippers, haddock, halibut - again, buy whatever is cheapest)
2 handfuls frozen peas
2 handfuls frozen carrots
1 handful frozen sweetcorn
1 onion, peeled and sliced
4 large mushrooms, sliced
2 leeks, sliced
about 8 medium potatoes
a splash of milk
a knob of low-fat spread
50ml half-fat liquid crème fraîche
75g grated 1/2 fat cheddar

Method :

Peel the potatoes, chop them into evenly sized pieces and put into a saucepan of cold, salted water. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, cover and leave to cook for 10-15 minutes.

Gently fry the mushrooms and onions in a spoonful of olive oil for about 4 minutes. Add the leeks and continue cooking for a further 4 minutes until the mushrooms are golden brown, the leeks are soft and the onion is translucent. Tip into an ovenproof dish.

In the same pan, gently fry the white fish for 8-10 minutes in the remaining cooking juices. Season with a little black pepper. When cooked, remove from the heat and use the fish slice (or a fork) to roughly chop the fish into bite-sized pieces. Add to the mushrooms, leeks and onions.

Chop the smoked fish into bite-sized pieces (carefully removing any visible bones). Add to the ovenproof dish.

Cook the frozen vegetables in a saucepan of boiling water for 5 minutes until tooth-tender. Drain and add to the ovenproof dish.


Pour over the cream and gently toss all of the ingredients until they are evenly coated. Flatten the fish/vegetables so they create an even layer.


Drain the potatoes and use a masher or a fork to mash them. Add a knob of low-fat spread and a splash of milk, season with a little salt and pepper. Make sure you get rid of all the lumps to get light, creamy mash.


Add the mash, a spoonful at a time, to the layer of fish and vegetables until the whole dish is covered.


Use a fork to flatten out the top of the mashed potato and create a lined pattern. Sprinkle the grated cheese over the top.

Place in the oven for about 30-40 minutes until the top is slightly browned. This is a great dish for cooking in advance and leaving in the fridge for the next day or even freezing.

Disclosure : This post is part of the #FaveFamilyRecipes Competition with BritMums and Tilda Rice. Every pack sold will provide a meal to an expectant mum in need in support of the World Food Programme’s Mothers Helping Mothers initiative in Bangladesh.


3 comments:

  1. Love the name of your dish. And what a great idea to hide so many veg inside. I haven't had a fish pie for ages.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love the name. I must try this, not had fish pie for a long time

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love fish pie and have never made it so this is a big help. Commenting for BritMums.

    ReplyDelete

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