Smoked Haddock Florentine Bake

I've been a member of The Orchard at Tesco programme for several months now. It's not just open to bloggers but anybody who shops at Tesco and wishes to try out their products and give feedback on them. The latest programme has been for fresh fish and to try out either pre-packed fish or from the fish counter. I wasn't sure what fish I wanted when I went shopping and decided to see what looked good and took my fancy. I saw that the pre-packed coloured smoked haddock was on offer and checked the fresh counter to find the undyed smoked haddock was also on offer at £3.33 per kilo less! Decision made and I knew what I wanted to make with it – a smoked haddock Florentine.

Apparently the term 'Florentine' dates from the 16^th century. The tale goes that Catherine de Medici, the Italian wife of France's King Henry II, introduced spinach to the Court of France. Catherine was seen in some circles as the most powerful woman in 16^th century Europe and as such any dish containing spinach was then termed 'Florentine' to denote Catherine's birthplace. On its own I'm not a fan of spinach but once paired with smoked fish it is transformed. For nutritional value it is packed full of iron, vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C, folic acid, manganese, magnesium and vitamin B2. Rather than serve this with just the cheese sauce I added the sliced potatoes on top to make it a complete dish – just remember to slice the potatoes thinly.

Serves 4

Equipment: Large frying pan, saucepan, large saucepan, oven-proof dish

Ingredients

1lb 3½ oz (550g) Smoked haddock fillet, skinned and cut into four pieces

½ pint (280ml) Milk

4oz (115g) Cheddar cheese, grated

7oz (200g) Spinach

Pinch of nutmeg

9 oz (250g) Potatoes, thinly sliced

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/Gas mark 4.

2. Poach the haddock in the milk for 5-6 minutes until it is cooked.

3. Take the fish out of the pan and put to one side saving the milk.

4. In a separate saucepan put in the flour and pour in the milk. Turn up the heat and whisk continuously until it thickens. Add half of the cheese and stir in. Put to one side.

5. Wash the spinach and shake off as much water as possible. In a large saucepan cook the spinach until it starts to wilt. Grate the nutmeg over the spinach.

6. Lay the spinach on the bottom of the oven-proof dish and then place the haddock on top.

7. Pour over the cheese sauce and the layer the potatoes on top. Sprinkle over the remaining cheese and cook for 15 minutes.

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