Lovely Lemon Capers!

The great thing about doing something that you love is that is rarely becomes a chore, always makes demands on your creative side and never really feels like work in the traditional sense. Hard work, yes! But strangely (and sometimes masochistically after 18 hours) gratifying. So enough of my ‘look at me’ self gratification, it’s another day and another menu banging at my kitchen door awaiting my obsessive indulgence.

Having come from a place where wastage was not an immediate concern – I am ashamed to admit this was probably due to a lack of respect - I have suddenly found myself challenging the weekly ritual of emptying the fridge of out-of-date foodstuffs (those ‘must haves’ which seemed like a good idea when walking around the supermarket) or throwing out leftovers I felt sure "would come in handy for tomorrows dinner" and which I spent precious time packaging up into one of the thousand plastic containers which seem to multiply on their own and take up residence in the largest cupboard in the kitchen.

Tonight I find myself looking at a menu which involves yesterdays mash potato and a longing for capers (one of the side effects of working in food are an ever changing craving for using different ingredients, I think actually it is the subconscious testing my creative abilities). 

The inspiration for the Lemon Caper Dressing came from a holiday in Jamaica (it was served with Breaded Veal Escalope and was in jeopardy of becoming my staple diet while I was there - it was so good). On returning home to England I did what any recipe obsessed individual would do and I recreated it. Since then the accompanying options have been limitless and always gorgeous.

Salmon and Prawn Fishcakes with Lemon Caper Dressing (serves 4)

Salmon and Prawn Fishcakes

200g Salmon Fillet
200g King Prawns
150g Mash Potatoes
1 Egg Yolk
1 dsp chopped Flat Leaf Parsley
1 dsp chopped Dill
Zest of 1 Lemon
4 tbsp Plain Flour
2 eggs (whisked with a little water)
Seasoning
Plain Flour and Breadcrumbs for coating

Lemon Caper Dressing

Olive Oil
1 Shallot (finely chopped)
Juice of one Lemon
100g Unsalted Butter (straight from the fridge)
4 dsp Capers
Seasoning

This recipe is so quick, simple yet delicious it barely warrants instructions.

Roughly chop the salmon and prawns together and mix with the mash potato, zest, egg yolk, dill, coriander and seasoning until combined. Don’t over mix as the chunkiness is good for texture in the fishcake.

Put the egg wash, flour and breadcrumbs in to different bowls. Take dessert spoonfuls of the fish mixture and shape into balls (you can make them traditional fishcake shape if you want but I think they look a bit different this way). Roll them in the egg, then the flour and finally the breadcrumbs. Place onto a baking tray and when all the fishcakes have been prepared place the tray in the fridge for 30 minutes. This helps the crumb to set on the fishcake and reduces loss when cooking.

Heat the olive oil in a large flat frying pan and add the fish cakes a few at a time cooking until golden all over – just jiggle the pan around to ensure the fish cake is browned all over. When all the cakes have been fried place them in the oven on a low heat (120 ish degrees) to keep warm while you make the dressing.

Wipe out the frying pan and pour in 2 tablespoons of Olive Oil with the shallot until softened and translucent. Add the juice of 1 Lemon and the capers, cook for a couple of minutes. Whisk in the butter, cubed and taken directly from the fridge, (it should be cold when you add it so it acts as both an ingredient and also a thickener in the dressing). When melted and combined, season the sauce being careful with the addition of Salt as the Capers are salty to begin with.

Serve dressing with fishcakes and do what any self respecting foodie does... simply indulge!