Baked Cod in a Buttery Parsley Sauce

I had a rather indulgent weekend; my birthday celebrations having started with a bottle of champagne with breakfast at 11am on Saturday, I rolled home from a night out at 3am on the Sunday morning. Needless to say, Sunday was a struggle, and Monday wasn't an easy ride either. Dinner on Monday called for something simple, light, tasty and, possibly most importantly, easy to prepare. I had a giant bunch of parsley in and, looking towards it for inspiration, white fish seemed to fit the bill perfectly, so this is a really simple way to cook a couple of nice cod steaks or fillets; it takes no time at all and tastes delicious, too.

Serves two

Two cod steaks or fillets
A glass of dry white wine
75g of unsalted butter
A large bunch of parsley
Juice of half a lemon

Set the oven to 220C, and meanwhile get the fish ready. Place the steaks in a small roasting pan (If they're fillets, skin side down), pour over the glass of wine, and dot the fish with half of the butter, cut into small cubes. When the oven's hot, put the fish in; it should take 10-15 minutes to cook through, but give it a baste half way through. While this cooks, remove the stalks from your bunch of parsley, and roughly chop the remaining leaves. When the fish is cooked, pour out the juices into a sauce pan and return the fish to the now-turned-off oven to keep warm. Throw the remaining butter and the lemon juice into the pan, and whisk for a minute or so until the sauce thickens slightly. At this point, add the chopped parsley, and stir in. Serve the cod on warmed plates, the sauce poured over, with some boiled new potatoes on the side.

Warm Potato and Pancetta Salad

I was in a rush for dinner last night, as I spent too long lounging around in the park in the afternoon and then had to head across town for a drink in the evening. This was the outcome of my cooking under time pressure, and I thought I'd share it with you as it was actually remarkably tasty. I sliced some new potatoes quite thinly, so they would cook quickly, and fried them up in a little butter over a moderate heat along with some pancetta that I was happy to find in the fridge. I tore up the leaves from a baby gem lettuce, and added a good handful of parsley leaves, left whole, tossing it all in a dressing which was half red wine vinegar, half olive oil, salt and pepper. I was banking on the butter and juices from the pancetta to add enough extra oil to the dressing to make it all balance out. The leaves went onto a plate, and the potato and bacon scattered over the top as soon as ethey were both turning just golden, leaving some of the greens just wilting under the heat. A glass of cold white wine to go with it, and I was cooked, fed and ready to go within twenty minutes. A few shavings of parmesan and some nice little cherry tomatoes would have set it off a treat, and turned it into a pefectly presentable light lunch or dinner to serve to visitors, but I had neither. I coped.

A refreshing summer salad

The sun has been threatening to make a real appearance over the last few days and, at times like this, a clean tasting salad is all I could ask for. Here, the refreshing flavour of peas and parsley sit beside the earthy notes of lentils and a creamy piece of welsh goat's cheese. I actually made this up as a starter for Sunday lunch yesterday and it served as beautifully light introduction to the meal but, to my mind, it would also make a wonderfully light summer lunch served with a cold, crisp glass of white wine. It is very simple, and can mostly be put together ahead of time. Here's a rough outline of what to do:

> Rinse 150g of Puy lentils, tip into boiling water and simmer for around 20 minutes.
> Drain the lentils, place them in a bowl and toss in a nice olive oil; it will smell beautiful.
> Boil 150g of peas until tender, rinse under cold water, and add to the lentils.
> Add a squeeze of lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste, and enough extra olive oil to give the whole thing a nice sheen.
> Just before serving, tear off the leaves from a small bunch of parsely and stir in to the pea and lentil mixture.
> Divide the salad between the plates, topping with a slice or two of your favourite goats cheese.

Serves six as a starter, or three as a main.