Smoky fish with spinach, gnocchi, cream and mustard

A super-easy, delicious, midweek supper from Gill Meller's latest book Outside which you could, as he says, cook indoors or outdoors.

"Most of the things we cook inside on the hob can be cooked outside over a hot fire. That’s the case with this recipe, anyway. I’m not barbecuing any of the ingredients as such – I’m simply setting a pan down over the hot embers and cooking in a rather conventional way – although in this instance, I’ve replaced the ceiling with the sky and the walls with a view.

What’s particularly nice about this recipe is that it all comes together in the one pan. It’s rich, creamy and autumnal, and one of the tastiest things I’ve eaten in ages."

SERVES 2

100ml (3½fl oz) double (heavy) cream

a small colander of tender spinach leaves, roughly chopped

200g (7oz) skinless smoked fish fillet, cut into bitesize chunks

200g (7oz) gnocchi

1 teaspoon wholegrain mustard

25g (1oz) mature cheddar, grated

freshly ground black pepper

a handful of flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and chopped, to serve

Set a large, deep frying pan over a medium–hot fire. Pour in the cream along with a few tablespoons of water.

Add the spinach and fish to the simmering cream and cook for a minute or so. Add the gnocchi, mustard and cheese and give everything a gentle stir. If the sauce seems a bit thick, add a dash more water.

After a minute or so, the gnocchi will be ready, so you can take the pan off the fire. Add a good twist of black pepper, and sprinkle in the chopped parsley before serving.

Extracted from OUTSIDE by Gill Meller £30 Quadrille. Photography: Andrew Montgomery

What to drink: I'd go for a smooth dry Italian white wine like a Soave or Gavi di Gavi with this but a subtly oaked chardonnay or chenin blanc would work well too. Or a dry cider or perry

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