Magpie Recipe: Cod, asparagus & Hollandaise - serves two

Ingredients

2 x 200g pieces of cod loin

4 slices of prosciutto ham

8 stems of English asparagus

6 crushed peppercorns

2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar

3 egg yolks

250g clarified butter

Half a lemon

A loose hand of wild garlic

Salt and pepper

Method

Season the cod loin with salt and pepper, then wrap each piece with 2 slices of prosciutto ham per loin.

Heat a little oil in a pan and carefully lay in the prosciutto wrapped cod, sear the fish all around then place it onto a baking tray and then into a pre-heated oven (200ᵒc, gas 8) for 8 minutes.

In the same pan that you have seared the cod in, add the asparagus with a little extra oil if needed and over a high heat, tossing frequently, cook the asparagus until beautifully charred, add a squeeze of lemon juice and set aside.

While the fish is in the oven make the Hollandaise sauce by reducing the vinegar in a pan with the peppercorns by one third, remove from the heat and add 1 tablespoon of water and strain into a bowl, cool slightly.

Add to the bowl the egg yolks and whisk this over a bain marie (water bath) to a sabayon (this is to cook the egg, it should be the consistency of lightly whipped cream).

Remove from the heat and gradually whisk in the warm melted butter, do this slowly as if you add too much butter at once the sauce may split.

If the sauce does split don’t worry, just whisk in a little warm water.

Once all the butter has been added, taste and season with salt.

To serve, place some wild garlic leaves onto the plates, then the asparagus followed by the cod and then spoon over the Hollandaise and serve immediately.