Denise says:
I love this recipe, as it is so simple and extremely stylish! I adore the combination of the flavours and colours and textures of the compote. Crunchy chickpeas with garlicky aubergine look great with the final addition of the parsley. If you cannot find lemon thyme use the more readily available regular thyme or rosemary – all with capture the real taste of Mediterranean cooking.
Preparation Time: 25 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour
Serves: 4 people
Ingredients:
4 fillets sea bass – scales removed2 tablespoons plain flour
2 tablespoons olive oil – for frying
For the Compote
450g new potatoes – roughly chopped in small chunks
50ml olive oil
4 garlic cloves –skinned and finely chopped
1 aubergine – cubed
150g cherry tomatoes
1 400g tin chickpeas - drained
1 bunch lemon thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Garnish
Large bunch of fresh parsley
Method
1)Pre-heat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF/Gas mark 6.2)Boil the potatoes for approximately 15 minutes until just soft.
3)Drain and set aside.
4)Immerse the cherry tomatoes in boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain and remove the skins.
5)Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the garlic, aubergines, new potatoes, skinned tomatoes and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
6)Simmer for 10 minutes.
7)Transfer the vegetable compote to an ovenproof dish. Add the chickpeas and lemon thyme. Season again and roast for 40 minutes or until the potatoes are golden and crispy.
8)Dust the sea bass in the plain flour. Season.
9)Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Fry for 3 minutes until the skin has a crispy coating. Turn over and fry for a final 2 minutes.
To serve the stylish way
Stir the parsley into the vegetable compote. Spoon on to a warmed plate and place the sea bass on top.