Bear with me, at first hearing this sounds a bit odd. But it is very tasty. Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa, has adapted the main flavours of a Caesar salad and combined them as a topping for fish. Without the cos lettuce. This really appealed to us as Caesar salad, in a variety of ways, is probably our most-oft eaten supper in summer. We used rosada, a pinky-toned white fish which is easily available in Spain, but it would work with pretty much anything. The sauce is strongly flavoured though, so don’t use an expensive fish as you won’t taste it. Cod or Pollock would be fine. We ate it with fried potatoes, very Spanish!

Serves 6
2 large cloves of garlic, chopped
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tbsp anchovy paste [or the drained anchovy fillets from a small tin]
2 tsps smooth Dijon mustard
1 cup good mayonnaise from a jar
1 tbsp grated lemon zest from 2 lemons
3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3lb firm white fish, cut into 6 portions, ¾-1 inch thick
½ cup chopped spring onions, white and green parts
2 tbsp good quality olive oil
3 tbsp drained capers
Lemon wedges, for serving

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil. For the Caesar sauce:- place the garlic, parsley, anchovies and mustard in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, and pulse until the garlic is minced. Add the mayonnaise, lemon juice, lemon zest, 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper. Pulse to make a smooth sauce. Place the fish on the baking sheet and sprinkle both sides generously with salt and pepper. Set aside one-third of the sauce to serve with the cooked fish. Spread the fish on one side with half the remaining sauce, turn the fish and spread the remaining sauce on the second side. Sprinkle with the chopped salad onions, allow to stand for 10 minutes.

Roast the fish for 10-12 minutes until the centre is barely cooked [our fillets were thick and needed an extra five minutes]. Cover the fish with aluminium foil and allow to rest on the baking sheet for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a small frying pan until very hot. Add the drained capers and cook for 30-60 seconds until they start to pop and are a little crisp. Serve the fish hot with lemon wedges, frizzled capers and the reserved Caesar sauce. We eat this with a dish of potatoes, fried in olive oil. 5 to remember
sabroso/a – tasty
la lechuga – lettuce
las alcaparras – capers
filetes de anchoas – anchovy fillets
el bacalao – cod