Fish pie baked potatoes

Created by scooping out the flesh of the potatoes and incorporating it into the pie filling, these are creamy, hearty and so comforting. You can make them a day ahead and they freeze really well. I love serving a large platter of green vegetables alongside – green beans tossed in butter, broad beans with fresh mint, chard with a sprinkle of chilli, or spinach creamed with fresh nutmeg.

SERVES 4

4 baking potatoes, scrubbed

125g salted butter

50g Cheddar cheese, finely grated

300ml whole milk

1 bay leaf

5 black peppercorns

250g fish pie mix, such as salmon, white fish and smoked fish

200g raw prawns, peeled

70g plain flour

100ml dry white wine (optional)

1tsp Dijon mustard

1tbsp finely chopped fresh chives, plus extra to garnish

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C/ 180°C fan/gas mark 6. Prick the potatoes all over with a fork and sprinkle with a little salt. Bake for 1 hour or until tender. Remove from the oven and leave them to cool enough so that you can handle them. Leave the oven on.

2 Halve the potatoes and scoop out the flesh into a bowl, leaving a 1cm shell. Mash the potato flesh with 50g of the butter and mix in the grated cheese. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

3 Place a saucepan over a medium heat and add the milk, bay leaf and black peppercorns. Bring to the boil, add the fish and prawns, reduce the heat to low and poach for 4-5min. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the fish to a plate and discard the bay leaf and peppercorns.

4 Place a clean saucepan over a low heat and melt the remaining butter, then whisk in the flour to make a thick paste or roux and cook for 3min. Slowly whisk in the poaching milk and continue whisking until you reach a smooth consistency.

5 Next, whisk in the white wine, if using, then simmer for 15min, stirring occasionally. Stir in the Dijon mustard and chopped chives, followed by the fish and prawns. Season with salt and pepper.

6 Spoon the fish and sauce into the potato shells and top with the mashed potato and cheese mixture. Place them on a baking tray and bake for 20min until piping hot and the cheesy mash is golden.

7 Serve with a sprinkling of chopped chives and a generous twist of freshly ground black pepper.