Lemon Peppered Mackerel

Unlike the the screaming hoards that line up to grab their 15 minutes of fame, I don't actually want to be on TV.  The potential for disaster and embarrassment is far too great.  An old class mate of mine turned up on The Great British Bake Off and I had to watch.  It was great until the disaster. But you won't catch me in a "forgetting to put eggs in a soufflé" situation on the telly.  I can see it happening all too clearly.

There are elements of shows however, that I would like to try my hand at.  The name the ingredient challenge on Masterchef looks fun, as does getting drunk with James May and Oz Clarke.  The one that really gets me though, is Ready Steady Cook.  I'd rather be the cook than the contestant.  The challenge of coming up with a good meal without knowing what's in the shopping bag excites me.

One of these days I'm going to do it.  Invite some friends over and test my ccoking-chops to the full, without a TV crew in attendance.  Not today however.  Today Z has been fighting the Christmas shopping crowds in Leeds.  The world and his wife is going mad for tat, which the final recipient probably doesn't want.  Z had a torrid time but managed to pick up some Mackerel and a lemon along with some stocking fillers.

A black pepper and lemon, bread crumb crust was quickly knocked up for the fish and served with new potatoes and buttered white cabbage.  The whole meal took longer than the prescribed 20 minutes, but then I'm not a professional chef and I wasn't trying to ignore Ainsley Harriott.