Monkfish Braised with Cherry Tomatoes and Basil

Very nice! I found it a little complicated to prepare, but it probably didn’t help that I had time pressure, only two stove tops instead of the four I needed, very little space, and I was babbling on the telephone for quite a while!

We had too much sauce, although I blame myself for adding too much water in a rush. Also, the fish fell apart, but I suppose that would have been due to the fact that it was cod and not monkfish (Alan Davidson describes monkfish as being 'firm, white and lobster-like' in Mediterranean Seafood, and cod as 'falling into large flakes' in The Oxford Companion to Food); nevertheless, cod was the more environmentally-friendly choice so I'm happy with that.

I cannot support Molly Stevens' suggestion to cook the pasta first and then add the pasta water to the sauce, as your pasta will dry out and cool in the meantime, and by the time the fish is done it won't soak up any sauce any more. I would have expected her to know.

You’ll have half a fennel bulb left, which you can slice and then fry/cook with some rosemary and lemon juice to serve it as a very small side dish (add another fennel bulb for a proper 4-6 person side dish).