Tender by Lucy Tweed: Champagne hash pie is fish pie in a party frock, fit for a family table or fancy dinner

This is the epitome of Lazy Luxe — or maybe Lady Lush. It is the kind of recipe that makes you smirk, saunter and giggle occasionally as you meander about the kitchen assembling it. Cheeky. A bit ridiculous. Ultimately delicious and fun. The kind of thing you might throw together for the family on a weeknight but equally fling down with flair for a table of black tie dinner guests, preferable with an icy bowl of caviar, a dollop of creme fraiche and a tumble of chopped chives passed around as condiments. A fish pie in a party frock. Serve with a crisp green salad or buttered steamed greens on the side.

Champagne Hash Pie

500g ocean trout fillet or other firm white fish fillets, skin removed, chopped into bite-sized pieces

500g raw prawn meat, tails removed, chopped into bite-sized pieces

1 smoked river trout or hot smoked salmon fillets, meat flaked from the bone

135g (1 cup) cooked picked crab meat

1 leek, pale part only, thinly sliced

15g (¼ cup) dill, picked

375ml (1½ cups) champagne or prosecco

250ml (1 cup) pouring cream

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp dijon mustard

2 tbsp cornflour

Zest of ½ lemon

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

10 frozen oval-shaped hash browns, halved

Preparation

Step 1 Preheat the oven to 200C fan-forced.

Step 2 In a large bowl, combine the ocean trout, prawn meat, smoked trout, crab meat, leek, dill, champagne or prosecco, cream, lemon juice, mustard, cornflour and lemon zest. Season generously with salt and pepper and mix gently to combine. If you prefer a saucier bake, add an extra 60ml (¼ cup) of prosecco at this stage. Pour the mixture into an oiled ovenproof baking dish.

Step 3 Arrange the hash brown halves on top of the seafood mixture, overlapping slightly to create a scaled effect.

Step 4 Bake in the oven for approximately 45 minutes, or until the centre is steaming hot and the fish is cooked through. Best eaten immediately but can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Serves 6

Cook time: 45 Minutes

Hints

• If the top is browning too quickly, cover loosely with foil for the last 10–15 minutes.
• Add a handful of peas or baby spinach to the seafood mixture for extra greens.

Extracted from Tender by Lucy Tweed. Photography by Rob Palmer, Murdoch Books, $39.99