Mackerel Pate

This has to be the easiest pate ever to make and I can assure you that you will never buy shop bought fish pate again. You can use all sorts of fish: salmon, trout, haddock etc, but this is the simple bog standard version. This is so easy it involves no cooking, just putting together.
You get the best texture if the mix is given some quick blitzes in a food processor but, if you don't own one, mash the mixture with a fork and use a sharp knife to finely cut up the pepper/gherkin/onion.

Ingredients:

• One shop bought packet of mackerel, any version will do normal, peppered, lemon etc, I am using normal here.
• A couple of small spring onions, white only, use 1 if large.
• 1 large gherkin, 2 if you like these.
• Slice of red or yellow pepper about 1/8 of the pepper
• Creme fraiche/Mayonnaise. Cream if you want to indulge. (sometimes I throw in some cream cheese, you can change the quantities of these to suit your tastes).
• Lemon juice
• Pepper

Wash the gherkin to remove excess vinegar, and put into your processor through the tube whist the blade is spinning. At the same time add the spring onion & pepper, to finely chop all of these. Turn off machine and scrape pieces off the sides and redo if not fine enough.

Peel the skin and add the fish, just pulse a couple of times to gently mix.

Add some creme fraiche and mayonnaise, pulse into the mix. Check and if required add more to get your consistency.

Now pulse to get the coarseness you prefer, I like mine chunky but sometimes I make it completely smooth.

Add lemon & pepper to taste & one final pulse to mix these in.

That's it, another simple meal, get some crusty bread/crackers an enjoy.