Baked sea bass provencal with tagliolini al pesto

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas 4.

2. First make the pesto. Using a pestle and mortar pound the basil with the pine nuts and garlic to a paste. Mix in the Parmesan and the Pecorino and gradually add enough olive oil to make a thin paste. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper and set aside.

3. Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy-based frying pan. Add the squid and pan-fry for 2-3 minutes, until opaque. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Remove the squid with a slotted spoon and reserve.

4. Add the piquillo peppers to the frying pan. Fry gently for 2-3 minutes, stirring often. Season with salt, freshly ground pepper and the sugar and cook for 3-4 minutes.

5. Add the sherry vinegar and cook until the peppers are glazed. Mix in the balsamic vinegar and cook until reduced. Remove the pepper mixture with a slotted spoon and reserve.

6. Add the garlic to the frying pan and fry gently until softened, around 2-3 minutes. Mix in the oven-dried tomatoes, black olives, thyme leaves, fried piquillo pepper mixture, fried squid and a tablespoon of the pesto. Mix well and season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Set aside to cool.

7. Stuff the sea bass with the squid mixture and place in an oiled baking tray. Bake for 20 minutes until cooked through.

8. Meanwhile, cook the tagliolini in a large pan of boiling salted water until al dente, around 3 minutes, drain and toss with pesto.

9. Serve the sea bass with the pesto-tossed tagliolini.

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Ingredients

3 tbsp Olive oil
250g fresh squid, cleaned and diced
salt and fresh ground black pepper
150g fresh piquillo peppers
pinch of Sugar
1 tsp Balsamic vinegar
dashes of sherry vinegar
1 garlic clove, crushed
100g oven-dried tomatoes, diced
50g pitted black olives, diced
2 sprigs of Thyme, leaves picked
1 whole sea bass (900g-1.25 kg), cleaned and gutted, head and backbones removed, leaving fillets attached on belly side

For the Pesto:

100g Pine kernels
2-3 garlic cloves, peeled
100g Parmesan, grated
100g Pecorino Romano cheese, grated
2 large bunches of fresh basil leaves
extra virgin olive oil, as required

To serve:

250g fresh tagliolini

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