Mackerel is great value and, to my mind, undervalued and underused. It is in plentiful supply and I love the meaty texture of the fish. But, and this is important, it needs to be fresh. It is full of good oils so, as well as being tasty, it is the healthy option.

If you buy it from your fishmonger you can have it filleted and pin boned. This year I have been giving an all-day fish cooking course at my cookery school beside the restaurant in Blacklion. I find that a lot of people are nervous about cooking fish and tend to overcook it. Getting it right is not difficult to learn.

This pesto recipe is great with any pasta or on top of a bruschetta.

Hake is also good value and has a nice soft flesh. This recipe has an interesting crust and there is lots of roughage in the wholemeal breadcrumbs.

People often show me a butternut squash and ask what to do with it. “What is this and how do I cook it?” are frequent questions. It is such a versatile vegetable. It is good roasted, grilled or on the barbecue. And it makes a lovely soup purée. Cherry tomatoes are so sweet. And here is a little tip – when the tomatoes are cooked, then so is the fish.

Happy cooking.

Herb and Nut-Crusted Hake Fillets with

Butternut Squash

Serves four

12 thin slices of butternut squash, thinly sliced and par boiled for 2 minutes

50g butter

6 slices wholemeal bread, crusts removed (1-day old)

2oz/50g walnut halves, roughly chopped

6 tablespoons chopped fresh-mixed herbs (such as parsley and chives)

Finely-grated rind of 1 orange

Pinch freshly-grated nutmeg

4 x 6oz/175g hake fillets skin on, pin boned (each at least 1in/2.5cm thick)

1 egg yolk, beaten

4 small cherry tomato vines (about 8 on each one)

1 tablespoon rapeseed oil

1 Bring a wide pan of salted water to the boil and blanch the butternut sqaush slices for two minutes until just tender. Drain and leave aside until cool enough to handle.

2 Preheat the oven 200°C (400°F/gas mark 6). Melt the butter in a small pan or in the microwave and leave to cool. Place the bread in a food processor or liquidiser and whiz to fine crumbs. Tip into a bowl and stir the cooled butter, walnuts, herbs, orange rind and nutmeg. Season to taste and mix well to combine.

3 Arrange the butternut squash slices in four groups of three on a baking sheet and place the hake fillets on top of each one, skin-side down. Season and brush over the egg yolk. Divide the flavoured crumbs on top of the hake fillets and then spread them out, pressing them down firmly to stick. Arrange the tomato vines around the crusted hake fillets and drizzle each one with a little of the oil. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the hake is cooked through, the crumbs are crisp and golden and the tomatoes have softened and are lightly charred.

4 To serve, use a fish slice to transfer the crusted hake and butternut squash slices onto serving plates. Add a vine of the roasted cherry tomatoes to each plate and enjoy.

Pan-Fried Mackerel with Mash and Tomato Stew

Serves four

4 mackerel fillets

1 tablespoon Donegal rapeseed oil

1 red onion, diced

1 clove garlic, crushed

6 vine tomatoes, cut into halves

Dash red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon tomato puree

Pesto

21 bunches basil

75g/3oz grated parmesan

1 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted

1 clove garlic

100ml rapeseed oil

1 First make the pesto sauce by putting the basil, parmesan, pine nuts and garlic in a blender. Chop up well and add seasoning. Add the olive oil and blend again, keep in a jar or bottle in the fridge.

2 Heat one tablespoon of oil in a saucepan and add the onion and garlic and cook gently for one to two minutes. Add the tomatoes, vinegar, sugar and tomato puree. Stir well and season to taste. Let this sauce cook slowly until the mixture dries out a little, about five minutes should do it.

3 For the fish, score the flesh of the mackerel three times on each side and cook skin-side down. Turn over and cook for a further two minutes on the pan or place in a hot oven at 180°C (350°F/gas mark 4).

4 To serve, place the mash potato in the centre of the plate and spoon some stewed tomatoes beside it. Place the fish on the mash and drizzle with pesto. CL