For the parsley crust
1 bunch flat-leaf parsley
90g fresh bread, crusts removed and broken up
25g Gruyère cheese, grated
60g soft butter

For the carrot jus
1 small onion, chopped
2 sticks celery, chopped
1.75kg carrots, chopped
Olive oil
1 litre still mineral water
2tsp caster sugar
Sea salt

For each portion
130g brill fillet,cut square
30ml white wine
30ml chicken stock
25g butter beans, cooked
4 baby carrots, blanched
20g spinach, ripped
Knob of butter
Salt and pepper

Method

Mix the parsley, bread, cheese and butter in a food processor. Roll to a 2mm thick rectangle between two sheets of greaseproof paper.

Blend the onion, celery and carrots together in the food processor. Sweat in olive oil until soft, then add the mineral water, sugar and salt.

Simmer for an hour, liquidise and pass through a chinois. Pass the resulting liquid through a muslin-lined colander and reduce to 400ml.

Cover the brill with a square of the parsley crust and bake in a mixture of wine and stock for about five minutes at 160ºC.

Heat the beans, carrots and spinach with carrot jus and finish with a knob of butter. Check the seasoning. Arrange in the centre of a plate and top with the brill.

Philip Storey

Photo © Sam Bailey