Cod fillets with black olives in mildly spiced tomato sauce

We have reached this point again, one week before Easter Sunday and all is sunny and bright and Springy!! Palm Sunday today for the Greek Orthodox calendar (the Catholic one too for that matter since both Easters coincide this year) and this was our meal today which we really enjoyed! According to the forty days fasting period before the Greek Orthodox Easter (Lent), today is the second occasion where fish is allowed to be eaten giving the chance to those who fast to enjoy something different other than strictly Lenten food. The original recipe (and the tradition) asks for salted cod but since it's not easy to find it over here we compromised with fresh cod fillets and it didn't lack in taste at all! Of course it is a recipe which can be cooked anytime through the year. Simple ingredients and easy way of cooking gave us this delicious and filling meal which is great along with a green salad and fresh crusty bread to mop up the sweet sauce

Cooked by Elias Demirtzoglou,

"Cook Book" magazine of "ETHNOS" newspaper

Ingredients (for 4 people):

800 gr. of fresh cod fillets (or salted or frozen)

1 large onion, roughly grated
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped (optional)

400 gr. of ripe tomatoes, roughly grated
1 tsp of sugar

180 gr. of black olives, pitted (in slices if large)

2-3 tbsp of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 lemon, the zest

3/4 tea-cup of olive oil

1 tsp of sweet paprika

1/2 tsp of sweet cayenne pepper
pinch of salt (only if fresh or frozen fish is used)

1 sprig of fresh lemon thyme

Method:
*** In case you use salted cod fillets don't forget that they need to be soaked for 2 days in a large bowl filled with water which you must change 3-4 times a day so to discard as much saltiness as possible. In that case also be careful with the seasoning of the food and check in the end if any salt is needed

Warm in a spacious shallow pot half of the olive oil on medium heat and sauté the onion and the garlic (if used) for about 7 minutes stirring with a wooden spatula.

Add in the pot the tomatoes, the paprika, the sugar, the cayenne pepper and the lemon thyme. Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer the sauce for about 10 minutes and, only if needed, add half a glass of water.

Place the fish fillets in the sauce, pour the rest of the oil and add the olives. Continue cooking for another 15-20 minutes or until the food is left with a nice and not too runny sauce. *** Check the seasoning before you add any salt because of the olives.

Serve immediately, sprinkling on top with the parsley (which you can, instead, add it in the pot shortly before cooking ends) and the lemon zest.