Coquille Printemps
April 30, 2007
Coquille Printemps
("Springtime Sea Scallops")
For those of you who frequent the tasting bar on
Saturdays, you know that I shop the local Farmers' Market religiously every
Saturday before work (located in the Sunrise Mall parking lot behind Sears) http://www.california-grown.com/ .
This past Saturday, I had purchased my usual bounty of seasonal produce, and was
happily looking forward to an "easy" dinner of panini made with some
leftover grilled pork tenderloin, sauteed fennel and cabbage, and teleme
cheese.
Well, a certain friend/customer/caterer of ours,
Kim Scott of Mama Kim Cooks, played "ingredient fairy" and laid
10 fresh colossal, dry-packed dayboat sea scallops on us. The pork
could certainly wait; I now had to come up with something spectacular to do with
such a gift. Here it is: Seared scallops with fennel and leek
puree-
This dish screams SPRINGTIME. It may be served either
as a first course (recommended- it's so rich!) or as a main. See what
we did the next day for Sunday
brunch too...
Choose the number of scallops you'd like to serve
depending on the portion. Figure 1 or 2 per person for an appetizer/multi
course dinner, or 3 to 6 for an entree served with a salad or pasta on the
side.
To facilitate best results, read
through the entire recipe, and "prep" all ingredients ahead of time; timing is
everything when working with fragile/quick cooking ingredients such as
scallops.
For the fennel and leek
puree:
2 tablespoons unsalted
butter
1 medium fennel bulb, fronds removed; bulb cut in half
pole to pole, then sliced thinly
2 small to medium leeks, white and pale green part only;
leeks cut in half lengthwise and rinsed thoroughly, then sliced
thinly
1 teaspoon whole fennel seeds, ground in a spice grinder
or mortal and pestle
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 cup Pernod
1/3 cup heavy cream
generous pinch of salt
Melt butter in a 10 inch saute pan over medium-high
heat. Add sliced fennel and leeks. Saute, stirring frequently, until
vegetables just start to show color (do not let brown or carmelize!),
approximately 7 to 10 minutes. Add ground fennel seeds, white pepper, and
Pernod. Reduce heat to medium-low, still being careful to not brown
vegetables. Continue to cook gently for about another 10 minutes, stirring
often, until vegetables feel "al dente" (softened but still a tad
firm). Add the cream and salt; cover pan to let the cream become infused,
and allow the fennel and leeks continue to soften for about 5 more
minutes.
Puree the mixture in a blender or food processor to a
smooth consistency. The texture should be fluffy and smooth; if it seems
too dense, add a touch of cream, water, or stock. Put the puree in a
small covered saucepan and keep warm over very low heat.
For the pan-seared scallops:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
6-12 very large sea scallops, preferably
fresh/dry-packed for best quality; rinsed and patted dry with paper or cotton
floursack towels
1/4 cup Pernod
Melt butter in a 10 inch saute pan over high heat. When
butter begins to brown, add scallops to pan. Sear on first side for 60 to
90 seconds. Using tongs, flip scallops. REMOVE PAN FROM FLAME.
Add Pernod to pan. Place pan back over flame and tip slightly to ignite
Pernod (if cooking on an electric burner, Pernod may be ignited by using a long
fireplace match). Flame and sear for one minute more. Remove
pan from heat.
Plating and garnish:
Warmed, shallow, wide-rimmed bowls
freshly shucked and blanched English shell
peas
fresh tarragon sprigs; divided use (mince some for sprinkling;
save some for decoration)
fennel fronds
coarse sea salt
Spoon fennel and leek puree into warm bowls. Arrange
scallops on top of puree. Drizzle pan sauce from seared scallops
on top of scallops. Throw in a handful of peas; sprinkle with minced
tarragon. Top with a pinch of coarse sea salt.
Decoratively garnish with a small hit of tarragon sprigs and fennel
fronds.
If you have leftovers, or want to
pre-prep for a Mother's Day Brunch:
Seared Scallops and Poached Eggs with Fennel and
Leek Puree
One day ahead: Prepare fennel and leek
puree; refrigerate overnight; bring to room temperature before continuing with
recipe. Blanch peas, or skip them...
The morning of: Saute some
finely minced pancetta, bacon, or ham (figure about 1.5 oz
per person; just a dab for that salty, breakfast-meat kind of flavor) in a small
pan; then add vegetable puree. Keep warm.
Fire the scallops just like above, but after they're seared,
you can slice them horizontally so 2 scallops per person are more
than plenty!
Poach 2 fresh eggs per person,
and:
plate as above in the following order: puree,
scallops, poached eggs, tarragon, sea salt (not so much- the meat is
salty).
Serve with multi-grain toast to sop up the goo, and a side of
fresh fruit.
Renee Kroeger
The Wine Consultant
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