Coquilles Saint Jacques

This is a great starer to a meal or as a main dish depending on your appetite

Servings: 6

Ingredients:

1 ½ lbs. scallops

1 cup dry white wine

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 sprigs parsley

2 bay leaf’s

1 tsp salt divided

2 tbsp of thinly sliced green onions

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp flour

1/8 tsp nutmeg

Pepper to taste

½ cup milk

2 egg yolks

½ heavy cream

1 cup soft breadcrumbs torn into small pieces + 2 tbsp melted butter

2 cooked potatoes prepared as you would normal mashed potatoes

Directions:

Half the scallops.  In a saucepan combine scallops, wine, lemon juice, parsley, bay leaves and ½ tsp salt.

Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat. Cover and simmer for 4 minutes.

Remove the scallops while reserving the liquid to a bowl. Discard the parsley and bay leaves.

In a clean skillet cook the green onions in 2 tbsp of butter until tender.

Stir in the flour, ½ tsp salt, nutmeg, and milk.

Cook and stir until think. Remove from the heat and stir in the egg yolks and cream.  Beat with a whisk until smooth. Pour this mixture into the pan the scallops were cooked in and return the scallops to that pan.  Cook and stir over low heat for 3 minutes. Prepare buttered cooking shells and place them on a cookie sheet.

Scoop the scallop mixture evenly among the 6 shells.  Place the cookie sheet with the shells on them into the fridge while preparing the mashed potatoes.

Place the mashed potatoes in a piping bag.  Remove the prepared scallops mixture from the fridge and pipe the mashed potatoes around the edges of the shells.

Melt 2 tbsp of butter in a bowl, large enough to hold both the butter and the fresh breadcrumbs.  Saturate the crumbs in the butter.  Sprinkle the buttered breadcrumbs over the scallop mixture avoiding the mashed potatoes.

Bake in a 400-degree oven or until lightly browned.