Oysters in Champagne Sauce

recipe

Oysters in Champagne Sauce

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For a spectacular presentation, serve the oysters in the shell, on a bed of coarse sea salt. The salt looks wonderful and also keeps the shells upright while you grill them

Ingredients

40g butter
3 shallots, finely chopped
1 x 225g pack fresh baby spinach
a little freshly grated nutmeg
squeeze of lemon juice
12?16 oysters
200ml champagne
1 tsp chopped fresh tarragon or pinch dried tarragon
1 x 142ml carton double cream
pinch of caster sugar (optional)
2 tbsp fresh white breadcrumbs
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Serves: 2 Preparation: 50 Total Time: 50min

Directions

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Melt half the butter in a large pan and cook about one-third of the shallots gently for mins over a medium heat until softened. Add the spinach, cover tightly, and cook over a medium heat until the spinach wilts and softens. Uncover and cook for minutes more. Drain off all the pain juices, and press down on the spinach to extract all the water, then chop with a knife. Season and add nutmeg and lemon juice, to taste.
Carefully take the oysters out of their shells and reserve any juices. Set the oysters aside while you wash and dry the bottom shells. Place the shells on a bed of sea salt in two ovenproof baking dishes. Place a little of the spinach in each shell, and top with an oyster.
Melt the remaining butter in a pan and cook the remaining shallots very gently for mins until softened. Add the champagne and tarragon and bring to the boil. Simmer vigorously to reduce the liquid by just over half, leaving about tbsp in the pan.
Add the cream and continue to simmer for about mins or until the sauce has reduced and is rich and thickened. Strain the oyster juices through a fine sieve to remove any grit, then add the strained juice to the pan. Boil again to reduce, if necessary, so the sauce s quite thick (this will depend on the amount of juice from the oysters).