BROILED OYSTERS WITH SABAYON GLAZE

Serves 4 as a first course, or 6 to 12 as an hors d’oeuvre

one dozen oysters, No. 3 or 4 in size
1 pound (500 grams) rock salt
¼ cup (60 ml) dry white wine or champagne
2 egg yolks
1 shallot, minced
Freshly ground black pepper

1. Shuck the oysters. Place the meat in a strainer or colander over a bowl to catch the liquid. Discard the flat top shells, but rinse and save the deeper bottom ones.

2. Strain the oyster liquid into a small saucepan and add the wine. Bring to a simmer and cook until reduced by about half. Fill a broiler-proof dish—large enough to hold all the oyster shells—with rock salt. Nestle the reserved shells into the salt. Place an oyster into each shell. Sprinkle each oyster with a little minced shallot and black pepper.

3. Preheat the broiler while you prepare the sabayon: in a double boiler or a metal bowl placed over a saucepan, whisk the egg yolks over barely simmering water. Slowly drizzle in the wine-oyster reduction, and continue whisking until the sauce thickens and lightens in both color and texture. (This can take up to 10 minutes, so be patient.) Spoon the sabayon over the oysters in their shells and broil until the sauce begins to brown on top and the oysters are heated through, about 5 minutes. Serve hot.

Tempo di vacanza, tempo di ostriche. Un gruppo di amici è in viaggio vicino a Cannes per gustarsi il meglio. Camilla Malmquist, chef pasticcere a Parigi, buongustaia e autrice di un piacevole blog "Croque-Camille", propone in queste ore: broiled oysters with sabayon glaze. Una facile ricetta dove le ostriche, le Fines de Claires quelle consigliate, numero 3 o 4, sono servite in sabayon glaze, salsa che in minima parte richiama lo zabaglione italiano. Un bel mix dolce-salato, dove la chef aggiunge qualcosa di suo come l'inserto di cipollotto e pepe nero. Da provare.