Simple recipe

In celebration of the Boston premier of the movie No Reservations, I was sent all of the recipes featured in the film. Tomorrow night I am going to be hosting a special screening of the movie, which officially opens on Friday, July 27. I’ve never done anything like this before! Wish me luck!

From recipes in the film, I’ve made the Scallops into a video which I’m sure you will enjoy, and this Saffron Sauce accompanies it perfectly.

Let’s startcooking!

If you are at all nervous about making cooked sauces this is the place to begin. This one is on the really easy end on the “degree of difficulty” scale. It’s an incredibly rich sauce which goes well with chicken or fish. Before eating this sauce, plan on doing a few extra minutes on the treadmill tomorrow!

Saffron is a spice which looks like tiny threads. (It is actually the yellow-orange stigmas from the purple crocus flower.) It is used to tint and flavor food.

It is expensive, but you only use a tiny bit.

For this recipe you will need:

• 1/2 cup of finely minced shallots
• 1/2 cup of dry white wine
• 1 pinch of saffron threads
• 2 tablespoons of heavy cream
• 1 stick of cold butter, cut into pieces
• 2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice and
• Some Salt and pepper

As always, get all your ingredients measured and prepared before you turn on the stove.

Shallots are bought loose or in small net bags. They are a cross between onions and garlic.

Peel the shallots and then mince them. (That means to chop them really fine.)

Squeeze fresh lemon juice. Be sure to strain off the seeds.

Cut the butter into about 8 pieces. Then put it back in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it. One trick with this sauce is that the butter has to be really cold when you add it to the pan.

Add the wine and shallots to a small, heavy pot

Turn the temperature to medium-high and bring the wine and shallots to a boil. Continue to boil everything down to about 2 Tablespoons. That should take about 3 minutes.

Turn the heat down to medium low and add the saffron.

Then add the heavy cream.

Now, whisk in the butter. Add the next piece before the last one has completely melted…..Stirring constantly! Don’t allow the mixture to come to a boil.

Add 2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice.

And some salt and pepper to your taste.

The shallots add a lot of texture to this sauce. If you wanted a really smooth sauce, you could strain the sauce and discard the cooked shallots.

This is a perfect meal to serve to company!

Enjoy!

Adapted from: No Reservations

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