Coquilles Saint-Jacques à la Parisienne

Coquilles Saint-Jacques translates as scallops of Saint James — the scallop shell being the emblem of the Santiago de Compostela pilgrimage. The à la parisienne preparation — with its cream sauce, mushrooms, and gratinéed finish — represents the Parisian restaurant's elevation of a coastal shellfish into a preparation of the grand cuisine.

Scallops poached in white wine with mushrooms, the cooking liquid reduced and enriched with béchamel and cream to create a sauce, then everything returned to the scallop shell, masked with the sauce, piped with a border of duchess potato, gratinéed under the grill. Coquilles saint-jacques à la parisienne is the most theatrical of the classical scallop preparations — the shell as its own serving vessel, the golden gratinée surface, the piped potato border that gives the preparation its characteristic appearance.