Scallops with vegetable purées and infused foam

A long and descriptive title for a really easy recipe. Scallops are always a success and this recipe is an idea on how to present them with delicious details.

Beautiful picture by Alex

First, you need to make the infusion for the foam. In a saucepan, add 200ml of cream with around 60g of raw peeled ginger and 4 pieces of lemon skin. Let it infuse at low heat during the preparation of the dish.

Then prepare the purées. You can make only one but I chose to have 2 different one underneath the scallops: Parsnip & Turnip. These two vegetables have a very nice lemon-like taste that combines perfectly with the scallops. Just peel the vegetables, cut them in small parts and toss them all together in salted boiling water until they are fork-tender. Then, mix them separately with 5ml of the water they cooked in and 5 ml of cream. Leave it to rest in bowls while you cook the scallops.

For the scallops, first season them salt & pepper, then heat up butter in a pan at high heat and place each scallops clockwise so you know which one were the firsts to be placed. Leave it for 30 seconds (more if you want a thicker crust) and turn them.

Take the infusion out and filter it so you just end up with the infused cream in another saucepan (big enough to let the foam expand). Take a hand-mixer and mix the cream: as you move the mixer around allowing air to mix with the cream, it will start creating a beautiful foam that keeps the entire taste of the infused cream. Make three small lots of purée in the plates, I made two parsnips and one turnip. Place the scallops on top of the lots and add the foam around.

For a detailed presentation: add a thin slice of radish on the side of the scallops, onion grows on top and few grows of cabbage on the foam. 

Enjoy! :)