Seared Sea Scallop with Potato Purée, Glazed Spinach and Saffron Cream

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Ingredients:

• 2 each Russet Potatoes, medium, whole, washed
• To taste Salt, kosher
• 1 Cup Milk, whole
• 3 TBS Butter, whole, room temperature (can substitute extra virgin olive oil)

•  2 each Jerusalem Artichokes (also called Sunchokes), raw, rinsed, skin on
• 2 Cups Vegetable oil
• To taste Salt, kosher

• 2 each Shallots, peeled and sliced
• ¼ teaspoon Saffron threads
• 2 each Bay leaves
• 3 sprigs Thyme, fresh
• 1 TBS Vegetable oil
• 1 TBS Flour, all purpose
• ¼ Cup Dry white wine or dry vermouth
• 2 Cups Heavy cream
• To taste Salt, kosher
• 1 each Lemon, whole, fresh cut into halves

• 1 ½ pounds Bloomsdale spinach, fresh, rinsed, spun dry, stems removed
• ¼ Cup Water
• 4 TBS Butter, whole, room temperature, cut into small cubes
• To taste Salt, kosher

• 4 each Sea scallops, fresh, size U-8 or U-10 (smaller number means larger size)
• 1 TBS Vegetable oil
• To taste Salt, kosher
• To taste Black pepper, freshly ground
• 2 TBS Butter, whole, room temperature

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Pierce each potato several times with the tines of a fork.  Place the potatoes on a small sheet tray and season very generously with salt.  Roast the potatoes in the oven for 45 minutes to one hour, until they yield easily to a quick squeeze of the hand , similar to a very ripe avocado.  While the potatoes roast, gently melt the butter into the milk using a small saucepot over low heat.  Remove the potatoes from the oven and set aside to slightly cool.  You will want to work with very warm potatoes.  Once cool enough to handle, slice potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop potato pulp from the skins.  Place into and pass the cooked potato through a food mill or potato ricer.  Using the warm milk and butter mixture to thin the potatoes, stir to combine thoroughly.   Finish the smooth and velvety purée and season with salt.  Place the potato purée into a small pot and set aside to reheat later.  Keep oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit to prepare the spinach (see #5 below).
3. To prepare the sunchoke chips, place the vegetable oil into a small saucepot over medium heat.  Using a food thermometer, heat the oil to 300 degrees Fahrenheit and adjust burner to maintain that temperature.  Using a small mandolin, thinly slice the Sunchokes crosswise.  Place slices onto a paper towel to absorb any moisture.  Carefully fry the sun chokes under golden brown, about 2 minutes, and remove with a slotted spoon.  Drain on paper towels and season with salt.
4. To prepare the saffron cream, place the shallots, saffron, bay leaves, thyme and vegetable oil into a medium saucepot. Place the pot over medium low heat and cook mixture until shallots are translucent, about 3 minutes.  Avoid browning the mixture.  Add the flour and stir to incorporate.  Gently whisk the wine into the flour mixture.  Cook for 30 seconds.  Gently whisk the heavy cream into the flour mixture.  Allow cream sauce to heat up to a simmer, and continue to cook for about 15 minutes.  Use a rubber spatula to ensure sauce is well combined and not scorching in pot.  The final yield should be about 1 Cup, so adjust as necessary with a small amount of water if the sauce has reduced too far. Strain the sauce through a fine mesh sieve and discard shallot herb mixture.  The sauce should now be in a small saucepot.  Season with salt and juice from one half of the lemon, as desired. Keep near stove to reheat and adjust before serving.
5. Place the cleaned spinach onto a sheet tray and lightly season with salt.  Place the tray into your preheated oven.  Wilt spinach for just a few minutes until it steams in its own moisture and collapsed well. Remove from oven and allow to cool.   Meanwhile you will prepare the butter glaze for the spinach.  In a small saucepot, heat the water over low heat.  Once steam begins to rise from the water, whisk butter, piece by piece, into the water.  Season the glaze with salt.  Set aside at room temperature in a small bowl.
6. To finish the entire dish, have the following all ready and in the area of the stove:  four plates to serve on, the potato puree in a small pot, the strained saffron cream in a small saucepot, the spinach in a medium saucepot, the butter glaze in a small bowl, the sunchoke chips,  and the raw scallops.
7. Place a medium sauté pan over medium high heat and put the oil into the pan.  Pat the scallops dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.  Once the oil shimmers in the pan, add the scallops, flat side down, into the oil arranged with space between them.  Cook scallops for one minute and turn over. Add the butter to the pan and cook for one minute.  Turn off the burner but keep scallops in pan.  All at same time, reheat the potato mixture and adjust seasoning and thin with a splash of more cream or milk, reheat the saffron cream over medium heat and adjust seasoning with salt and lemon, heat the spinach over medium heat and glaze spinach with butter mixture and adjust seasoning with salt.  
8. Divide the warm potato puree onto the four plates. Add four equal knobs of spinach to each plate next to the puree.  Squeeze the other lemon half over the scallops in the sauté pan and place one scallop onto each plate on top of the potato puree.  Spoon a small amount of the browned butter from the sauté pan over each scallop.  Spoon warm saffron cream around scallop and spinach.

Garnish with sunchoke chips.