If you can get fresh ingredients so much the better, 'tho it seems that fresh spinach is rare... evidently even the so-called "Organic" producers are incapable of growing crops without E. coli contamination.
1 box frozen spinach, drained OR 1 pound fresh, rolled and Chiffonade.
1 pound Bay Scallops (the small ones, the larger Sea Scallops can be harder to find)
A couple medium Shallots, chopped
A couple - three Tbsp Butter (in addition to)
Roux to thicken
A Cup of White Wine
1/2 Pint Heavy Cream
A few cloves Garlic, minced fine
3 - 4 Cups Water
Seasoning: If you demand strong flavoring, you might try some 'Old Bay' or 'Zararians' in a tea ball; I've seen this seasoned with 'Worcestershire' and Oregano, but the Chef from whom I originally got this recipe seasoned
everything with Worcestershire and Oregano...
Prep: There's a couple ways you can go with this, mainly in either leaving the spinach as a chiffonade (chopped if using frozen) or puree it in a food processor. Also, if you're going to use the "Seafood Seasoning"
and the puree technique, it's probably a good idea to bring the water to a boil in a seperate pot and allow the seasoning to steep while it cools. This keeps you from having to puree boiling broth
In a heavy pot melt the butter and saute well the Shallots.
Deglaze the pot with the wine.
Add 3 or 4 cups Water, (and the tea ball if using "Seafood Seasoning")
Add the Spinach in whatever form you've chosen, return to a simmer;
in the mean time, prepare a Roux.
Add the Cream and thicken with the Roux, stirring with a whip.
Add the Scallops and Garlic and reduce the heat (Scallops cook quickly and it's easy to cook the flavor and aroma out of garlic).
Have some Salt and hopefully a Pepper Grinder available when serving.
