Recipe for :

This recipe comes from Raymond Blanc's Cheltenham restaurant, Le Petit Blanc when it first opened in 1998.

Ingredients

For the herb salsa:

8 tbsp chopped mixed herbs - (tarragon, dill, flat parsley, chervil and coriander)
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
8 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
Salt and ground white pepper

For the redwine sauce:

2 shallots, finely chopped
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp corinader seeds
1 tsp white peppercorns
1 tsp fennel seeds
400ml / 14fl oz red wine
100ml / 3.5fl oz dry white vermouth
100ml / 3.5fl oz port
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
400ml / 14fl oz fish stock

Other ingredients:

16 scallops
mashed potatoes to accompany
4 tbsp pesto sauce

For the herb salsa:

• Mix all the ingredients together and chill until ready to serve.

For the wine sauce:

• First heat the shallots in a large pan with the vinegar.

• Then add the coriander seeds, peppercorns, fennel, wine, vermouth, port, garlic, thyme and bay leaf and allow the mixture to bubble until reduced by half.

• Add the stock and continue to cook until reduced by half again.

• Strain through a fine sieve, cool and chill until required.

For the scallops:

• Grill the scallops on both sides until just cooked through.

• Spoon mashed potato down the centre of four serving plates aand arrange the scallops in a neat line down the middle.

• Drizzle the pesto sauce and a little of the red wine sauce over each serving.

• Spoon the herb salsa on the top

Serves 4