Escargot & Oyster Gratin
What could be more romantic than a big pot of snails??? Those slimy creatures that peek their heads out of dirty shells and eat decaying leaves are actually the perfect Valentines Day feast. Snails and oysters are considered to be an aphrodisiac; a term derived from Aphrodite, the Greek Goddess of love.
An aphrodisiac is any type of stimulation thought to arouse sexual excitement, which many foods have been known to do based on their appearance, savory taste, or odor. Some of the most common aphrodisiacs are oysters, snails, truffles, chocolate, garlic, and of course, wine.
Last night I decided to start Valentines Day early and made a baked escargot and oyster gratin. Escargot is a classic French dish of baked snails usually bathing in tons of butter and garlic. If you’ve never tried a snail before, they’re not as chewy as they look. When baked in the gratin they literally melt in your mouth and are high in protein (around 15%), and extremely low in fat (except they’re usually cooked in butter).
I started off by making a compound butter in the food processor. I diced up tons of garlic and shallot and combined it with softened butter and loads of fresh parsley. This gave the butter a pleasant, light green hue to it which I spread throughout the inside of my new, mini-Le Crusset baking dish.
When I first came across the canned snails and oysters, I admit I was a little creeped out but once I opened them, they weren’t as funky as I had expected.
It’s important to rinse the snails under cold running water before cooking them to remove any dirt or grit. Once the snails and mollusks were clean, I arranged them in the buttered baking dish with cubes of Gruyere cheese and topped them with a breadcrumb-Parmesan mixture, and a splash of lemon juice.
Gruyere is a great melting cheese and is great for this dish because underneath the crispy breadcrumb crust, the gooey Gruyere gets nice and stringy.
I threw it into a 400 degree oven and popped a bottle of 2007 Maison William Fevre Chablis “Champs Royaux” from Burgundy, France. This wine is a blend of different Chardonnay grapes from many of Fevre’s terrific growing sites. It’s not a single vineyard wine but it drinks like a Grand Cru for a fraction of the cost. The Chardonnay spends most of its time in stainless steel tanks as opposed to oak barrels, which makes it lighter and more dry compared to those buttery California Chards.
This wine is refreshingly crisp, with loads of minerality and Granny Smith apple flavors.
The chalky, limestone soil is present in the finish along with some honey and herbal notes. This vibrant white is a perfect pairing for the briny snails and slashes through the buttery sauce with elegance. While the gratin was in the oven, I took out some creamy goat cheese and warmed up a French baguette to use as a sponge to clean out the baking dish.
When the Parmesan and breadcrumbs became golden brown, and the snails were bubbling away, it was showtime. We started spooning the little shell-less creatures onto slices of warm bread and the result was euphoric.
The buttery, garlic sauce was heavenly combined with the cheesy crust. We sat at the table for hours, drinking the fine White Burgundy and dipping our crust into the dish at a snail’s pace.
