Roy Alciatore's Oysters Rockefeller
(as published in Life magazine's cookbook)
"This is one of the most sought-after recipes in the world. Even the ex-employees of this restaurant won't talk about how Antoine's Oysters Rockefeller are made. The closet recipe to the original was developed by Roy Alciatore, one of Antoine's previous owners, for Life magazine's The Picture Cookbook, published more than 30 years ago. While this recipe has spinach in it, I was told by Bernard Guste of Antoine's that the original recipe does not have spinach in it."
36 fresh oysters on the half shell
6 tablespoons butter
6 tablespoons finely minced raw spinach
3 tablespoons minced onion
3 tablespoons minced parsley
5 tablespoons bread crumbs
Tabasco sauce to taste
1/2 teaspoon Herbsaint, or substitute Pernod
1/2 teaspoon salt
Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add all the ingredients except the
oysters. Cook, constantly stirring for 15 minutes. Press the mixture through a
sieve or a food mill. Cool. Line six pie tins with rock salt. Set 6
oysters in the rock salt on each pie tin. Divide the topping into 36
equal portions. Place one portion on each oyster. Broil until topping is
brown. Serves 6.
