Ingredients

1 pound smoked salmon, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 eggs
3/4 cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon rind
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Butter as needed
24 fresh spinach leaves, trimmed

For the Sauce:
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons cornstarch (or 4 teaspoons flour)
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup dry white wine (optional: water or ginger ale)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 egg yolks, well beaten
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon rind

Preheat oven to 350 F.
Place salmon slices in blender. Add the lemon juice, eggs, half-and-half, lemon rind, salt and pepper, and whirl until ingredients are well blended.
Thoroughly butter four ramekins and fill them with the salmon mixture, pressing it down with a small spatula. Place them in a baking pan large enough to hold all of them and fill it with water up to half the height of the ramekins.
Place the pan in the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the blade of a thin knife inserted into the center of a ramekin comes out clean. (Do not overcook!)
Wash the spinach leaves well, drain and dry them. Place 6 leaves on each of 4 individual plates, in the form of a star with the stem ends toward the center of the plate.
While the mousse is baking, prepare the quick fish Sauce by melting the butter in a nonstick pan. Dilute the cornstarch in the milk and add gradually to the butter, while stirring continuously over low-medium heat. Add the wine (or optional water or ginger ale), salt and pepper and continue to stir until the sauce thickens. Remove it from the heat. Gradually stir in the egg yolks and grated lemon rind, whisking fast until the sauce is even and smooth.

Directions

Note: Make sure the sauce is NOT boiling, and whisk in the egg yolks as fast as you can, to stop them from cooking in the sauce. Reheat the sauce before serving.

When the mousse is done, unmold each one carefully over the spinach, in the center of the plate. Pour the sauce over the mousse and the spinach. Serve warm. Makes 4 servings. Recipe from "Simplicity from a Monastery Kitchen: A Complete Menu Cookbook for All Occasions" (Broadway Books).