Pan-seared scallops in Pernod sauce with ratatouille and potatoes persillade

Peel the still-warm steamed or boiled potatoes; set aside.

Heat a pan on low. Wash the eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers and tomatoes; cut the eggplant and zucchini into half-inch (13 mm) batons and squares, the bell pepper flattened and cut the same.

Chop the onions and the fennel.

Saute the onions and fennel with a good drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper; saute the eggplant in a second pan, adding minced garlic until fragrant.

Combine the eggplant with the onion-fennel mixture on medium low; separately saute the bell peppers, zucchini and yellow squash on high about five minutes.

Add the tomatoes and herbs to the eggplant-onion mixture, then the pepper-zucchini mixture; cook on low at least one more hour until most of the moisture is gone.

Reduce the shallots with white wine, a bay leaf, fresh thyme and peppercorns; add the heavy cream and reduce by two thirds.

Whisk in butter gradually until smooth and silky; season with salt and a dash of Pernod. Sieve and keep warm without boiling, to avoid separation.

Mix chopped parsley with minced garlic or shallots for the persillade; cut the potatoes into wedges and heat them in butter with salt and the persillade.

Sear the cleaned, dried scallops in a hot frying pan with a drizzle of oil and salt sprinkled on the bottom, two minutes on high.

Add a dash of butter and cook about a minute until browned; flip and cook three more minutes; season with pepper.

Plate the ratatouille, top with the potatoes and the scallops, flambe with Pernod, add the sauce and garnish.