It’s National Oysters Rockefeller day! A favorite old-school appetizer, these are fun to make and serve at a dinner party. We first enjoyed some oysters raw (because why not?) and then followed with this classic preparation. Serve these with a simple green salad and toasted baguette. Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 bag Fresh Spinach
3 small shallots diced
3-4 tbsp Heavy cream
1 cup Panko
3 slices chopped Bacon
18 Oysters schucked
1 large can Beer
1 tbsp seasoned salt
7 peppercorns
2 bay leaves
Several pats Butter
1/3 cup Parmesan or Romano cheese
3/4 cup Gruyère or another melty cheese (divided)
4 cloves crushed garlic (divided)
12/ cup chopped parsley

• Rinse oysters, and place them in a large pot. Pour in beer and enough water to cover oysters; add 2 cloves of garlic, peppercorns, bay leaves and seasoned salt. Bring to a boil. Boil one minute. Remove from heat, drain, and cool.
• Once Oysters are cooled, break off and discard the top shell. Arrange oysters on a baking sheet. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• In a small frying pan, fry chopped bacon until most fat is rendered. Remove from stovetop.
• In another small pan, melt 2 tbsp of butter. Turn to low. Add Panko crumbs and toast for a few minutes. Remove from heat. Add chopped parsley and mix well. This will be your topping.
• In a third pan, melt a tbsp butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Saute shallots for a couple of mins and add a couple cloves of crushed garlic an sauté a minute of so more. Reduce heat to low; stir in spinach until wilted. Add rendered bacon. Mix. Add heavy cream, 1/4 cup Gruyère and 1/4 cup Parmesan stirring frequently. Season with salt and pepper.
• Spoon spinach mixture over each oyster, just filling the shell. Add grated Gruyère and top with bread crumbs.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden and bubbly, approximately 8-10 minutes. Broil for last minute or so, watching carefully so your breadcrumbs don’t burn.
• Serve with lemon wedges and Tabasco or other hot sauce.