Sherry Shallot Cream Sauce

A few weeks ago, I wanted a nice, rich sauce to go with some hazelnut-crusted tilapia I bought. Since the fish was fairly healthy, and I had eaten pretty healthy all day, I figured I could splurge. I know I wanted creamy (dairy is my downfall!), and I knew I wanted savory, so I googled some beurre blanc recipes. I ended on this Easy Sherry Cream Sauce, which is just as simple and delicious as it sounds. It was everything I was hoping for, and this earned me a "9/10" on the Guinea Pig scale. (See About Me column.)

Ingredients:

• 2-3 tablespoons butter
• 2 small cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 3 tablespoons sherry
• salt and pepper, to taste
• Spring thyme

Melt butter in saucepan over medium-low heat. Smash garlic; add to butter. Add the chopped shallot, and saute for 1 minute. Add cream and sherry; bring to a simmer. (I simmered mine with some thyme, which I removed before serving. The taste was just faint enough.) Reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes until sauce reduces and nicely coats the back of a spoon. Taste and add salt and pepper.

Some people strain the sauce so you are left with a creamy sauce, and no lumps from the garlic and onions, but I chose to serve my sauce without straining it.

Adapted from: http://southernfood.about.com/od/saucerecipes/r/bl51026e.htm.