These are two my favorite Scallops Recipes

I

Sauteed Scallops with Green Apple Reduction

and Asparagus

Yield: 4 Servings

2 Granny Smith Apples

2 Tablespoons fresh Lemon Juice

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

12 large Sea Scallops (About 1lb) side muscle removed.

Kosher Salt

Freshly Ground Black Pepper

1 Tablespoon of unsalted butter

1 large bunch of Asparagus- blanched in boiling water to Al Dente 

Core 1 apple; cut into 1inch cubes. Place in a blender with lemon juice and 1/4 cup water; puree till smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl. Set aside.

Peel, core and cut remaining apple into 1/4 inch cubes and add to the bowl with the strained apple juice.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the scallop with salt and pepper.  Working in batches, cook scallops until golden brown and just cooked through, about 2 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate; tent with foil to keep warm.

Add butter to the skillet, cook, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add reserved apple mixture and cook, stirring often, until juice is thickened and apple pieces are tender, about 4 minutes. 

Plate the scallop with the asparagus (like in the above picture) and spoon apple mixtures over, both the scallops and asparagus.

This is truly a delicious and elegant dish, and only about 240 calories per serving.

Enjoy

Tequila & Lime Marinated Scallops

with Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

Yield 4 to 6 servings.

Marinade

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon of grated lime zest

1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice

2 tablespoon of tequila

1 tablespoon of minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon  crushed red pepper flakes or ( 1 tablespoon of minced fresh jalapeno)

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

24 large sea scallops

Salsa Verde (Tomatillo)

Chef Ed's Note

: Tomatillo is a plant of the nightshade family, related to the Cape Gooseberry. Tomatillo originated in Mexico and are a staple of the country's cuisine. The fruit is surrounded by an inedible, paper-like husk formed from the calyx. Tomatillo are the key ingredient in fresh and cooked Mexican and Central American green sauces- Salsa Verde.  You can find Tomatillo's in most Latin American supermarkets.

1 small yellow onion, cut crosswise into 1/2 inch slices

      Extra Virgin Olive Oil

8 medium tomatillos, a 1/2 pound total, husked and rinsed.

1 medium Poblano chile see chefs note)

1/4 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro

1 medium garlic clove, crushed

1/2 teaspoon dark brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt.

Green or Yellow zucchini goes well with this dish.

Chef's Note

Poblano chile originate from the state of Puebla, in Central Mexico,  They have a thick dark-green skin and a wide base which tapers to a point. Poblano peppers are mild to medium-hot- they register between 1,000 and 2,000 Scoville heat units on the Scoville Scale.

To remove the skin from the Poblano, place it on a open flame on your stove top, and keep turning it until, it is totally charred.  Place in a plastic bag for a few minutes, and than under cold running water, remove the skin, it comes off pretty easily.

 For Marinade: whisk marinate ingredients together in a bowl. Rinse scallops under cold water. Remove and discard any small, tough side-muscles from scallops (you could ask you fish merchants to do it for you) Place scallops in the marinate and toss to evenly coat. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

For the Salsa: Lightly brush onion slices on both sides with oil. Grill or broil onions slices and tomatillo's until lightly charred, 6 to 8 minutes.  Transfer the onions, tomatillos and Poblano  pepper to a food processor and process until fairly smooth. Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed.

Remove the scallops from the marinate, thread scallops through sides onto skewers so scallops lie flat. Grill or broil over direct high heat until just opaque in the center, four or five minutes. Serve warm with the Salsa

Chef's Note: To save time you can buy bottled Salsa Verde at a Latin supermarket, - most supermarkets have a Latin section these days.

I use my trusty Foreman Grill to do the scallops- works great.

Enjoy! 

Hope you will try one of these great scallops recipes.

My Recipe for Guacamole  

4 ripe avocado's (ripe, not two soft)-flesh removed and roughly chopped and put in a bowl

1/2 cup chopped Spanish onion

1 cup of diced fresh tomato- seeds, juice and all

2 tablespoons minced fresh jalapeno (more if you want more heat.)

 1 teaspoon of Mexican Oregano

2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice

2 tablespoons of chopped cilantro

Salt to taste.

Add all the  above ingredients to the bowl with chopped avocado and I like to use a wire whisk, mash the ingredient until they are combined, but not smooth, but on the chunky side.

How much heat and salt you want is up to your individual taste.

Until next time and more my culinary explorations

Chef Ed