The BlogWorld Expo O9 is going on in Las Vegas. This is billed as the World’s Largest Blogging and New Media Conference. Social networking face-to-face in Las Vegas. So Maren, my daughter, signed up for the Conference and tonight she and her friend Maggie are headed for an evening mixer at Blue Martini down at the south end of the Strip. And they wanted dinner first.
I had some frozen scallops from Trader Joe’s in the freezer, which I placed in a bowl of cold water to defrost. I put my salad greens together in a wooden bowl and refrigerated it. The dressing was already made (Justin Wilson’s Vinaigrette) so I just brought it up to room temp while everything else was being prepared. Then it was tossed with dressing until each leaf was lightly coated.
Tossed Greens
Next I dried the scallops carefully with paper towels, seasoned them with S & P and cayenne and cooked them over a medium high heat in a mixture of butter and pure olive oil. You want to get a nice brown crust on both sides and yet not overcook them…so depending on the thickness of the scallop, cook them about 2 minutes per side. I cook mine in batches so the pan isn’t overcrowded.
Browning in butter and olive oil
Waiting for their cousins to cook
Finished & waiting for the pasta
When they are all finished, sprinkle them with fresh minced parsley and put in a warm oven (the lowest setting and when it’s warm…turn the oven off).
Boil the pasta in plenty of well salted (I use Kosher salt) water and drain after reserving about a cup of the cooking water.
I had some leftover fresh Shitakes which I sautéed in butter and garlic until soft and then seasoned with S & P and squeezed some lemon juice over them.
After the pasta was drained, I turned it back into the cooking pan, added some butter, a container of Crème Fraiche, the grated rind of 2 lemons and Parmesan cheese, grated. This was tossed well and since the pasta was a little dry, I added back about ½ cup of the cooking water and tossed some more. Then I tasted it to correct the seasoning.
Creamy, Cheesy and ready to serve
Pasta was nested on the plates and some of the scallops and Shitakes arranged on top.
Sauteed Scallops and Pasta
With this we drank a Cristalino Brut Rosé Cava that I had refrigerated.
This sparkling wine is a blend of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Trepat
(an old black grape indigenous to that region of Spain.
Cristalino Brut Rosé Cava
A beautiful salmon color, very bubbly with strawberry and raspberry aromas. Lightly tart this is a refreshing wine with an almost fully dry finish.
Best of all, you can usually get it for from $7 to $9!
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