Successful Improvisation!
The plan last week was to make seared scallops with fennel salad and kumquat tarragon vinaigrette But, Wegmans didn't have kumquats, and tincow didn't feel like fennel salad. But, I already had the scallops. So, I modified the vinaigrette, using orange instead of kumquats, marinated the scallops, and served them on top of some fettuccine, since I wanted to make a meal instead of an appetizer.
I would love to be able to make good meals without being confined to using recipes. So, I'm making an effort to improvise a little when I cook. I expect to make mistakes and bad choices, but this dish turned out really well! Even though it looks like there's a lot of stuff to do, it was pretty simple to make. The marinade gave the scallops a nice citrus flavor, and the vinaigrette was thick enough that it didn't taste strange on the pasta. Tossing the noodles with some tarragon and pepper made them fit into the dish better.
Adapted from the seared scallops with kumquat tarragon vinaigrette recipe from epicurious.
Marinade:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 clove garlic, mashed or minced
a decent bit of ground pepper
1 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Mix all ingredients in a bowl, rinse scallops off and put them in the bowl, coat scallops with marinade. Marinate scallops for about 30 minutes.
Vinaigrette:
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
3 orange wedges, rind cut off
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1.5 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
1 tablespoon frozen orange juice concentrate (this is probably optional)
1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
salt and pepper
Salad:
Whatever you normally do for a side salad. I used bibb lettuce, radishes, cucumber, green onions, and hazelnuts because that's what I had in the fridge.
Noodles:
A hand full of fettuccine
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
pepper
a few pats of butter
16 large sea scallops.
To make vinaigrette, puree oil, orange wedges, orange and lemon juice, and tarragon in a food processor. Then add mustard, vinegar, orange juice concentrate, and salt and pepper. Puree until smooth. Set aside
Boil some water and cook the fettuccine. While fettuccine is cooking, throw the salad together and cook the scallops. Remove scallops from marinade and season with some salt and pepper. Melt a tablespoon of butter in a skillet over high heat and sear scallops. I did 3 minutes on one side and 2 on the other.
Toss the salad with some of the vinaigrette. Drain the pasta. Mix in the butter, tarragon, and pepper. Put the pasta the middle of the plates. Place scallops around the noodles. Drizzle with remaining vinaigrette. Serve with salad on the side.
I would love to be able to make good meals without being confined to using recipes. So, I'm making an effort to improvise a little when I cook. I expect to make mistakes and bad choices, but this dish turned out really well! Even though it looks like there's a lot of stuff to do, it was pretty simple to make. The marinade gave the scallops a nice citrus flavor, and the vinaigrette was thick enough that it didn't taste strange on the pasta. Tossing the noodles with some tarragon and pepper made them fit into the dish better.
Adapted from the seared scallops with kumquat tarragon vinaigrette recipe from epicurious.
Marinade:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 clove garlic, mashed or minced
a decent bit of ground pepper
1 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Mix all ingredients in a bowl, rinse scallops off and put them in the bowl, coat scallops with marinade. Marinate scallops for about 30 minutes.
Vinaigrette:
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
3 orange wedges, rind cut off
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1.5 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
1 tablespoon frozen orange juice concentrate (this is probably optional)
1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
salt and pepper
Salad:
Whatever you normally do for a side salad. I used bibb lettuce, radishes, cucumber, green onions, and hazelnuts because that's what I had in the fridge.
Noodles:
A hand full of fettuccine
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
pepper
a few pats of butter
16 large sea scallops.
To make vinaigrette, puree oil, orange wedges, orange and lemon juice, and tarragon in a food processor. Then add mustard, vinegar, orange juice concentrate, and salt and pepper. Puree until smooth. Set aside
Boil some water and cook the fettuccine. While fettuccine is cooking, throw the salad together and cook the scallops. Remove scallops from marinade and season with some salt and pepper. Melt a tablespoon of butter in a skillet over high heat and sear scallops. I did 3 minutes on one side and 2 on the other.
Toss the salad with some of the vinaigrette. Drain the pasta. Mix in the butter, tarragon, and pepper. Put the pasta the middle of the plates. Place scallops around the noodles. Drizzle with remaining vinaigrette. Serve with salad on the side.