I'm ready for spring. I think a lot of people are feeling this way right now, after such a long and cold winter in so many places. The winter in DC was definitely better than the one back home in Minnesota, but it was still colder than usual, which meant more chilly walks home from the metro and more cabin fever from things getting closed because of snow. I'm definitely ready for some nicer weather and more light!
Since it's not quite spring outside yet, I decided to bring some spring to the kitchen.
I've never cooked scallops before, and have been wanting to try making them myself for a while. This is the perfect recipe to break up any winter-cooking overkill you may be experiencing in the kitchen (anyone tired of soup or lasagna or feeling uninspired at the end of a season?).
I really liked this recipe because it brings together a lot of different flavors in a very simple way, which makes it taste fresh, and because the combination of tangy grapefruit, buttery scallops, and creamy avocado challenges your taste buds just enough to keep a simple assembly interesting.
Cooking the scallops: As you've probably heard or experienced, the danger with scallops is over cooking them. So watch them carefully. The time it will take to sear them will vary based on their size; the recipe below indicates searing them for about three minutes per side for larger scallops. Reduce that time if you are cooking small or medium-sized ones. Because you are really trying to sear the outside, start with a very hot pan and oil. You should add the scallops once the oil begins to smoke. If the oil starts to fry and bounce on the pan while the scallops are cooking, reduce the heat slightly.
(You can tell they did not give me evenly-sized scallops at the fish counter, which made cooking them a bit more challenging.)
To segment the grapefruit, cut the top and bottom off, and then slice off the peel. Then, cut away the part that is in between each vertical membrane. With the peel off, it's pretty easy to pull each section out.
This recipe was originally a salad, with the idea being that you would put all of the these things on mixed greens. To make this a main dish, I didn't use salad greens, but instead put this all over some Israeli couscous. I thought that was a pretty amazing combination, but if you want to make a lighter dish, I think salad greens would be great too.
Scallops with Avocado and Grapefruit
Adapted from: http://fiveoclockfood.blogspot.com/2010/06/seared-scallop-salad-with-rube-red.html
Serves 8
Serve over salad greens or couscous.
8 scallops, preferably U10 size, never been frozen (U10 means that less than 10 will equal one pound, so they are larger in size)
1 grapefruit: 1 T juiced, and about 6-8 segments removed
1-2 T olive oil
1 avocado, sliced
salt and fresh ground pepper
olive oil as needed to cook scallops
For dressing:
4 T chopped shallots
3-4 T chopped chives
1.5 T olive oil
2 T fresh-squeezed lemon juice
1 T fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice
1. Segment and juice grapefruit and set aside. Slice avocado and set aside as well.
2. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the scallops. Add olive oil to a medium or large skillet on high heat. Once oil is smoking and pan is very hot, add scallops. Let sear for about three minutes on each side for large scallops, less for small or medium sized ones. Each side should have a golden brown crust. When done, the scallops should still be slightly opaque in the middle when you slice into them.
3. While scallops are cooking, make the dressing. Combine shallots, chives, olive oil, lemon juice, and grapefruit juice in small bowl and stir with a fork.
4. Prepare either salad greens or couscous as your base for the dish.
5. Divide up servings of the couscous or salad greens, and, once scallops are done, place them on top along with a couple of grapefruit segments and avocado slices per serving. Add a couple of spoonfuls of dressing over everything.
Enjoy! And happy almost spring!
