Tag Archives: dinner

Sea Scallops with Tarragon Pea Purée

sea scallops pea pureeSEA SCALLOPS SEARED IN HERB-INFUSED BUTTER. PEAS PURÉED WITH BUTTER AND TARRAGON. PARMESAN CRISPS AND SALMON ROE.

Sometimes – in this case, when you’re swamped with exams and try to make a reservation for Valentine’s day a little too late – it’s nice to stay in and cook with your special someone. I wanted to make a dessert with some of my Boo’s favorites: chocolate and passionfruit. Boo complemented the rest of the “menu” with tangy flavors – seared scallops with pea puree, and duck breast with a orange-blueberry sauce. Over the next few days we are going to post the recipes of our home cooked three-course Valentine’s day meal, starting off with the appetizer. – Pea

sea scallops pea puree 2

Servings: 2 (appetizer portions)
Difficulty: 1 star

Oven: 350 F, 4-6 minutes

Parmesan crisps:

  • 3 tb grated parmesan (or parmigiano-reggiano)
  1. Onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, divide cheese into six oblong mounds.
  2. Bake until browned, 4-6 minutes, while preparing scallops and pea puree.

Seared scallops:

  • 6 sea scallops
  • Seasoning
    sea salt, coarse
    black pepper
    garlic powder
  • Seasoned butter
    2 tb butter
    0.5 tb olive oil
    1 sprig thyme
    1 sprig tarragon
  • 0.5 lemon
  1. Pat scallops dry.
  2. Sprinkle and press seasoning into both sides of scallops.
  3. In a pan, heat butter and olive oil with thyme and tarragon over medium heat until fragrant, 3-4 minutes. Discard thyme and tarragon.
  4. Sear scallops in hot butter until browned on both sides, ~1-2 minutes per side.
  5. Remove to a warm plate, and sprinkle lemon juice over scallops. Rest, 2 minutes, while preparing pea puree.

Pea puree:

  • 0.5 tb butter
  • 0.5 tb olive oil
  • 0.25 c peas
  • Seasoning
    4 leaves tarragon
    0.25 ts salt
    pinch black pepper
  1. Saute peas in butter and olive oil until just cooked through, 1 minute.
  2. Blend peas with seasoning and any accumulated juices from resting scallops.
  3. Serve scallops over pea puree.

sea scallops pea puree 3

Eight-Spice Leg of Lamb

eight spice leg of lamb

LEG OF LAMB ROASTED MEDIUM-RARE WITH A FRAGRANT LEMON AND SPICE RUB. PAIRED WITH LUXURIOUS, BODIED RED WINE REDUCTION. SIDES OF SAFFRON BROWN RICE PILAF, SAUTÉED BABY BELLAS, AND ROASTED GRAPE TOMATOES.

Easily a centerpiece holiday roast, leg of lamb can also be a pretty low maintenance treat of a dinner that looks and tastes like a whole day’s work. It has such a great natural flavor that even just salt and pepper turns out a delicious roast. We decided to mix together an earthy spice rub for a little extra kick and made a red wine sauce from the spicy onions that soaked in the pan drippings that rendered as the lamb roasted. While you could cut up a leg into two or three pieces to make it more manageable, we decided to roast it whole and enlist the help of some friends and their tummies! – Boo

eight spice leg of lamb 3

Servings: 8-10 (main portions)
Difficulty: 2 star

Oven: 400 F, 35 minutes; 350 F, 40 minutes

Lamb roast:

  • 5 lb boneless leg of lamb, room temperature and rolled
  • 4 tb olive oil
  • 1 tb lemon juice
  • Spices
    1 tb rosemary, minced
    2 ts paprika
    1.5 ts salt
    1.5 ts turmeric
    1.5 ts cumin
    1 ts cayenne pepper
    1 ts cinnamon
    1 ts black pepper
  • Aromatics
    1 onion, sliced
    3 cloves garlic, minced
  1. Pat meat dry. In a baking pan, drizzle olive oil and lemon juice over lamb.
  2. Combine and rub spices over lamb. Spread aromatics around baking pan.
  3. Roast on middle rack at 400 F for 35 minutes. Lower to 350 F, and roast to desired doneness, ~40 minutes for medium-rare (internal temperature 130 F).
  4. Set aside lamb to rest for 10-15 minutes before serving. Optionally, remove onions and 1-2 tb rendered fat to a pan to prepare red wine reduction.

Red wine reduction:

  • reserved onions and rendered fat
  • Herbs and vegetables
    2 cloves garlic, sliced
    2 sprigs rosemary
    2 sprigs thyme
  • Liquids
    1 c chicken or beef stock
    1.5 c red wine
  • Seasoning
    0.5 tb sugar
    0.5 ts salt
    0.25 ts black pepper
  • 3 tb butter
  1. In a wide pan, saute reserved onions in rendered fat with herbs and vegetables over medium heat until fragrant, ~1 minute.
  2. Add stock and red wine. Stir and simmer over medium-high heat until reduced by half.
  3. Sieve sauce into a bowl, and return liquid to the saucepan. Discard sieved solids.
  4. Stir and simmer until reduced by 33-50%.
  5. Remove from heat, and stir in seasoning and butter.
  6. Serve over lamb.

eight spice leg of lamb 2

Miso-Poached Salmon with Shiitake Mushrooms

miso poached salmon 2SALMON FILLET POACHED IN A FRESH AND LIGHT MISO BROTH INTENSIFIED WITH SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS AND A TOUCH OF CHILI FLAKES. WITH STEAMED RICE, POACHED VEGETABLES, AND SHREDDED PURPLE CABBAGE.

Don’t let Pea’s 5 foot, 2 (and a half!) inch frame fool you. She grew up in Brazil and trained in the buffet-eating arts of rodízio churrascarias. As an adept of Louis C. K.’s philosophy of stopping only when you get to the point of hating yourself, Pea and all-you-can-eat restaurants make for a wonderful (or dreadful, depending on your point of view) combination. Usually, after a night of gorging on infinite food, the imminent regret is converted into a craving for a lighter, but still comforting next meal. And this poached salmon really hit the spot.

Since I actually forgot to think ahead and soak some dried shiitake mushrooms beforehand, we let the mushrooms soak and infuse into the poaching liquid we used for the salmon and veggies, infusing our dinner with savory and mushroomy flavors. To top off the broth, I added a sprig of rosemary for an interesting fresh taste. Just to make an easy dinner even easier, our veggie portion of sliced onions and Chinese spinach was poached for a minute or two after taking the salmon out. Hope you enjoy this one-pot (or pan) recipe as much as we did! – Boo

Servings: 3 (main portions)
Difficulty: 1 star

Ingredients:

  • 3 tb miso paste
  • 3 c water
  • 8-12 dried shiitake mushrooms
  • Seasoning
    3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
    1 cm ginger, sliced in half
    1.5 tb soy sauce
    2 bay leaves
    1 sprig rosemary
    1 ts chili flakes
  • 3 (4-6 oz) portions salmon fillet
  • sesame oil

Directions:

  1. In a large pan, saute miso paste in vegetable oil over medium-low heat, 30 seconds.
  2. Gradually whisk in water until miso paste dissolves.
  3. Add mushrooms and seasoning. Gently simmer until mushrooms are soaked and softened, ~1 hour.
  4. Lay salmon fillets into the broth, and poach in barely simmering broth, 8-9 minutes for medium.
  5. Serve salmon with shiitake mushrooms, rice, and vegetables. Drizzle each plate with poaching broth and ~1 tb sesame oil.

miso poached salmon