Pasta is in my opinion- a great way to use up miscellaneous fresh veggies or left overs in the fridge. This time, I had some grape tomatoes and spinach to work with, I added a yellow summer squash to the mix, picked up some goat cheese and fresh scallops... the rest just kind of came together as I went.
First things first, I put on a large pot of water for my linguine.
I started with half of a vidalia onion, sliced thin- sauteed that with some olive oil, a tablespoon of butter and the sliced yellow squash until it started to brown. Then I threw the halved grape tomatoes in- maybe a cup or so. As those started to get soft- I added one clove of minced garlic and a small pinch of red pepper flakes and let cook for 2 minutes more. I transferred the veggie mix to a bowl at this point- added a swirl of olive oil to the warm pan (no need to clean it) and then wilted 2 cups of fresh spinach. Removed from the pan, threw it on top of the veggie mix in the same bowl- covered with foil to keep warm
Once my water was boiling- I added one package of linguine and a big pinch of kosher salt.. The directions called for 10 minutes, I always round down to 9 minutes to ensure that the pasta is al dente.
I wiped the same frying pan clean and put back on the burner- med high/high heat. Rinsed 10 scallops (serves 2) and patted dry with a paper towel. Seared in olive oil, about 2 minutes per side. The trick is to not move the scallops at all until the 2 minutes is up. This ensures that you get a nice carmelization. Removed from pan when done and cover with foil to keep warm.
To the same hot pan, I added 1/4 cup of white wine, a sprinkle of lemon zest, juice from half the lemon, and cook on med-high for 3 minutes or so until slightly reduced. Swirled in one tablespoon of butter at the end.
I drained the pasta when done, returned to the warm pot and tossed in all of my vegetables. Added some extra olive oil at this point to keep the pasta from sticking. I plated the pasta into a rimmed soup bowl first, arranged the seared scallops around the top, sprinkled with crumbled goat cheese and topped it off with a few tablespoons of the sauce. (you'll have left over veggies and pasta for lunch the next day)
Some fresh basil over the top would have been yummy - will remember that next time. John agreed that it was a very yummy dish. The lemon butter sauce REALLY makes it. It looks like a lot of steps but it really did come together quickly. I just made it up as a went along and even though I cooked everything separately- I was just working with one non-stick pan so clean up wasn't bad either. Just noticed the garlic toast when I added this picture!
A little trick we learned on our honeymoon in Tuscany.... the world's BEST garlic toast! I toast the sliced bread (french, Italian, sourdough, anything you have) until the edges are golden. When I take it out, I rub the bread with a clove of raw garlic. It grates itself on the edges of the bread. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with kosher salt and a usually add a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese as well. Its the best!
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Pasta is in my opinion- a great way to use up miscellaneous fresh veggies or left overs in the fridge. This time, I had some grape tomatoes and spinach to work with, I added a yellow summer squash to the mix, picked up some goat cheese and fresh scallops... the rest just kind of came together as I went.
First things first, I put on a large pot of water for my linguine.
I started with half of a vidalia onion, sliced thin- sauteed that with some olive oil, a tablespoon of butter and the sliced yellow squash until it started to brown. Then I threw the halved grape tomatoes in- maybe a cup or so. As those started to get soft- I added one clove of minced garlic and a small pinch of red pepper flakes and let cook for 2 minutes more. I transferred the veggie mix to a bowl at this point- added a swirl of olive oil to the warm pan (no need to clean it) and then wilted 2 cups of fresh spinach. Removed from the pan, threw it on top of the veggie mix in the same bowl- covered with foil to keep warm
Once my water was boiling- I added one package of linguine and a big pinch of kosher salt.. The directions called for 10 minutes, I always round down to 9 minutes to ensure that the pasta is al dente.
I wiped the same frying pan clean and put back on the burner- med high/high heat. Rinsed 10 scallops (serves 2) and patted dry with a paper towel. Seared in olive oil, about 2 minutes per side. The trick is to not move the scallops at all until the 2 minutes is up. This ensures that you get a nice carmelization. Removed from pan when done and cover with foil to keep warm.
To the same hot pan, I added 1/4 cup of white wine, a sprinkle of lemon zest, juice from half the lemon, and cook on med-high for 3 minutes or so until slightly reduced. Swirled in one tablespoon of butter at the end.
I drained the pasta when done, returned to the warm pot and tossed in all of my vegetables. Added some extra olive oil at this point to keep the pasta from sticking. I plated the pasta into a rimmed soup bowl first, arranged the seared scallops around the top, sprinkled with crumbled goat cheese and topped it off with a few tablespoons of the sauce. (you'll have left over veggies and pasta for lunch the next day)
Some fresh basil over the top would have been yummy - will remember that next time. John agreed that it was a very yummy dish. The lemon butter sauce REALLY makes it. It looks like a lot of steps but it really did come together quickly. I just made it up as a went along and even though I cooked everything separately- I was just working with one non-stick pan so clean up wasn't bad either. Just noticed the garlic toast when I added this picture!
A little trick we learned on our honeymoon in Tuscany.... the world's BEST garlic toast! I toast the sliced bread (french, Italian, sourdough, anything you have) until the edges are golden. When I take it out, I rub the bread with a clove of raw garlic. It grates itself on the edges of the bread. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with kosher salt and a usually add a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese as well. Its the best!
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