I love scallops – they used to be a dish I would only get when out at a restaurant until we found this yummy, easy recipe for baked scallops.  The recipe calls for bay scallops, but they are so tiny it really works best with regular-size scallops.  They are pricey, so try it out the next time your grocery store or fish market has scallops on sale!

Baked Scallops
from allrecipes.com

4 Tbs butter, melted
1 1/2 lb bay scallops, rinsed and drained (again, we used regular-size scallops)
1/2 C seasoned dry bread crumbs (we use low salt bread crumbs)
1 Tsp onion powder
1 Tsp garlic powder
1/2 Tsp paprika
1/2 Tsp dried parsley
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).  Pour melted butter into a 2 quart oval casserole dish. Distribute butter and scallops evenly inside the dish. Combine the bread crumbs, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, parsley, minced garlic and Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle this mixture over the scallops.  Bake in pre-heated oven until scallops are firm, about 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

My husband and I decided to join a CSA for the summer!  A CSA is community supported agriculture – basically, getting a basket of locally grown, fresh, and seasonable vegetables and fruit every week from early June through September.  A big reason we decided to participate is to force ourselves to eat interesting and different vegetables.  We are stuck in an asparagus, broccoli, green bean rut and are always trying to think of new veggies to prepare.  We picked up our first basket of veggies yesterday…

Cilantro, garlic scapes, hakurei turnips, arugula…what should we make??

Now that it’s just about summer it’s time for pasta salads!  I have always wanted to make an orzo salad so last weekend when we were home with a sick baby, we made this Orzo with Roasted Vegetables for a side dish with hamburgers.  It was great!  Here is the recipe…

Orzo with Roasted Vegetables
from Barefoot Contessa Parties

1 small eggplant, peeled and 3/4-inch diced
1 red bell pepper, 1-inch diced
1 yellow bell pepper, 1-inch diced
1 red onion, peeled and 1-inch diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 C good olive oil
1 1/2 Tsp kosher salt
1/2 Tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 lb orzo or rice-shaped pasta

For the dressing
1/3 C freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
1/3 C good olive oil
1 Tsp kosher salt
1/2 Tsp freshly ground black pepper

To assemble:
4 scallions, minced (white and green parts)
1/4 C pignolis (pine nuts), toasted (we eliminated these)
3/4 lb good feta, 1/2-inch diced (not crumbled) (we used crumbled)
15 fresh basil leaves, cut into julienne

I saw this on my friend Martha Stewart’s Pinterest page recently and knew we’d want to make it soon.  We used instant polenta instead of that part of Martha’s recipe (don’t tell her!) and it came out great.  The roasted tomatoes were just delicious, I would recommend to make those for a side dish with any meal!

Balsamic Skirt Steak with Polenta and Roasted Tomatoes
from Everyday Food, March, 2008

Enjoy!

So the plan was to celebrate my mom’s birthday this weekend down in Newport, RI…the plan was made, reservations set…muffins were baked!  Then our baby girl got a fever and we found ourselves staying home for the long Memorial Day Weekend.  More of what we did later this week…

But first, I thought I would share the muffin recipe we used to make these muffins for my mom’s birthday brunch…we ended up eating a few and freezing the rest! (Note, my mom is an animal print fanatic so when I saw these muffin tin liners at Home Goods I had to get them!)

Cranberry Orange Muffins
from foodnetwork.com

1 C dried cranberries
1/4 C fresh orange juice
2 C unbleached flour
2 Tsp baking powder
1/4 Tsp fine salt
1/2 C unsalted butter, softened, plus more for preparing the muffin tin
1 Tsp grated orange zest
2/3 C granulated sugar, plus up to 1 tablespoon for topping the muffins, if desired
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 C milk

Put the cranberries and orange juice in a small saucepan, and bring just to a simmer over medium heat. Remove berries from the heat, and set aside to cool and plump. Drain off any excess liquid and set aside.  Lightly brush a 12-muffin tin with butter (we used animal print muffin tin liners instead). Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.

In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or with an electric hand-held mixer in a large bowl, cream the butter, orange zest, and 2/3 cup sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Remove the bowl from the mixer.

Fold the flour in 3 parts into the butter mixture, alternating with the milk in 2 parts, until just combined. Fold in the cranberries. Do not over mix. Divide the batter evenly into the muffin tin and sprinkle the tops with sugar. Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes. Cool muffins in the pan on a rack. Serve warm.

Enjoy!