Friday, March 25, 2011

Scallops with Caramel-Orange Sauce

Ok- time for a confession.  



Even though our family loves fish....somehow scallops do not make it onto the "short list".  For anyone who has read our post on the "Feast of Seven Fishes" (which Nana has celebrated on Christmas Eve for years and years...), you will probably be surprised to hear that out of 7 possible choices....scallops have never made the cut.

But it is "French Friday".  And we had said that we enjoy roaming out of our comfort zone, so we did so again this week...albeit in baby steps.  Nana agreed to take a pass this week so long as I tested the recipe.  My husband said he actually likes scallops, so it was a win win.  And win it was.  Perhaps we will be changing up the Feast of Seven Fishes after all.......

Per Tricia:

This recipe was a breeze. 
The only thing that slowed me down at all
was getting the energy to get out the Cuisinart
 with it's "Power Juicer" attachment that
had seemed like a great investment in 1989.
  I think that I have used it about 5 times
 since then, but I was not going to
miss the opportunity this week !



The sugar carmelized amazingly- I was
 curious how it would transform and before
I knew it the granules were a lovely caramel liquid. 


 And as promised, it did react a bit violently
when I added the orange juice and wine. 
 Thanks to Dorie's recipe - I was expecting this.


Heat and cook the scallops per
the instructions and then add the sauce. 
 Smelled fantastic, as usual.



Since neither son was sure about scallops
 (and they were rumored to be PRICEY)
 I decided to halve the recipe and simply
 make it one evening for a "snack". 
 We seemed to have embraced the concept of
sharing one serving and diving in together
a la "Salted Butter Break Ups".....and I literally
 served one plate with 4 forks and we all stood
at the kitchen island and ate the entire plate.


Everyone gave the dish a positive response. 
 My hubby says that Dorie's instructions allowed me
to cook the scallops perfectly, without ruining
 them by overcooking.  He very much liked
the sauce as well.  My sons said they were very tasty,
 although they also referred to the texture as "gooey". 


 I was relieved when my husband confirmed
that they were just fine and not undercooked. 
 The only part that kept this from being a more
 frequent choice in our house is simply the price. 
 The fresh sea scallops cost $15.98 a pound at our grocer. 
 When I told the boys how much the plate cost to prepare,
they declared that they would prefer steak instead.



                                   Which works out perfectly, since FFWD
has steak on the menu for April........


Per Nana:

I HAVE SURVIVED THE RAISINS, THE FIGS,
 AND THE PUMPKIN AND GORGONZOLA FLAN,

BUT  I CANNOT GET MY MOUTH AROUND A  SCALLOP,  
AND SINCE HUBBY AND I BOTH DETEST
THEM, I DECIDED NOT TO ATTEMPT
 THIS WEEKS RECIPE.
PHOTO OF DORIE'S RESULTS:


28 comments:

  1. Your scallop crust looks divine! I'm glad you enjoyed them! Oh, and taking a pass one week is cool because trying new foods that we know we don't like would just be wasteful. Good call!

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  2. I probably should have taken a pass this week with how badly I messed this recipe up! Your looks delicious!

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  3. Tricia & Nana - Our friends hosted a Feast of the Seven Fishes one Christmas Eve and it was a fabulous themed-party! Tricia, your scallops look perfect and I enjoyed the one I sampled in the kitchen the most, right out of the pan and drizzled with sauce. The cold ones after the photo session..not so much ;-) Nana - I known it's tough to sit out, but you certainly don't want to cook something you can't put your heart into.

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  4. Funny, Nana! We are glad you are a survivor :-)

    Tricia - glad it worked out well for all of you! Although, sorry to be the bearer of bad news but April's steaks are filet mignon... so you won't get much of a break there... (it looks like a steak au poivre recipe)

    Glad you both made it through your adventure.

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  5. Wow, your scallops look beautiful and look divine in the orange sauce. I took a pass on this week too but after seeing your pictures, I'm sorry I missed out. They look delicious. Nana's comment was hilarious!

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  6. Stand your ground, Nana! Hee! Tricia, I'm glad you all enjoyed them. Frozen scallops around these speck of the palm trees are about $13 a pound. Hubby and I rationalized that it definitely costs more than $20.00 for us to go out for dinner, so might as well splurge at home. Your sear marks are lovely!

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  7. Tricia...your photos look sublime this week and the sear on your scallops is something to write home about. Glad everyone enjoyed them and good for Nana sitting this one out. When you know you don't like something, no about of caramel and orange will make it better!

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  8. Haha Nana--I almost skipped this week too because I thought the combination seemed a little weird! The sauce was great though, and I'm going to use it for pork chops next week, I think.

    Tricia, your picture is GORGEOUS! Great job!

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  9. Nana's post made me laugh! We all have to draw the line somewhere!
    Tricia, your photos are great. Scallops cost me $50 (australian dollars) a kilo so I bought half a kilo and topped up with salmon.

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  10. Tricia, Your scallops look so appetizing…beautiful photos! So glad you all enjoyed them. Nana, funny comment…put a smile on my face!

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  11. Haha, had to laugh at your post, Nana...my husband feels the same way!

    Tricia, so glad these were a hit...your sear looks perfect :)

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  12. Happy you gave these a chance, Tricia, and they look like they turned out beautifully! and hope next week's recipe is more Nana's style :).
    -K

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  13. Tricia, congrats on trying scallops! I like the community spirit of serving a tasting sampler with four forks. We'll probably only cook pricey scallops every once in a while too, even though I love them.

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  14. Isn't it satisfying to go out of your comfort zone and find success? Congratulations! My favorite part of this recipe was learning how to sear the scallops to perfection.
    We join friends for a Feast of Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve and scallops never make the cut at their house either.

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  15. Tricia, I like your family style way of enjoying this plate of sea scallops, by the way they look amazing and make me wish I had the 5th fork;-)
    Nana, you go girl and make the recipes you want;-)

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  16. LOL Nana and go Tricia (and the whole family!). Your scallops look amazing and I am so glad everyone liked them! I am pleased to report that the frozen (and much cheaper) scallops worked well in this recipe too (for another time perhaps?)

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  17. You both did a fabulous job on this challenge. Lovely photos!

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  18. Tricia, your scallops look wonderful!! I wasn't crazy about the sauce, but I'll eat perfectly cooked scallops any day.

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  19. Gorgeous!! Yes, they are expensive which is likely why I won't do them again either. It was a fun adventure though. Glad it all worked out!

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  20. Really great job on your scallops and the sauce looks really good too. We like scallops but we just forget about them...don't know why. I'm glad we had this recipe this week so that I would put scallops back into our line-up. This recipe was quick, easy, and tasty so maybe I won't forget about them in the future. Yours really do look perfect.

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  21. Tricia, your scallops look wonderful - perfectly browned!

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  22. Tricia, your scallops turned out beautifully. And Nana, I bet we're all going to run into recipes that we're unwilling to make!

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  23. I love the image of you and your boys standing around the plate and digging in! Your scallops look like they are cooked perfectly.

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  24. Beautiful! And I do think the sear on your scallops looks better than Dories! Great job!

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  25. The scallops look fantastic - isn't it great when you find you actually like something? Although at $16 a pound, I wouldn't be making them too often! (Speaking of which, where does one go for good fish around this area?)

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  26. Good decisions all around, ladies. Can't wait for the boys to review next month's steaks!

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  27. Tricia - I also had to rely on my husband to confirm that they hadn't been undercooked. Glad your family enjoyed these!
    Nana - I understand your sentiment!

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  28. Tricia: love the color of your scallops! Great sear.
    Nana: I am still laughing at your photo. I really liked the sauce so maybe you could try it with shrimp or pork? :)

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