Rosie's Scallops.

Youngest Hawthorne's favorite dish is scallops.

Whenever I ask him what he'd like for dinner

he always says,

"I'd like the seared scallops on a parmesan crisp

on a bed of risotto with spinach and sun-dried tomatoes,

and the caramelized onions

and the pesto on top."

Sheesh. What ever happened to peanut butter and jelly?

I guess he thinks I have fresh scallops

on hand at all times

and a supply of fresh basil so I can make pesto.

(Well, actually I do have the basil.)

And for your viewing pleasure,

here's the recipe

he loves so much.

Sorry, Youngest Hawthorne,

you'll have to settle for these scallops.

First, I rinsed off my scallops.

I patted the scallops dry

and added some freshly ground pepper.

I heated my skillet,

added some butter and extra light olive oil

(Butter for flavor,

olive oil to up the smoke point.)

and added in the scallops for

Youngest Hawthorne's dinner.

He was hungry at 4:30.

So here's my first scallop course.

I'll be doing Mr. Hawthorne's and mine later

since I do not care to dine at 4 in the afternoon.

Sear over medium high heat

maybe 2 minutes on each side.

My ingredients for my sauce:

Mirin

Pinot Grigio (You could use a Chardonnay.)

Shallot

Green onion.

Parsley.

Tarragon.

(Youngest Hawthorne doesn't like tarragon.

That's for my scallops.)

I added in a splash of Mirin

and maybe 1/4 cup of the wine to deglaze.

Then I added the juice of 1/2 orange and reduced a bit ...

... and a tablespoon of butter

for flavor and to give the sauce a nice sheen.

Lastly,

I added in the sliced green onions ...

... and the parsley.

And Youngest Hawthorne's dinner is ready.

Almost forgot to put

the parmesan crispy bits from my failed Parmesan Frico Cups

on top

and my Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

(recipe to follow)

on the side.

Youngest Hawthorne didn't have time

for me to make the risotto

as he was weakening from his hunger

and was perilously close to collapsing.

Next up, my risotto.

My ingredients:

1/4 cup arborio rice

butter

lime

orange

large shallot

mascarpone cheese

heavy cream

parsley

salt and pepper

homemade chicken consomme

white wine

I sliced an orange in half

and sliced a bit of the bottom off the orange

so it would sit straight.

And I scooped out the orange,

saving the pulp for later use.

I minced my shallots ...

... and added them to about 3 TB of melted butter.

Next, I added in the arborio rice ...

... and cooked for a few minutes.

Added in some wine,

cooked, and let the rice absorb the liquid.

Added in some consommee,

about 1/4 cup at a time,

letting the rice absorb

before adding any more.

Cooked over low to medium low heat,

adding liquid as needed

for about 30 minutes.

You want the rice tender, yet firm,

and the mixture creamy.

I grated in the zest of one lime.

Added in the orange pulp.

Added in a scoop of mascarpone.

A few tablespoons of heavy cream

And I tossed in sliced green onions.

Added in about 3 TB grated Parmesan.

And finally, a tablespoon of buttah.

Buttah makes everything bettah.

And my risotto is done.

Earlier, I had made a Roasted Red Pepper Sauce.

Blacken the pepper over a flame ...

... until it's charred.

Immediately plunge the hot pepper

in ice water.

And you can easily rub off the skin.

And here you have a yummy roasted red pepper.

My ingredients for the sauce:

1 whole roasted red pepper

1/4 cup sour cream

1/8 cup mascarpone

1 TB parsley

1 TB lemon juice

zest of 1 lemon

red pepper flakes

salt and pepper

Process all together.

After tasting,

I went ahead and roasted the other half of the pepper

and added it to my mix.

On to our scallops:

Heat butter and light olive oil.

(Scallops have a very delicate flavor.

If you used extra virgin olive oil,

the flavor of the oil would overpower the scallops.)

Just a few minutes on each side.

I added the Mirin ...

... and the white wine to deglaze.

Add the juice of an orange,

scraping the goody bits up,

and reducing the liquid a bit.

Add in some butter to enrich the reduction.

Finally, add in some minced parsley.

Stir to mix thoroughly.

And here's our dinner:

Seared scallops on a reduced sauce

of pan juices and wine,

with little plops of roasted red pepper sauce on top,

asparagus,

and risotto filled orange cups.

I topped my risotto with a tarragon leaf

for a little pop in flavor.

This risotto is marvelously creamy,

with very subtle hints of wine, orange, lime, and parsley.

The reduction sauce and the roasted red pepper sauce

complement each other and the scallops. I just liked the delicate scallops and the flavors of the accoutrements.

I happened to look over on my butcher block

and spied some cherries.

The tartness of the cherries was

a perfect foil to the sweetness of the scallops.

I added a bit of parsley and some grated orange zest.

This is some seriously good eatin's.