Sea Scallops Piccata with Caramelized Spaghetti Squash

When you want a special dinner sea scallops are
 a nice choice. In this recipe they are served on
 top of spaghetti squash. I showed  how easy it
is to make it in my previous post.

 Break the recipe down into small steps and
it's simple, easy, and done in 20 minutes.

 First, make the squash as shown HERE
and set that aside.

 Have the other ingredients ready

because it goes quickly from here.

 Blot dry the scallops with a paper towel

and season with salt and pepper.

Next make the lemon piccata sauce.

Whisk to emulsify. 

 Add the capers and chives and

 set that aside while you cook the scallops.

 Brown the scallops on both sides in olive oil
 and remove to a heated plate and keep warm
 with the other dinner plates in a low oven.

 Now, add the butter and sage to the pan .

 Saute until the butter is a golden brown.

 Add the spaghetti squash to the pan.

Toss around in the browned butter until lightly

 golden, about 5 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, 

and lemon juice

To give it a special ta-da! presentation,

 arrange the squash in a long line

 on a heated plate and top with the 

scallops. Spoon on the reserved warm 

piccata sauce and serve.

Sea Scallops Piccata with 

Caramelized Spaghetti Squash

1 spaghetti squash cooked ~ as seen HERE.

1 lb sea scallops

2 T olive oil

1 stick butter (8 T)

2 T lemon juice

2 T capers

2 T chopped chives

10 fresh sage leaves

salt and pepper

Piccata Sauce:

In a small sauce pan bring 2 T water to a  boil.

Turn off heat and add 6 T butter, cut up. 

Whisk to incorporate into an emulsified  melted

butter sauce. Add 1 T lemon juice and 

chives. Set aside.

Scallops:

Heat a large saute pan over medium-high and

add the 2 T olive oil. Season the scallops with 

salt and pepper. Add to the hot oil and brown

for about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate

in a warm oven while you finish the squash.

Squash: 

In the same saute pan add the remaining 2 T 

butter and the sage leaves. When the butter

begins to brown add the spaghetti squash and 

toss it in the browned butter until lightly golden,

about 5 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and

the remaining 1 T lemon juice. 

To Serve:

Arrange the squash in a straight line on the heated

plates. Place the scallops on top of the squash. 

Spoon on the reserved piccata sauce. 

Serve immediately. Serves 4

Enjoy!

Links: Between Naps On The Porch, Facebook,
Rattlebridge Farm, Common Ground,
The Charm Of Home,

How To Cook Spaghetti Squash

Don't let that big yellow spaghetti squash at

 the Farmers Market intimidate you!

It's one of the easiest vegetables to make.

No peeling, no dicing, just pop it into the oven 

or microwave. When it's tender, cut and scrape

out the seeds. Then rake the inside with a fork 

into long strands. 

How can you resist that happy, 

sunshiny yellow color? 

The easiest way for me to make it is
 in the microwave. Three big reasons: 

1. It takes only 10-15 minutes.

2. It doesn't use that much oven power

or heat up the kitchen.

3. Most important; it's easier to cut when it's

 softened up a bit. Too dangerous and

 hard to cut when it's raw.

Pierce all over about 10-15 times.

 Microwave for 5 minutes to soften.

 Now it's easy to cut in half.
Cutting in half horizontally will give
you longer spaghetti-like strands.

 Scrape out only the seeds.

 Put in a dish with 1/4" water and return

 to the microwave for another 5-7 minutes.

 Start shredding with a fork.

Spaghetti Squash~ Easy Method

Pierce all over with the tip of a sharp paring

knife. Put it in the microwave for 5 minutes.

That will soften it enough so that you can cut

it in half easily. Scrape out only the seeds. 

Put cut-side down in a shallow casserole and 

add abut 1/4 inch of water to the bottom.

return to the microwave for another 5-7

minuted until tender. Remove and let cool 

so that it's easier to handle. Hold with a 

kitchen towel and use a fork to rake out

the inside into spaghetti-like strands.

Alternative: 
~ You can bake it whole for 1 hour @375º.

Then it's easy to cut and scrape out the seeds.

~ You can cut it in half, scrape out the seeds, 

drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and 

pepper and roast cut side down @425º for 

30 minutes, until fork tender, then

~ Simply season with salt, pepper, butter

~ Use in place of pasta.

~ Saute 2 minced garlic cloves in 2 T butter. 

Add 1/4 C minced fresh parsley

 and 1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese. 

Add the squash strands.

Toss to heat through. Salt and pepper.

~ Add sauteed spinach, bacon, and feta cheese.

~ Saute with butter and fresh herbs, like sage.
~ or...try the recipe I'll be posting next!

Enjoy!

Links: Facebook, Between Naps On The Porch,

Baked Lemon, Garlic, Butter Tilapia

Here's another favorite tilapia recipe. 

It's fast, flavorful, and so easy.

A good one to add to your recipe rotation.

 Use real butter and fresh parsley. Fresh lemons
are best, but bottled will do.

If you don't have garlic cloves, just use lots 

of garlic salt in place of the regular salt.

 Add it all to the melted butter in the pan.

Bale for 15 minutes. That's It! Easy!
I served it with purple potatoes, and
fresh green beans for lots of flavor and color.

 Lemon Garlic Butter Tilapia

3 tilapia filets

3 T butter

2 T lemon juice

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 T minced fresh parsley

salt and pepper

Put the butter in a 9x13 baking dish 

and put in a 400º oven while it preheats.

Remove the pan from the oven and add

the lemon juice and garlic to the melted 

butter. Shake the pan to blend. Add the 

tilapia and turn over once to coat with butter

Season well with salt and pepper. Sprinkle

the parsley over the top. Bake for 15 minutes

until opaque. Serve and drizzle with extra

butter sauce from the pan.

serves 2-3

Enjoy!

Links: Between Naps On The Porch,
Facebook, Rattlebridge Farm,
Common Ground

Crunchy Oven Fried Chicken Strips

Just 10 minutes of prep time and 20 minutes

 in the oven for this easy crunchy chicken.

 Cook your potatoes in the oven at 

the same time. Steam a fresh vegetable

in the microwave for about 4 minutes and

you'll have a tasty dinner in no time. 

I line up my 3 glass pie plates for this job. 

I find them thrifting for about $1.00 and

they are perfect for breading duty.
(Lots of other uses HERE.)

 Coat chicken in the flour, then in the egg, then
in the panko breadcrumbs.

 Press the chicken into the crumbs to adhere.

Put the chicken in the melted butter, turn over
once. Bake for 10 minutes in a 400º oven. 

 Turn and bake another 10 minutes.

Crunchy Oven Fried Chicken Strips

2 boneless chicken breasts

1 C panko bread crumbs

1/4 C flour

1 egg

1 t salt

1/2 t pepper

4 T butter

Put the butter in a shallow casserole and 

let it melt while you preheat the oven

 to 400º. Place the flour, egg, and panko in

3 separate pie dishes. Divide the salt and 

pepper among the flour and panko. Wisk

the egg. Slice the chicken breasts in

 half lengthwise. Dip the chicken into the

flour, then the egg, and then the panko.

Press the panko crumbs onto the chicken

strips. Add the chicken strips to the pan

 with the melted butter. Turn over once in 

the butter. Bake for 10 minutes then 

flip and bake another 10 minutes. 

serves 2-4

tip: cut into 1" squares for

homemade chicken nuggets.

Enjoy!

Links: Between Naps On The Porch,
Dwellings, Coastal Charm, 

Chocolate Crepes with Fresh Berries

A red, white, and blue topping for chocolate crepes 

is a  special breakfast for this 4th of July weekend.

It's my basic breakfast crepe/Swedish

 pancake batter with the addition of 2 T of 

unsweetened cocoa. They are not too sweet 

and the chocolate flavor is a good compliment

to the fresh berries. 

Whisk the batter.

Ladle about 1/3 C into the pan and tilt to cover the

bottom. Let cook until the edges start to dry, about

 1-1/2 minutes, flip and cook another 1/2 minute. 

Toss the fresh berries with a little sugar and
lemon juice. Allow to macerate (get juicy) while
 you finish the crepes.

To serve; roll loosely and top with berries
and a good dusting of powdered sugar.

Chocolate Crepes

1/2 C flour

2 T cocoa (unsweetened)

2 T sugar

2 T melted butter

2 eggs

1 c milk

1/4 t vanilla

Mix eggs and milk in a medium bowl with a whisk.

Whisk in the dry ingredients. Melt the 2 T butter

in the crepe pan and pour into the batter. Mix in

the vanilla. Whisk until smooth. The residual 

butter in the pan will be enough to cook the 

crepes. Pour enough batter, about 1/3 C into a 

7" preheated skillet, tilt the pan to cover 

the bottom with a thin layer of batter and

 cook for about 1-1/2 minutes until set.

Flip and cook until golden. Keep crepes warm
in the oven along with the plates.
Makes 6 crepes

Berries for Topping

2 C assorted berries; strawberries,

blueberries, raspberries

2 T sugar

2 T lemon juice

Toss in a bowl to macerate.

To serve: loosely fold/roll crepes on a heated plate.

Top berries and dust with powdered sugar.

Enjoy!

Links: Facebook, Common Ground,
Between Naps On The Porch,
Rattlebridge Farm, 

Grilled Salmon with White Bean and Spinach Salad

Another great way to enjoy salmon.

Healthy and delicious!

For The Salmon

1-1/2 lbs salmon

1/3 C olive oil

2 T lemon juice

2 T orange juice

2 T chopped fresh basil

salt and pepper

Cut the salmon filet into 4 pieces.

Combine the remaining ingredients

in a small jar and shake to blend.

Marinade the salmon for 1-2 hrs.

covered in the refrigerator 

before grilling. 

 Meanwhile prep the salad and 

vinaigrette. When you have everything

 else ready to go, preheat the grill to 

high heat. Grill the salmon for 

3-4 minutes per side. 

Balsamic Basil Vinaigrette

1/4 C balsamic vinegar

1 C olive oil

1/2 t Dijon mustard

1 T minced onion or shallot

1 T minced fresh parsley

1 T minced fresh basil

salt and pepper

Combine in a jar and shake to blend.

Salad

1 lb baby spinach, cleaned

1 can cannellini beans, rinsed

1 tomato, chopped

Warm the beans in the microwave.

Toss spinach, tomatoes and beans
together in a bowl. Dress salad
with desired amount of vinaigrette.
Add (garlic) salt and freshly ground
pepper to taste. 

To Serve

 Place salmon, hot off the grill

on top of the dressed salad. Pass 

vinaigrette as a sauce to accompany

 the salmon. 

Enjoy!

Links: Between Naps On The Porch,
facebook,