Scallop Fettuccine

Until a couple of years ago, scallops were something I only ate if I encountered them by chance -- usually a small scallop wrapped in bacon as a passed hors d'œuvre, or part of a medley seafood chowder. Then a student whose father catches scallops from Gloucester for a living brought me some fresh from the boat, along with a couple of recipes. It was then that I learned that if the decadence had already reached the level of scallops wrapped in bacon, then genuine maple syrup might as well also be involved.

Anyway, the succulence of those scallops set rather a high bar, so I have done very little with scallops since that first bout. Yesterday, though, I bought some along with the sockeye salmon, from the same seaside source.

For a going-away dinner this evening (Pam is off to Saskatoon for a week), I decided to make a nice Fettuccine Alfredo with these. I know I have done so a couple of times before, but I went online to look for some advice on just how to do it. I was very pleased to find My Food Adventure Book, a blog quite similar to our Nueva Receta -- foodie, but low-key.

Ours looked pretty much like this.
Photo: My Food Adventure Book

I enjoyed blogger Laura's Jumbo Scallops recipe, and will be modifying it just a bit this evening, to use a slightly different assortment of ingredients we have on hand. As we did last night, of course, we also had a Colchester salad.

I won't re-create Laura's instructions here; but will just mention the modifications I made. My usual approach to Alfredo is found in 365 Ways to Cook Pasta, which asserts that the use of cream is not authentic, and that butter and Parmesan are plenty. I accept the concept, but usually compromise with a little bit of cream. This evening I followed the Food Adventure approach -- itself a compromise with heavier versions, but instead of heavy cream, I used half-and-half.

We had no lemons and have depleted our second bag of limes, so I used commercial juice in the sauce, and I used Lebherz lemon-infused olive oil to sear the scallops. The last, most decadent adjustment: freshness is the name of the scallops game, so we divided a full pound!

We had the last of the 2011 Cinco Cães (Five Dogs) from Westport Rivers -- a bit fruity to be a perfect pairing, but quite a welcome accompaniment.

The family verdict: Delicious! -- though Paloma would have cut back on the lemon.