Sweet & Sour Scallops

Frequent readers of this space may recall that we were introduced to the world of infused olive oils and vinegars in essentially the same way we were introduced to each other. That is, our UMBC alumni magazine introduced us to Lebherz Oil & Vinegar Emporium in Frederick, Maryland shortly after it was opened by a fellow graduate, and shortly after we launched this blog. A quick keyword search reveals that we frequently turn to L.O.V.E. for inspiration.

While we still visit that original shop whenever we are in the area, we were pleased to see a similar purveyor open much closer to home Ripe from the Vine in Marion, Massachusetts. When visiting this weekend, Pam bought two large bottles of chipotle olive oil, leading the proprietor to ask if we had tried this in combination with pineapple -- on scallops!

An unexpected combination that we will
be trying in other dishes.

We were on the way to Kyler's Catch at the time, with the intention of making Vincent Price's scallops Sauté Meunière to share with Pam's visiting sister. During the car ride, we figured out that I could cook the dish in exactly the same manner, but using chipotle-infused oil and butter for the sauté stage and the pineapple-infused vinegar with white wine in the deglazing stage (instead of lemon juice). We picked up that white wine on the way to the fish monger -- Löss & Lehm Grüner Veltliner from our friends at Stevie's in Fairhaven.

The result: scrumptious, even decadent, and pairing well with the wine I used in the deglazing.

I confess to taking a big shortcut on sides, in part because I am trying to baby an injured left knee. So those are just what they look like: canned cranberries from our local growers cooperative (aka Ocean Spray) and slightly enhanced Annie's mac & cheese. 

Lagniappe

Lebherz introduced us to the idea of flavored vinegars as a topping for ice cream. I fully intend to try this one on a coconut dessert this summer!