Lent: What did you give up?

I'm feeling a bit guilty because I have not been keeping up with this lil blog of mine. It's not like I'm not cooking or baking (well I have been baking less though as I've been too busy and tired as of late) but I just haven't been able to take pictures of the food (and utilize my new camera that i luuuurrrrvvveeee!) as well as just lack of creative juices to write about it. I know, i know, it's a lame excuse but if any of those who still reads this or waits for me to write something really and i mean really need me to make something or give you a recipe of something, all you have to do is ask :) (I promise to respond/help however I can)

So, back to the task at hand. Lent. In case you need me to explicitly say it, I am catholic. Born and raised, I even lived in a convent for about 2 years. Yes, a convent, with nuns and all that jazz. So yea... Lent. I decided I will give up meat for lent and become a pescetarian (as in the only "meat" I ate was fish/seafood). It wasn't too hard really. I am actually not really craving much but I have had some meat :/ it was unavoidable but for the most part I kept to my promise. Before you get all antsy about what the heck I'm talking about and when is the food part gonna come in, well here it is!

I have made this last year for a Valentines day dinner and a few more times since then. I actually got the recipe from a magazine called CUISINE Lite. The dish is super delicious and fairly simple and well, lite. What is it? It's Sweet Soy Scallops with Hawaiian Linguine. I'm gonna list the recipe then my notes/alterations at the end...so make sure you read all the way through okay? Also, pardon the not quite so great picture...trust me it will taste good!

Sweet Soy Scallops

*this recipe makes 2 servings*

3 Tbsp. minced scallions
2 Tbsp. pure maple syrup
1 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp. coarse-ground mustard
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
8 large sea scallops
2 tsp. canola oil

Combinescallions, syrup, soy sauce, mustard, and pepper in a bowl. Add scallops; marinate for 10 minutes.

Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Remove scallops from marinade;pat them dry, reserving marinade. Sear scallops in the skillet until they're brown on both sides, 5-6 minutes total.

Add marinade to skillet; boil until mixture begins to thicken slightly and forms a sauce, 1-2 minutes. Scallops should feel firm to the touch. Serve scallops topped with sauce.

***notes*** When I made this I actually bought 1 lb. of scallops. I made a bit more of the marinade (double or triple it, its up to you and you can use the sauce for topping later). I also marinated my scallops overnight it made the flavors really soak into the scallops.

Hawaiian Linguine

3 strips low-sodium bacon, diced
4 oz. fresh linguine or angel hair pasta
1/2 cup diced fresh pineapple
1 Tbsp. minced red onion
1 Tbsp. minced fresh cilantro (optional but highly recommended)

Cook pasta according to package but omit any oil or salt.

Cook bacon however you cook your bacon

Toss linguine, bacon, pineapple, and onion in a large bowl. Stir in cilantro, if desired. Serve with Sweet Soy Scallops.


***Notes***
I cooked my bacon first before dicing it. So much easier. You can also omit bacon completely, it will not really affect the dish, it'll still be yummy.

I used the "fresh" linguine that you can find in the same case as the bacon and what not...i think it was Bertolli brand.

Also, i used canned pineapple.



There you go! Enjoy! I sure did :)