“That’s a lot of iron!”, Joanna said as we sat down to eat dinner last night. Rib eye steak, salad, brussel sprouts, brocolli and a side of scallops. It “was” a lot of iron (and green) and it was delicious!
The ribeye steak was cooked in the cast iron per this recipe in a previous post. We have been having brussel sprouts about weekly lately. We roast them in the oven with olive oil and a mix of herbs and salt and pepper. Joanna loves them, and the kids do also, so it is a side staple in our house.
I got the scallops on a whim and prepared them in the smaller cast iron in much the same way as the steak: cast iron in the oven cold and heated up with the oven to 500 degrees. I put the seasoned scallops (salt, pepper, onion powder, very light old bay) on the 500 degree cast iron over the flame on the stove and seared bottoms for about 60 seconds in a very small amount of bacon fat. (When searing steak, the steak fat will draw and carmelize its own fat, but for the scallops, you need to add a bit of oil or fat). After 60 seconds, add a bit of white wine to steam the scallops. Be careful with this step, as the water mixed with the hot bacon fat can flare up! Steam for about 2 minutes and add heavy cream. I like to add some sapphron for taste and color, but this is not necessary. You can also add a bit of grated romano or parmesan. This dish is full of taste and outstanding!