I’ve got two gems in the eating department for you today.  The cabbage, dressed rather simply in a lemon-parmesan-garlic bit of heaven (adapted from the lovely Molly Wizenberg book A Homemade Life – link to her Orangette blog under YUMMY) and scallops with an orange sherry reduction, conceived by moi under a red roofed kitchen.  Both are quite delicious.

First, the cabbage, because it can sit while you make the scallops.  I am a recent convert to cabbage, probably within the last two years.  I’m not really sure why.  I have no ill memories of it as a child.  To be more precise, I have no memories of it at all as a child.  Maybe I don’t come from cabbage people.  Alas, this has changed.  I love it in slaw of all varieties, steamed with apples, and raw (especially good with Thai Som Tum salad).  The hubster is a pretty big fan, too.

Red Cabbage Salad

3 tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 clove of garlic, diced fine or pressed

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 small-medium head of red cabbage

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

In a large serving bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, and salt.  Set aside.  Remove any bruised leaves from the cabbage and cut in quarters.  Remove the core from each quarter, and slice the remaining cabbage as thin as you can.  Add to the serving bowl and toss with the dressing.  Add the parmesan cheese and toss together.

Scallops and Orange Sherry Reduction

My apologies, in advance, as this recipe is much less precise than the previous one, but certainly worth a shot.

1 pound large sea scallops, patted dry

3 tablespoons butter, divided

salt

12 fennel seeds

juice of 1 orange, about 1/3 – 1/2 cup

1-2 tablespoons sherry (not cooking sherry)

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, once hot, add two tablespoons of butter.  Allow to bubble briskly and gently add the scallops, one at a time, paying attention to where you started.  I like to place them in a spiral around the pan.  Don’t add them too quickly or they will start to steam and release too much juice – they won’t be pretty and golden in the end, either.  Once you’ve placed your last scallop, sprinkle them lightly and evenly with salt before turning them over in the order you put them down.  Once you’ve flipped your final scallop, remove them from the pan in the order you put them down and onto a plate.

Add the orange juice, sherry, remaining butter, and fennel seeds to the pan, being careful not to get burned by the steam created.  Scrape any bits of scallop off the bottom, and allow to reduce until it is slightly thick and syrupy.  Turn off the heat and strain the liquid into a bowl, squeezing out as much of the yumminess as possible with the back of a spoon.  Return to the pan over medium heat.  Add the scallops and heat until warmed through.

Serve with the cabbage, delighting in the bits of reduction that mingle with the cabbage.

Enjoy!