Down in the dumps - lost my little black book

With luck, your bag will have been found and handed in by one of the honest people in this country. There really are a lot of us left you know.

Did you have scallops and Pol Roget anyway? I really fancy a dish that I saw on a food site, it was seared scallops on cauliflower puree with confit tomatoes, by a Scandinavian chef, it sounds scrummy to me.

My partner has not a single romantic bone in his body but he did cook seabass and roast potatoes (don't ask!) for me.

Do try to cheer up, you weren't mugged or hurt in any way and you still have Spud and Maddy.

Smile! Toni.

I know - I am in the process of cheering up!

I've heard of scallops and cauliflower puree before - sounds terrific. I will blog about the scallop recipe (from Rick Stein) soon - they were great. As, of course, was the champagne.

I do hope the black book makes its way back to me - it contains some as-yet unpublished recipes: dover sole with lemon butter sauce, sea bass with ginger and spring onions, spicy chicken noodle broth...

There are honest people around - and there's nothing worth nicking in the bag (unless you have a thing for half-done sudoku puzzles) - so I am hopeful. I just hope I didn't cause a bomb alert and that the blag wasn't blown-up in a controlled explosion!

Lord! I hadn't thought about the security threat aspect! I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you.

Glad that you had the scallops and fizz. Here is the link to what I want to do: http://www.theworldwidegourmet.com/fish/scallop/engogard.htm Looks quite easy and I'm not sure that I'd pass the cauli through a sieve after blitzing it, might like a hint of texture. And I think I'd probably sear the scallops after dipping them in chilli oil. What do you think?

Toni-anne.

Sounds like a good recipe to me! Interstingly, I also used hazlenuts in my scallop dinner - toasted and tossed in the salad on the side (dressing made from sherry vinegar used to deglaze the scallop pan... nice!)

I know what you mean about the cauli - but I can also see the benefit of the contrasting textures of the scallop and a creamy puree. You've got the crunch of the nuts, don't forget? I would be tempted to add a little lemon juice to the water in which the cauli is boiled to try and keep it all as white as possible.

The chilli oil sounds like an interesting idea - or how about a little lemon oil? Or instead of the chilli oil on the scallops, how about a little drizzle over the tomatoes?

It all sounds nice, anyway! My main tip is to be careful not to overcook the scallops - they do tend to become horribly chewy when overcooked.

I know what you mean about over-cooking the scallops; that happened to me in France once but the restaurant had only just opened so I didn't complain!

As for sieving, I can always do half so that I can make a comparison. I just hope that Waitrose has some scallops this evening, hang the washing up!

I like the sound of your salad dressing too, might have to have a bash at that.

Toni-anne.

Disaster! The cauliflower purée was rubbish, I might just as well have used instant mashed poatoes for all the texture there was. I know now that the only way I like cauli is boiled, with salt and butter on it or a good cheese sauce. The scallops were delish and since I was alone, I decided to forget about the salad, seemed like too much messing about for one.

Smoked haddock and rice was good last night though!

Sorry to hear about the cauliflower. What was the problem - too wet? too smooth? It seemed like a good idea at the time - I can see how the earthy taste of the cauliflower could go with the scallops (like black pudding does). I wonder if beetroot might go? Maybe a touch too sweet?

I love good smoked haddock - it's one of my breakfast favourites (though it's not often I get it for breakfast!)

Too different from the flavour/texture of the scallops. They were superb, by the way- Waitrose finest. I shall have to work on this idea