High-tech tomatoes. Mysterious milk. Supersquash. Are we supposed to eat this stuff? Or is it going to eat us? ~Annita Manning
Last night, since the weather was not even close to being pleasant for walking or doing anything else outdoors, I spent my evening watching a few episodes of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution, 2nd season. This TV reality show is quite different. It addresses a very sensitive and subtle topic - obesity and all related diseases, such as diabetes and heart diseases, in US (needless to say it exists and is getting worse all over).
Most people are aware that nowadays way too much junk food is consumed daily and those considerate of their health, do pay attention to the "fuel" they put in their bodies. Jamie did a test with high school students and I was shocked to see how many of them didn't actually know what butter is made of (corn, apparently) or where honey comes from (bears have something to do with it) - just to name a few examples! Smaller kids - around age of 6, didn't know what a potato looks like although french fries where among usual daily choices for lunch!!!
Some people seemed to be confused what to prepare for breakfasts, lunches and dinners for their kids and themselves, needless to say, they were stuffing their freezers with a bunch of frozen "goodies" that contain very little of the natural ingredients and long lists of stuff we know nothing about (and most often can't even pronounce how it is called).
With all this long intro, I guess it is evident it struck me big time!
So as Jamie says - stick with ingredients you know and understand! In most cases genius lies in simplicity. Let's keep it that way!
Ingredients:
* Fresh scallops
* Potato
* Green beans
* Olive oil
* Smoked paprika
* Salt'n'pepper
Peel and slice the potato. Fry it in a bit of olive oil, sprinkled with smoked paprika and a bit of salt. In a separate pan sear scallops with a dash of olive oil - add salt and a bit of frehsly ground pepper to taste. Throw in the green beans next to them.
Potatoes take most time to cook. Scallops will be fast and easy - time yourself accordingly. Scallops only take a few minutes per side, so do the green beans.
Once everything is cooked - top potato slices with pieces of scallops and green beans as a side.
With a glass of chilled white wine - so so so good! Searing scallops brings out their sweetness, which may be perfectly paired with chardonnay. Scallops are a great pairing to show off a good vintage. Another option - a bubbly brut will do justice as well!
Bon appetit!
