Whoa that was a mouthful. I could’ve made it longer, I could’ve said, crispy cast iron seared scallops lovingly draped in a coat of salty prosciutto, smothered with my bright green take on salsa verde, roasted tomatillos, garlic, and a big old fresh avocado to sweeten the deal, all alongside a tender little pile of mizuna greens cooked in a bit of bacon fat for a total of about 30 seconds. Phewf. Okay, should I write menus or is a bit too convoluted? Long story short, if you have ever felt to intimidated to make scallops, stop right now. You know how many amazing scallops you can eat at home for the same price as three on your plate in a fancy restaurant? Learning to make amazing perfect Prosciutto Wrapped Scallops will be a skill that sticks to your side like those little tender tid bits clinging to their shells.
So this isn’t the first time I’ve waxed poetic about scallops…
I can’t believe it’s October. Today the little man and I had a date and frolicked in the leaves, enjoying the sunshine after a full on yoga sesh. It was gorgeous to look at him in such a state of pure joy as I threw little dried piles of leaves on him. Like how much happier can you get? Even in the midst of chaos and hardship that smile makes everything okay. Oh and he adooooores scallops!
Prosciutto Wrapped Scallops with Avocado Salsa Verde and Wilted Mizuna
Ingredients
For the salsa verde
1 lb tomatillos
3 garlic cloves
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 tbs lime juice
handful cilantro
1 jalapeno (seeds removed for less spice)
1 ripe avocado
sea salt and pepper to taste
For the scallops
1 Tbs olive oil
sea salt and pepper
1 lb sea scallops
8-12 slices prosciutto
For the mizuna
1 bundle mizuna greens
1 tsp bacon fat
Instructions
For the salsa verde
Heat oven to 400F.
Slice the tomatillos in half and place on a parchment lined baking sheet with the garlic and onion. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and salt and pepper. Roast for about 20 minutes until the tomatillos are soft.
Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor and pulse until well combined.
For the scallops
Rinse and dry the scallops very well (key) add salt and pepper liberally on both sides.
Use a cast iron pan for optimal results. Heat pan with olive oil until sizzling. Drop the scallops one by one but be sure not to overcrowd them, leave about an inch of space between each one. Do them in batches if need be. Do not touch them once you put them in the pan. Wait about 2 minutes cooking on medium-high heat before flipping, cook for another minute or two on the other side, turning the heat up a bit as the pan will have slightly cooled.
Transfer to a plate and wrap with a slice of prosciutto.
For the mizuna
Add the bacon fat and mizuna to the same pan you cooked the scallops in. Cover for 30 seconds et voila.
Wow, it’s already on to week 3 of the whole30! Last time I only made it to about this point before giving up. It was a difficult time to try and do a whole30 because I had just had my little guy and he was only about 3 months old. Sleep deprivation doesn’t help with food craving to say the least. Now I feel a lot stronger and its not so hard. Here’s to a fabulous third week of delicious nourishing food
The ideal soup. In the words of my father, probably my biggest food critic besides myself. The man that thinks everything I make needs more gluten. The guy that when I try to get him on board with our sugar cleanse, goes out and buys a box of halloween candy and claims he thought sugar cleanse meant MORE sugar.
If he loved this soup, i’m pretty sure everyone will. Best part, it uses a whole chicken which in my opinions is the easiest most economical way to eat chicken. A whole free range chicken feeds a crowd and you get the bones to make stock later. By far the easiest way to cook a whole chicken is to make a big soup.
There’s no risk of it not being cooked or worse, being dry and overcooked. The only downside is you don’t get that crispy skin, but I personally looooove the fat that the skin imparts in the soup. It’s so rich, and although the coconut milk isn’t a traditional addition, it adds a creamy comfort to my version of sopa de pollo like none other.
Hey I'm Chantelle, my alter ego would be a mermaid if I wasn't such a terrible swimmer. I love writing authentically and cooking in my pyjamas. My favourite pastimes include eating avocados, travelling the world and hanging out with a toddler.
We’ve pretty much made lettuce wraps the go-to lunch on the whole30. They’re just so easy, versatile and always hit the spot. Who needs tacos and burritos when you’ve got lettuce wraps. I love these pulled pork lettuce wraps so much, but the prep is a lot more involved. With these chipotle elk lettuce wraps you can literally whip them up in under 20 minutes. If you don’t have access to elk you can most definitely just use ground beef. Lucky me, a friend of a friend is a hunter and scored an elk not too long ago. As i’m making this beautifully fresh elk, my man starts you tubing elks in heat. What an appetizing sound it is, check that shit out AFTER you eat these.
Elk is such an amazingly rich meat. Wild meat is something else, when its hunted properly it doesn’t get those fear hormones that make meat taste off. Not to mention the amazing nutrition from an animal that spent its life grazing wild forests. Have you ever thought about how most of our meat is female? It’s a little out of balance if you ask me. I mean, we don’t eat the roosters, or the bulls, or the boars. Not for any good reason either. These guys just require different cooking styles, but they’re delicious none the less. I like to have some yin and yang balance in my meat eating, which is why wild is where it’s at.
It’s day 8 of the whole30 and I just posted a new meal plan for week 2. I don’t always follow my own meal plans, but they are inspiring and I think they paint a picture that the whole30 isn’t this wretched deprivation experiment. My major vice is cheese, mostly because of the way it melds flavours together. It’s like a fatty little vehicle that ensures a deep feeling of satisfaction. So I’m thankful for cashews, as they turn into this magical, creamy, cheese like substance with just a few pulses of the blender. You can keep the cashew queso liquid enough so that it can be used as a salad dressing. I like to make extra as a dip for raw veggies and last nights indulgence, tostones, aka fried plantains, aka basically fries from McDonald’s that are totally good for you.
1 C cashews (soaked for at least 20 minutes and drained)
3/4 C fresh water
juice of 1/2 lime
1 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbs nutritional yeast
handful fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp sea salt
fresh cracked pepper
Instructions
For the Chipotle Elk
Melt oil in a large skillet, add onions and cook until golden.
Add elk and seasonings, cook on med-high until nicely browned. Finish with a squeeze of lime juice.
Separate lettuce leaves and assemble on a plate, put a neat little pile of grated carrots, followed by a small scoop of the chipotle elk and some lime wedges.
For the Cashew Queso
In a blender or food processor, combine cashews, water, lime, garlic, nutritional yeast, cilantro and seasonings and pulse until super smooth and creamy. You can add more water to achieve your desire thickness.
Wow, hey! It’s been a week already. The hardest part is over and I’m starting to feel like a functioning human again. There were definitely a few days of struggle, even with an abundance of healthy and damn delicious food. Once you get into the groove it feels really good. I’ve kicked my long term late night snacking habit which feel pretty awesome.
How’s everybody else doing? Hope you guys liked the meal plan from week 1 of the whole 30. I’m sure if you did the shopping for week one there will be a lot of things that you can ignore on this shopping list. But for clarities sake and to ensure you’ve got all the ingredients, I included them all. Hope it’s not too overwhelming. Happy week 2!
Hey I'm Chantelle, my alter ego would be a mermaid if I wasn't such a terrible swimmer. I love writing authentically and cooking in my pyjamas. My favourite pastimes include eating avocados, travelling the world and hanging out with a toddler.
