Fruit of the refrigerator

Maybe everyone cooks and comes up with recipes this way, but it never ceases to surprise me when what my husband usually labels as "fruit of the refrigerator", turns out to be pretty decent. I do have misses, but I do not tell about them, for two reasons - look it takes time to post and do people really care about what did not work out..., not unless there is a moral or you know how to fix it. The first usually does not happen because because people thing the kind of ingredients that I combine to make food is plain weird anyway so if works they might be induced to try it and if it does not, well such is life.

Last night however was a major hit, the picture does not show the nice tomatoes but otherwise looks ok and this dish certainly made a quick party dish. What made this interesting was some bay scallops that I had bought but for some reason placed in my freezer, not a good thing to do to fresh fish. I thawed them and this worked well.

Cauliflower and bay scallops in a light cream sauce

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

2 shallots, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp freshly grated ginger

1/2 tsp crushed fresh red pepper

1/4 tsp turmeric

1/2 a head of cauliflower, cut into florets

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

2 large ripe tomatoes, cut very finely (note this will be a somewhat liquid mass)

2 tbsp mustard oil or butter

1/2 lbs fresh small bay scallops

1/2 tsp fresh thyme

1/2 cup light cream

1/2 cup broth

1/2 tsp saffron

8-10 fresh cilantro leaves

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil and add the cumin seeds and cook till they begin to sizzle.

2. Add the garlic, ginger, red pepper, turmeric and the cauliflower and cook of low heat stirring frequently till the cauliflower begins to brown. (this takes about 10 minutes)

3. Add the salt, sugar and tomatoes and continue cooking.

4. Rub the mustard oil or butter on the scallops with the thyme and microwave on high for 2 minutes.

5. Mix this into the cauliflower with the cream and the broth and simmer for about 10 minutes.

6. Stir in the saffron.

7. Serve with rice garnished with cilantro.