Kicking the Winter Blues with Bright Food- Orange Scallops on Rosemary Vapor Rice

When you live in Chicago, is there really a need to have a chubby brown ground rat to tell us that we are going to have another six weeks of winter?
I don't think so.
And so winter drags on through and is currently dumping several inches of snow on us at the moment. We may be getting up to 20 inches by the time this storm has pushed through. Bah.
When winter seems never ending, the easiest way for me to get out of the funk is to cook. Cook something fresh, something flavorful and something that reminds me of sunnier days.
Last weekend, that recipe was Orange Scallops on Rosemary Vapor Rice.
I had first seen a version of this recipe on Oprah's web site, but didn't really want the Scallops to lose their delicate flavor to the overpowering Orange and Rosemary Flavors. I also removed the butter from the recipe, as the Extra Virgin Olive oil used created the perfect orange glaze on the scallops upon standing.
So thanks Oprah for the fantastic recipe idea. I will use this one again the next time I have a taste for Chinese take-out.
With that, here are the recipes for the Orange Scallops and Rosemary Rice, and the video to show you how it's done! Enjoy and Happy Eating foodies!


Orange Scallops

Ingredients
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 finely chopped shallots
1 lb Dry Sea Scallops, thawed
Flour , for dredging
sea salt
freshly ground pepper
Cayenne Pepper to taste
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 Tbsp. fresh squeezed lemon juice
more lemon juice to taste
1/2 cup fresh-squeezed orange juice

Directions:
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet. Saute shallots over medium heat until soft and browned. About 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and reserve for sauce later.
Sift together the salt, pepper and cayenne pepper in a bowl.
Pat scallops dry with paper towels. Dredge very lightly with flour mixture.
Increase heat under pan to high; sear half of scallops for 1 minute. Turn and cook other side for 2 minutes; set aside. Add rest of oil to pan, add shallots back to the pan and add the wine, lemon juice and orange juice to the pan and reduce by half.
Taste for sweetness; add more lemon juice, salt, and pepper if necessary.
Add the scallops back to the pan, cover with sauce and warm through, serve immediately with Rosemary Vapor Rice.

Rosemary Vapor Rice

Ingredients
1 large sprig fresh rosemary
4 cups Thai Jasmine Long Grain Rice

Directions
Cook rice according to instructions. Add an entire large sprig of fresh rosemary to the boiling water. Before the rice is served, remove rosemary and discard. Pairs well with many dishes.