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Super Simple Browned Butter Scallops

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There was once a day when I did not know how to cook seafood so I resorted to paying a lot of money at restaurants for it. Those days have passed. I love seafood and if you do too, then it’s time I let you in on a little secret. Scallops are fast and easy to make!

Browned Butter Scallops

Back in the day, when my husband and I were living in Kansas City it was common for us to eat out at nice restaurants at least once a week. We were living in an apartment, we had no kids, and we figured eating out was our way of taking advantage of living in the city. This way of life wasn’t going to go on forever so we enjoyed every minute of it.

It was rare for me to order anything but fish or seafood wherever we went. My favorites were crab cakes, salmon, calamari…you get the hint. Well, I tried cooking fish a few times and just never spent enough time researching it on google.  Basically, I was always overcooking it because I was afraid of eating undercooked fish.

Well, that was all about to change. I started 3 Scoops of Sugar at the beginning of 2016 and not long after that tested and retested fish recipes. I fiiiiiiiiiiiiinally figured out how to cook fish and seafood. It involves high heat and a short amount of time. That’s the trick. Simple enough, huh?

Super Simple Browned Butter Scallops

This recipe was developed using sea scallops that are significantly larger than bay scallops. I would recommend purchasing the sea scallops simply due to the larger size.

Sea scallops are low in calories and high in protein. Three ounces of scallops contains only 90 Calories, 17 grams of protein, .5 grams of fat, and 5 grams of carbohydrate. For this reason, they are known to be a healthy food choice.¹

Browned Butter Scallops

Meal Tips:

Seafood is always paired best with a salad and a starchy vegetable to help you feel full otherwise you may be left feeling hungry at the end of the meal. For this reason, I like to cook up some roasted potatoes or something else a little heavier to make the meal a little more well rounded.

It’s great to eat low cal meals but if it’s going to make you hungry again in an hour what’s the point. So add in some veggies but also some carbohydrates to balance it out.

Browned Butter Scallops

These scallops are a great fall/winter meal when you need to cook up something nice without the use of the grill. I am anxious to make these again real soon because my husband and I both loved them. The brown butter drizzle on top is the best for sure!

I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Browned Butter Scallops

Resources:

  1. https://www.seafoodhealthfacts.org/seafood-choices/description-top-commercial-seafood-items/scallops
Browned Butter Scallops

Super Simple Browned Butter Scallops

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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Course Dinner
Servings 4

Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb sea scallops side muscle removed
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • kosher salt
  • fresh ground black pepper
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter
  • fresh sage, 5-6 leaves chopped
  • fresh lemon juice for serving

Instructions
 

  • Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Season scallops with salt and pepper. Once oil is hot, add scallops (may need to do in batches) and sage to skillet and cook until bottom is golden brown approximately 3 minutes. Flip scallops and cook another 3 minutes, spooning butter over scallops frequently.
  • Remove from heat and continue to drizzle scallops with browned butter sauce and serve immediately with a squeeze or two of fresh lemon juice. Enjoy!

Notes

Lightly adapted from Epicurious

 

 

Browned Butter Scallops

 

More Seafood Recipes

Best Shrimp Bisque

Best Shrimp Bisque

 

Shrimp and Crab Butter Lettuce Wraps

Shrimp and Crab Butter Lettuce Wraps

Favorite 15-Minute Seared + Baked Salmon

15 Minute Seared + Baked Salmon

Easy Baked Spaghetti with Ground Turkey

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Baked spaghetti is the way to have your pasta these days! It has all the layers including spaghetti, cottage cheese, meat sauce, and mozzarella. This is the perfect dish to make when family and friends come over during the holidays this year.

Easy Baked Spaghetti with Ground Turkey

It’s cold you guys. We have been cooped up in our house all day watching the snow continue to fall and the wind is howling like it usually is. It’s time for pasta!

The dinners at our house transition from all the soups to all the pastas. I don’t even mean to do it but it happens. When the cold initially hits, I think soup but when the freezing temps and wind come into play forget it- pasta is going to be on the menu.

I don’t fix it that often during the summer but it sure sounds great during the winter at least once a week. And I like trying some things beyond the traditional spaghetti to keep things interesting.

Easy Baked Spaghetti with Ground Turkey

This is how this baked spaghetti comes together:

  • Cook the pasta until al dente. Drain and combine with butter, parmesan and eggs.
  • Cook the ground turkey and onion together. Drain and add the marinara sauce and salt and pepper.
  • Layer a greased 9×13 with the spaghetti mixture, cottage cheese, meat sauce, and mozzarella and repeat.
  • Bake at 350℉ for 40 minutes covered, and bake another 10 minutes uncovered. Top with fresh basil.

Easy Baked Spaghetti with Ground Turkey

Combining the pasta with eggs, butter, and parmesan creates this creamy layer of pasta that is unbeatable. This layering reminds me of lasagna and yet this is a fun spin on regular old spaghetti that will make the whole family love every bite. Well, unless you have really picky kiddos like I do then 2 out of 3 don’t want anything to do with it. So in their case I have to separate out the meat for one of them and the other one just likes the meat so there you have it. Oh, but my oldest couldn’t get enough of this baked spaghetti and went back for more.

That’s real life at our house every day.

Easy Baked Spaghetti with Ground Turkey

One thing to point out- even though no one in our house is that fond of cottage cheese besides me they don’t mind it at all in this baked spaghetti dish! It seems to add to the creaminess of the baked spaghetti and I prefer cottage cheese in my lasagna and this baked spaghetti over ricotta cheese.

I love the simplicity of this meal and yet it’s so delicious and a great recipe to make during the holidays when there are more people to feed. All the layers make for a perfect dish. You will want to make it over and over this winter.

Easy Baked Spaghetti with Ground Turkey

Easy Baked Spaghetti with Ground Turkey

Easy Baked Spaghetti with Ground Turkey

Easy Baked Spaghetti with Ground Turkey

5 from 1 vote
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Course Dinner
Servings 12

Ingredients
  

  • 16 oz whole grain thin spaghetti
  • 1 lb ground turkey
  • 1 small yellow onion chopped
  • 24 oz marinara sauce
  • 3/4 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/3 cup parmesan cheese
  • 4 tbsp unsalted butter melted
  • 2 cups cottage cheese
  • 3-4 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
  • fresh basil chopped for topping

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350℉.
  • Bring large pot of salted water to boil. Cook spaghetti according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
  • While pasta is cooking, cook ground turkey in a large skillet over medium high heat. Drain and add onion. Cook another 5 minutes or until onion has softened. Stir in marinara sauce and salt and pepper.
  • Combine the eggs, butter and Parmesan cheese in a large bowl. Add cooked pasta and toss to combine.
  • Spray a 9x13 dish with non-stick cooking spray. Add half of the spaghetti mixture to the dish. Follow with half of the cottage cheese, half of the meat sauce, and half of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers. Cook for 40 minutes, covered. Remove foil and cook another 10 minutes. Add fresh chopped basil prior to serving.

Notes

Lightly adapted from Taste of Home

Crazy Good Mushroom and Quinoa Soup

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Porcini and white buttons mushrooms combined with carrots, onion, celery, and bell pepper in a tomato-rich broth making it the ultimate comfort food on cold wintery nights.

Crazy Good Mushroom and Quinoa Soup

Hello delicious soups of November! While everyone is enjoying all of the PSLs, I will just be over here making another batch of soup for the next cold day that is coming.

If there is anything I love more than summer it is fall food. There’s just something amazing about what happens in a pot when a bunch of veggies and seasonings + quinoa and anything else I decide to toss in simmers on the stove. It completely blows my mind. Most of them end up tasting even better the next day which is great at converting my husband into an I love leftovers kind-of-guy.

This recipe calls for dried porcini mushrooms, which are usually available at your local grocery store but Amazon is always there when you need it. The mushroom flavor from this soup is so incredible and that is why I have left out any meat because it would totally mask the flavor of the mushrooms. Plus, a few meatless meals every now and then is a good thing.

Crazy Good Mushroom and Quinoa Soup

For those of you wanting something delicious but also gluten-free, dairy-free, and/or vegetarian then this is your kind of recipe. It’s all of those things and utterly delicious. I was basically in shock after I tried it. I thought it would taste good but not this goo-ood!

Here’s how this soup comes together:

  • Soak dried porcini mushrooms in boiling water for 20 minutes covered.
  • Cook the remaining mushrooms and veggies until softened.
  • Drain porcini mushrooms, reserving liquid and add it all to the pot along with tomato puree, broth, quinoa, oregano, and a bay leaf. Cook for 20 minutes and add a drizzle of soy sauce.
  • Done-zo

Crazy Good Mushroom and Quinoa Soup

There are so many great flavors and healthy ingredients going into this soup which makes it all the better. I love the addition of the quinoa and it really helps the fullness factor with this one.

I sauté a few sliced mushrooms just prior to serving to add on top along with some grated Parmesan cheese and we have officially hit a home run!

Crazy Good Mushroom and Quinoa Soup

If you give this recipe a try, be sure to let me know what you think in the comments. And thanks so much for stopping by!

Peace ✌️

Crazy Good Mushroom and Quinoa Soup

Crazy Good Mushroom and Quinoa Soup

Porcini and white buttons mushrooms combined with carrots, onion, celery, and bell pepper in a tomato-rich broth making it the ultimate comfort food.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients
  

  • 1 oz dried porcini mushrooms
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • 1 1/2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  • 12 oz mushrooms such as button, cremini, baby bella sliced thinly, reserve about 4-5 mushrooms for topping soup
  • dash black pepper
  • dash kosher salt
  • 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1 yellow onion chopped
  • 2 ribs celery chopped
  • 2 medium carrots sliced in half lengthwise and sliced
  • 1/2 red bell pepper ribs, seeds removed and chopped
  • 32 oz reduced sodium chicken broth
  • 10 oz tomato puree
  • 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
  • 1 tbsp dried oregano
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 tsp low-sodium soy sauce
  • parmesan cheese for topping

Instructions
 

  • Combine porcini mushrooms and boiling water in a bowl. Cover and set aside for 20 minutes.
  • While porcini mushrooms are soaking, heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add remaining mushrooms, salt, pepper. Cook 8-10 minutes, until mushrooms have released their liquid and softened. Add apple cider vinegar and stir in.
  • Add onion, celery, carrots, bell pepper and cook until another 5 minutes until veggies are tender.
  • Once porcini mushrooms have soaked for 20 minutes, line a strainer with a paper towel, place over bowl and strain mushrooms reserving the liquid. Chop the porcini mushrooms and add them to the pot along with the reserved liquid, chicken broth, tomato puree, quinoa, oregano, and bay leaf. Bring pot to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and add soy sauce prior to serving.
  • When soup has about 5 minutes left of cooking time, heat 1/2 tbsp olive oil in small skillet over medium heat. Add reserved sliced mushrooms + pinch of salt and pepper. Cook 3-5 minutes until they have released their liquid and softened. Top serving bowls with a couple mushrooms slices along with grated parmesan cheese if desired but recommended!

Notes

Lightly adapted from the cookbook Vegetables by Eating Well. 

Crazy Good Mushroom and Quinoa Soup