Broiled Scallops and Eggplant w/ Ricotta & Tomato-Basil Relish

Yes, I could have wiped off the plate and made the presentation nicer for the purpose of this blog post, but I was freakin' hungry and could almost not be bothered to even take a photo. This was last night's noms.

Broiled Scallops
1 pound u-10 Sea Scallops
Garlic Salt - to taste
2 TBS butter, melted
fresh squeezed lemon

Rinse and pat scallops dry. Spray the bottom of a shallow baking dish with no-stick spray. Place scallops in the pan, sprinkle with garlic salt, squeeze half a lemon over the lot. Spoon a bit of melted butter over each scallop. Place under high broiler at about the middle rack. Remove once the scallops start browning, about 10 or so minutes. You can serve with some extra butter on the side, but I just squeezed more lemon. Serves 3, (3 scallops/5.3 oz per serving), 394 calories.


"Grilled" Aubergines w/ Fresh Ricotta & "Grilled" Tomato-Basil Relish
('aubergine' is the posh Brit way of saying eggplant.)
for the relish:
6-10 campari tomoatoes, halved
1 TBS olive oil
S&P to taste
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
2 TBS balsamic vinegar
1/4 c. fine chopped fresh basil

Toss tomatoes in a bowl with the olive oil and S&P. Heat a pan on the stove to high heat, and lay the tomatoes in. Reserve left over evoo in the bowl. Leave them alone until they start to brown, then turn them. Remove when the other side browns. You can also grill part or all of the onions at this step in the same pan as the tomatoes. Chop the cooled tomatoes and put back in the bowl you seasoned them in, adding onion, vinegar, and basil. Set aside.

Eggplant and assembly
1 medium eggplant, sliced into 1/2 inch thick rounds (6-8 slices)
1 TBS olive oil
S&P to taste
7 oz skim milk ricotta (1/2 a small tub)
1/4 c. finely chopped parsley

Using a brush, sparingly coat the eggplant slices with the olive oil and season with S&P. Place in a hot pan, and flip when they brown, about 4 minutes per side. Meanwhile, mix ricotta with the parsley and S&P.

To assemble, take 1 slice of eggplant, top with about 1.5 TBS of the ricotta mixture and spread it out, then a healthy dollop of tomato relish on top.

Makes 3 servings (2 slices per serving), 223 calories per serving

Plenty of leftovers for not only my lunch, but also for Cyncha!  Eric's Dinner: nothing, he wasn't feeling well.