The Scrawny Cook

This is a special dinner. It's also incredibly simple. It is light and clean tasting, with just the right amount of heat. You'll usually find black squid ink pasta at more upscale restaurants, but I saw some at Trader Joe's and instantly bought a few packs. If you can't find squid ink pasta then you can order it online. This type of pasta is excellent with seafood dishes, hence the jumbo scallops I decided to use. I originally wanted to use san marzano tomatoes to make a fresh red sauce but I had to use up the plum tomatoes I had laying around. It was delicious. Black mysterious looking pasta with sweet, succulent scallops with a golden brown crust. Then there's the heat from the red chili, and the acidity of the white wine and tomatoes...freakin' heck I'm sweating over here just thinking about it. My wife said this is one of her new favorites. Trust me, you've gotta make this dish. Your next special occasion (or just make one up) just have a go ...

Want a light and bright way of adding tons of flavor onto your next dish? Gremolata is the answer! It's one of my favorite things ever. The light fragrant smell of lemon zest, parsley and garlic being mixed together in olive oil is amazing. So light, so easy, so fresh! If you have no idea what gremolata is it's a chopped condiment traditionally consisting of lemon zest, lemon juice, parsley, garlic, anchovies, and really good quality extra-virgin olive oil. Capers can also be added as well, along with other things you may like such as red chili for a little heat. If you're on a budget then skip the anchovies and capers, but if you can try to use them as they give the gremolata its profile and depth of flavor. I made just enough gremolata for the evening to put on a couple pieces of salmon, but make enough of it to store in a container to put in the fridge for a few days as it develops more flavor. I'm not going to really give a recipe as I don't usuall...

Do you want to whip up something special that's also really easy? Then this is a dish for you! It's just chicken thighs cooked and simmered with mushrooms, grape tomatoes, garlic, and red wine that is served over polenta. I originally wanted to make creamy polenta, but decided to cut it in circles and fry it instead. Both versions would be wonderful. If you've never had polenta then you must give it a try! In short polenta is basically a cornmeal porridge common throughout Italy. People add various toppings such as mushrooms and tomatoes. Lamb shanks or braised beef short-ribs would be excellent with it. I don't like to fuss around too much when I make polenta so I will just provide a pretty basic and standard recipe. I usually do 4 cups of water to 1 cup of finely ground cornmeal. Just a heads up if you're not frying or grilling the polenta you'll want to serve it pretty much right away as it will thicken. Serves: 2-4 Prep Time: 15-20 Min. Polenta :...