I know this is only the second meal I’ve made and “planned” but damn…I am seriously impressing myself! Is it too early to say that? Last night’s pasta dish was so awesome I couldn’t wait to share a pic on facebook and now I can’t wait to sahre the recipe. It is so incredible easy, the longest part is boiling the water for the noodles.
Tonight’s dinner plan is zucchini pizza! I saw a great idea on Eat Live Run where she grates the zuccs instead of slicing them…how clever! I will also be attempting my own pizza dough tonight, which I never have before. I still have 2 more days of time and freedom, so why not?
I hope you enjoy this pasta dish as much as Joe and I did. I used leftover pureed tomatoes I had on hand and the stir of mascapone took it to an elegant level. Instead of creating a lose sauce, everything stuck to the linguini perfectly and every bite was coated with a luscious pink sauce. Pure perfection.
Before I continue, I want to address some pet-peeves that are very important to me. I may lose some readers over this, but this is crucial.
#1- Scallops- Do not…and I repeat…Do not over cook scallops! If you do, I may have to throw you out the window. Scallops are tender and VERY delicate. It is ok if they are still slightly soft in the center. In fact, you could eat them raw if you REALLY wanted to! Keep an eye on those little guys, they are special and don’t require long cooking time.
#2- Cooking pasta- This is such a huge pet peeve for me. I cringe when I see stuck together pasta! This can all be avoided, people! You have those HUGE pots, so use them! Yes it takes a while to boil water, so plan ahead. Always salt your water too and constantly check your pasta for doneness. There’s always that “Just one more minute” that does the trick.
#3- The marriage- Another cringe worthy moment for me, and this may be personal, of course, is when I see a glop of sauce on top of pasta! How do you think those noodles on the bottom feel? Don’t they want in on some of the action too? Those poor noodles are just sitting there drying up begging to be loved by that hot steaming sauce! But nooo…you just HAVE to glop it only on the top! What good is that? My tip: get married! Blend the pasta noodles and sauce together in your sauce pan so everything gets coated together and every bite is perfection.
Rant over. Thanks for listening.
Method:
1) Boil water and cook linguini to package directions.
2) Dry scallops very well with a paper towel. Season with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, drizzle with olive oil and saute scallops until just opaque, about 2 minutes.Remove scallops to a plate.
3) In the same skillet, add garlic, red pepper flakes and dried oregano. Saute for a few more minutes.
4) Add tomato puree, fresh oregano, salt and pepper, Parmesan cheese and stir in mascarpone cheese. Cook for a few minutes.
5) When pasta is done, use tongs or ladle to directly take from water into sauce, tossing the sauce and pasta together. You may want to add 1/2 c of pasta water as well. Add scallops and toss to coast. Taste for seasonings.
Easy Pasta with Tomato Mascapone Sauce and Scallops
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb linguini
- 1/2 llb scallops
- 1 c tomato puree
- 1/2 c mascapone cheese
- 1/2 c Parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp fresh oregano
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1-2 garlic cloves chopped
- Olive oil for drizzling
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Boil water and cook linguini to package directions.
- Dry scallops very well with a paper towel. Season with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, drizzle with olive oil and saute scallops until just opaque, about 2 minutes.Remove scallops to a plate.
- In the same skillet, add garlic, red pepper flakes and dried oregano. Saute for a few more minutes.
- Add tomato puree, fresh oregano, salt and pepper, Parmesan cheese and stir in mascapone cheese. Cook for a few minutes.
- When pasta is done, use tongs or ladle to directly take from water into sauce, tossing the sauce and pasta together. You may want to add 1/2 c of pasta water as well. Add scallops and toss to coast. Taste for seasonings.
DB-The Foodie Stuntman says
August 25, 2012 at 10:50 amI was afraid you were going to call me out for refrigerating my tomatoes when I saw the title of this post. hahahaha
I’ve been a little reluctant to prepare scallops because of your first pet peeve. I understand they can easily be overcooked. I have yet to figure a way around this. (Possibly ceviche style?)
I can agree with your other two pet peeves. Pasta is like a sponge. If you have to blanch anything, save the water and the pasta will absorb the flavors.
One more hint: When using dried pasta, boil for a minute or two less than the package instructions, drain, and add the pasta to your sauce to finish cooking there.
Brandie (@ Home Cooking Memories) says
August 25, 2012 at 2:54 pmI’m totally gonna make this. I love how simple it is and while I love scallops, I don’t think I’ve actually had them in a dish like this. Well done!
Jenni says
August 26, 2012 at 10:23 amI love swirling in some cheese, olive oil, cream cheese or heavy cream into my pasta before serving–it thickens into a beautiful emulsion and coats every noodle in silky goodness. Will have to try it w/mascarpone sometime!
I completely agree w/you about finishing your pasta in the pan w/the sauce. Nothing more depressing than naked noodles!
As to cooking the pasta, I have learned a thing that I will pass on to you. If you start the pasta in cold–yes cold–water w/just enough water to cover, it won’t stick together, the water will come to a boil faster, and the pasta will finish cooking 2-3 minutes faster since it was in from the beginning. It has changed the way I plan for cooking pasta–take so much less time. And I promise, no stuck together noodles, even with a minimum of water. I think I learned that from Mark Bittman or someone like that. Try it; I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised, even though it does fly in the face of everything we’ve ever learned about how to cook pasta. 🙂
Jessica Macpherson says
August 28, 2012 at 12:06 pmDrooling. That looks/sounds SO good! Thanks!