Jan Girls Dinner Club

Back over the summer me and my two best friends started a monthy dinner club so that we were sure to see each other at least once a month. One girl has joined our group. Every month we have dinner at a different girls house. Jan was again my turn! a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKVMu3a-MmPiVv4P2-3azyveTaTb6KScYQG4F6W6cnFhSumg4RWf428pvLYdwzaZRphzohGmw9_pTa0gQ-5I5khDhO7Fm6DK3Ope5HxT9-9vif_XVXOV4FfTvMMnHlKXjy74yof_xPSHw/s1600-h/Picture+009.jpg">


SAUTEED SCALLOPS WITH GARLIC
from The Best Recipes in the World
(2 servings)

8 large sea scallops or about 1 pound bay scallops--I used 1 1/2 Bay for 4 servings
2 T flour for dredging (most will be left on the plate)
1 T good quality olive oil
1 T butter
salt/pepper to taste
1-2 tsp. finely minced fresh garlic
parsley, for garnish--I forgot
fresh lemon slices to squeeze over if desired--I didn't have any so I didn't use



Dry scallops gently with paper towel. Put oil in medium frying pan and turn on heat to medium. Add butter, and while butter melts, dredge each scallop in flour on both sides (I put scallops in a large plastic bag and sprinkled the flour over and then shook the bag). When butter is starting to foam, add scallops to pan. Cook until scallops are barely browned on both sides and starting to feel firm, but not until they feel completely firm, about 2 minutes per side for the initial browning. (This will depend on the thickness of your scallops.)



When both sides are browned slightly, add garlic, lower heat a little, season with salt and pepper as desired, and cook about 2 minutes more, either stirring or shaking the pan so the garlic is well distributed around all the scallops. Garnish with parsley and serve hot, with lemon slices if desired.



I served the scallops with a spinach salad:
1 bag fresh spinach
1/4 cup crumbled gorgonzola cheese
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
enough dressing to make the spinach moist-I used a bottled asian vinigrette

Mix all together and place on plate, top with scallops



Basic Milk Chocolate Mousse with Raspberries
Recipe by surfindaave
Serves 4

Ingredients:
½ pound fine milk chocolate, chopped into small pieces no larger than ¼ inch
2 cups heavy cream, ¼ cup reserved for the chocolate mixture
4 eggs, separated, and at room temperature
a pinch of cream of tartar
Frozen raspberries, defrosted on a paper towel, for garnish

Bring the water of a double boiler or Bain Marie to a boil, and turn down the heat, keeping the water just below a simmer. Make sure the hot water does will not touch the container holding the chopped chocolate.

Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add a pinch of cream of tartar, and beat until they hold still peaks. Reserve.

With clean, chilled beaters, and in a chilled, tall container, beat the cream (except the reserved ¼ cup) until it just holds stiff peaks. Reserve

Place the chopped chocolate over the simmering water, stirring. Continue to stir until all the chocolate pieces are melted, and the mixture is smooth. Remove the chocolate from the heat. Whisk in one egg yolk at a time, incorporating the yolks as much as possible. Add the reserved ¼ cup of heavy cream, and whisk the mixture smooth.

Add a heaping tablespoon or two of both the beaten cream and the egg whites to the chocolate mixture, and combine completely. Add ½ of the remaining beated cream, and carefully fold into the chocolate. Add ½ of the remaining beaten egg whites to the chocolate mixture, and carefully fold in. Add the remaining beaten cream and egg whites to the chocolate mixture, and fold carefully. Chill the mousse, covered with plastic wrap, for at least one hour. Spoon onto serving dishes, decorate with the raspberries. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

I was really worried how the mousse would turn out so I made a Tastefully Simple Absolutely Almond Pound Cake, just in case. When the mousse turned out Great I decided to do a trifle, I layered the pound cake, mousse and raspberries all together and then placed in the fridge until ready to eat. It was WONDERFUL!