Holiday Scallops and Broccoli Creme De Fromage Addendum Re: "The Forgotten Cranberries"

Upon realising that the picture I had uploaded had lost some detail after processing, I decided to take another picture. Alas, the "subject" had already been consumed. There was nothing for it but to go shopping for the ingredients and prepare the dish again. The following morning was Election Day and, as one of the first in line when the polls opened, I exercised my Patriotic Duty and right as a citizen , I then proceeded to the nearest "open 24 hours" grocery store which happened to be Kroger. Upon entering Kroger, I espied a Starbucks and so took advantage of their offering of a free coffee for anyone who had voted. I later learned that Ben and Jerry's, Krispee Creme, Chick-Fil-A, all had "voter freebies". There was even free popcorn at a theatre! Just google "voter freebies". I did, and there are lots of references to it being against the law or at least questionable. Starbucks did an end-around by giving it to ANYone who requested it that day, whether they voted or not. So, sipping my coffee I proceeded on into the store and just past Starbucks is the Bakery and Produce Section. This Christmas recipe only requires about five items and some Extra Virgin olive oil and paprika if desired. Found some very nice broccoli florets and snagged a bag of sliced sourdough french bread. Seafood next and Scallops! Why lo and behold they are on sale! Fresh medium to large fresh! Sea Scallops: $9.99 per pound! I asked for half a pound and the clerk assembled .59 lbs of soft luscious, did I mention Fresh? Oh yeah oh YUM! (I love scallops! Lobster is good sometimes but Scallops are good all the time. Sorry. I digress... :) Let's see, I have bread, broccoli, scallops, so just need pine nuts and creme de fromage and oh this is going to be such a good meal! I've got paprika and EVOO and I'll use the 14" inch skillet and I can't wait to take that first bite... I try to decide between Neufchatel and good old regular anti weight loss Cream Cheese but quickly give up and proceed to search out the Pignolas.

Those pesky Piñon are particularly pricey as nuts go and about 150 nuts is considered a serving. Pine nuts have vitamin A and K and the European Piñon generally has more protein than the American. The Italian or Mediterranean pine nut, from the cones of the Stone Pine tree are lighter in flavor. The Chinese variety is somewhat triangular in shape with a sharper, pungent piquant poignant, sometimes biting flavor. Pungent. Latin pungent-, pungens, present participle of pungere to prick, sting; akin to Latin pugnus fist, pugnare to fight, also, Greek pygmç fist . An estimated two million pounds of the Chinese variety are now imported into the United States each year.

Pine nuts, like all seeds and nuts, are high in fat. A tablespoon has 5 grams of fat, but as with most seeds and nuts, the majority of the fat is monounsaturated fat, with 2 grams of monounsaturated and 2 grams of polyunsaturated fat per tablespoon.

1 ounce pine nuts = 146 calories, 14g fat, 2g sat fat, 5g mono fat, 7g protein, 4g carbohydrates, 1mg sodium, 0mg cholesterol, Vitamin K 15 mcg. Serving size: an ounce or so.

The first Pignoles I find are 3 ounces for almost seven dollars! I then find some for $5/3oz. and then a few aisles over find 1.25 ounces for 3 bucks and THEN I find 2.25 ounces of Private Selection on SALE for $2.62 cents with "the card". On our way! Snagged a dozen eggs to make some oatmeal and peanut butter cookies sometime soon and a Thin Crust Pizza and it's checkout time! Library stop to drop off and pick up a few DVD movies (they even have VHS!) and then home to stow the goodies in the fridge before heading over to put the final touches on a vinyl siding job with paint trim and porch roof renovation. Back home to give a "Music Theory as it relates to Ukulele and Banjo" lesson and ended up NOT preparing a perfect Holiday meal and taking some good pictures of it for display here. So, here I am today ready and able to finish the project so I can finally finish the meal! I suddenly realise I've left out an important ingredient! Gadzooks! Zounds! Oh my stars and garters! So I must wait yet a while longer before finally savoring a most delectable dish.

As it turns out, I didn't need to return to the grocery. In our cupboard I found precisely the item I required, a package of dried cranberries, for that perfect Holiday tone. So, tonight we shall dine on a veritable culinary delight, perhaps with a bottle of YellowTail or maybe that 2007 vintage Rosa Regale that's been sitting there for so long. I must say that I am not a strict vegetarian nor do I pay too much attention to low carbs, approved diets, vitamins, alternative sweeteners, whether I'm cooking, baking, snacking or dining out. I try to handle my own healthcare, monitoring my blood pressure, stress levels, diet, etc. However, when the Thanksgiving Turkey arrives and starts playing Reindeer games with our waistline and the Holiday Season is fully upon us, I do think a bit about taking smaller portions and trying healthy and perfect Christmas recipes. I also make sure that my chocolate intake is kept at a measured pace throughout the Season! At any rate, if you love scallops and broccoli you are sure to love this light and easy Gourmet Holiday Feast.