Bacon and Scallop Scramble

Besides all of my paleo eggs benedict creations, my favorite breakfasts have been seafood scrambles and omelettes! If you haven’t already, check out my Dungeness Crab Scramble and my Shrimp and Chives Omelette.

My newest one uses scallops! I’ve never been a big fan of bacon wrapped scallops; I don’t usually care for the bacon and scallop flavor combination. Apparently all I had to do was throw in some eggs to really like it! Probably because I’m not one of those “bacon makes everything better!” weirdos people. I’m one of the “bacon is only good for breakfast or on burgers or around dates” people.

Bacon and Scallop Scramble

Ingredients:
– 1 slice of (uncured, low sodium, nitrate free, blah blah blah) bacon
– 1 large wild-caught sea scallop, chopped OR .5 cup or those little bay scallops
– 2 eggs, beaten
– 1/4 cup shallots, chopped
– Black pepper and cayenne pepper to taste
– Fresh basil, chopped

Directions:
Add the shallots and the bacon in the pan and start cooking! When the bacon is about half done, add the scallops and the eggs. Scramble scramble! Season, add fresh basil, and enjoy!

Second blog post in one day, fourth in a week! I think this means that I’m officially back to blogging regularly! Hooray!

Truffle goat cheese-stuffed bacon-wrapped dates

For last night’s dinner, I made some bacon-wrapped dates and lamb meatballs with a balsamic reduction over arugula and baby spinach, sprinkled with more balsamic vinegar. YUM!

 

View the lamb meatballs post for the recipe! I did make one small addition – I added 1/2tsp of CARDAMOM! I loved it even more!

Goat Cheese-stuffed, Bacon-wrapped Dates

Ingredients:
– Noor dates, pitted
– Chevre goat cheese
– One slice of bacon per 3 dates
– Toothpicks, cut in half

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cut the dates almost in half and spread them apart.
3. Fill the pitted part with goat cheese and close the dates.
4. Cut bacon slices into thirds and wrap the dates, securing each with half a toothpick.
5. Bake in a baking pan for 20-30 minutes until bacon is cooked to your liking, turning the dates over half way through.

To make this fully paleo, you would skip stuffing the dates with cheese. However, I think the cheese is necessary to add a tangy flavor to cut the sweetness of the dates because bacon just isn’t strong enough for that. So this one is primal! I found this super delicious chevre goat cheese – Cypress Grove Truffle Tremor at Whole Foods. It’s probably one of the best goat cheeses I’ve had because I LOVE truffle. I used Applewood’s Sunday Bacon, which is thin and great for wrapping, and noor dates because they are smaller than medjool dates.

Five Crustless Mini-Quiches

From the top, clockwise:
– bacon, mushrooms, onions
– sun-dried tomato, dried basil, roasted garlic and red pepper
– butternut squash, onions
– shrimp, onions, green onions
– broccoli, zucchini, onion

I only made one of each to see what flavor combo I would like best. They were all pretty good! I especially enjoyed the bacon one and the shrimp one. The butternut squash one was great, but the whole time I was wishing for some chevre goat cheese with it to cut the sweetness of the squash. I’m definitely going to make an almond flour crust next time. Might as well make a scramble or omelette if it’s not going to have a crust! However, mini-quiches are awesome for on-the-go breakfasts. So much better than an egg mcmuffin!

To make the five quiches in cupcake pans (use cupcake foil, not paper), I simply beat 3 eggs with a little splash of water for fluffiness. I poured the eggs into each cup a quarter of the way, added the other ingredients, then poured in more egg until full. I pre-cooked every ingredient except the zucchini and broccoli.

 

 

I have definitely not been paleo this week! 30 day challenge epic fail starting with Utah and now this week. I went to a friend’s work dinner party on Sunday and was surprised to see that most of the food was paleo. Bacon wrapped shrimp, bacon wrapped date, prosciutto wrapped veggies, steak, veggies… But I was also convinced to try the empanadas (I love empanadas! Can I make paleo empanadas?) and that was the beginning of the end. Wait, no… it was the 4 glasses of white wine. I’m such a light-weight now that I was definitely inebriated by the 3rd glass. By the 4th glass, it was time for dessert – two Cold Stone Creamery ice cream cakes. That whole part is a blur to me… a strawberry and chocolate blur where I DEVOURED FOUR LARGE PIECES! Someone must have cut me off, because I am pretty sure I could have eaten more. Of course, this was after the biggest steak I could find and several plates of appetizers! The funny part? At their meeting yesterday, everyone wanted to know how I can eat so much and look the way I do. Here’s my answer: I’m probably adapted to overeating my whole life, low body fat/lots of muscle mass to burn more calories, and my Asian genes. Or I could just be a freak with a bottomless pit for a stomach. It’s probably the latter.

In other news, I have a 5 mile trail race on Saturday! It’s going to be cold and muddy! I’m also really out of shape… I haven’t run since it was at least 60 degrees outside (several months ago). It’s only 5 miles and as long as I’m not last, I think I’ll be happy with my first race ever! I’ve never run a race before because I thought they were always on the road. I refuse to run a lot on pavement, I think it’s horrible for your knees and such. Can’t believe I never looked into trail races before with how much I love trail running! I’m excited! I’ll probably struggle… I actually hope I have a hard time running a measly five miles so that I can finally feel motivated to focus on my fitness again.