Barbara grew up enjoying her grandmother's cavatelli pasta dishes, which featured vegetables and meat or seafood. "That memory was always in my head," she says. "I decided to update a little by adding more vegetables, then I switched pasta and added scallops."
1/4 cup instant flour, such as Wondra
1/2 teaspoon lemon-pepper seasoning
1 1/2 lb. sea scallops, patted dry
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons butter, divided
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1 (8-oz.) pkg. sliced crimini mushrooms
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups penne (tube-shaped pasta)
1 lb. broccoli florets (4 cups)
2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1. Combine flour and lemon-pepper seasoning in shallow bowl. Coat scallops with flour mixture, shaking to remove excess. Place scallops on wire rack while preparing remainder of recipe.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter in large skillet over medium heat until butter is melted. Cook and stir garlic and thyme 30 to 60 seconds or until fragrant. Add mushrooms and salt; cook 3 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.
3. Meanwhile, cook penne according to package directions, adding broccoli during last 3 minutes. Drain; add to mushroom mixture. Cook over medium heat 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and parsley; cover loosely to keep warm.
4. Heat another large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil and butter; heat until butter is melted. Cook scallops, in batches, 3 to 5 minutes or until golden brown on outside and cooked through but moist and tender on inside, turning once. Arrange scallops over pasta.
5. Return skillet to medium-high heat; pour in lemon juice. Bring to a boil, stirring to scrape up any browned bits from bottom of skillet. Pour over pasta mixture.
4 servings
PER SERVING: 540 calories, 19 g total fat (5.5 g saturated fat), 33 g protein, 61 g carbohydrate, 60 mg cholesterol, 970 mg sodium, 8 g fiber