Double Chocolate Pudding Parfait

Parfait. Parfait. Parfait. What more can one say?

We tried this recipe from the "Quick" section of February's Gourmet Magazine for a small dinner party we had a few weeks ago. It was indeed a fast prep. We made the pudding ahead of time, but waited to whip the cream and invited our guest to help layer the parfait just before serving. We also added a tablespoon of Cointreau to the whipping cream. Thumbs up all around!

Seared Scallops with Bucatini

This past week we improvised a roasted onion cream sauce to go with this scallop dish. First we roasted small yellow onions (whole, skin on, one cut side down) and garlic cloves. After they were finished and cooled slightly, they were de-skinned and lightly chopped, and added to a medium-hot skillet with two tablespoons of butter. Then we added about one cup of white wine and cooked that a bit, then a small container of skim ricotta. We brought that to a low simmer, added a little water to thin and spiced with cayenne, nutmeg, parmesan, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

Panko-Breaded Snapper

We're optimistically welcoming the first signs of spring with one less layer of socks and a shake of Panko flakes. This Sunday's dinner included baked red snapper marinated in ginger, lemon and garlic, roasted garlic mashed potatoes, and steamed broccoli rabe.