What's for dinner?

How many conversations have you had with your friends about trying to come up with something new for dinner? Yeah, yeah, we all know the story....pizza, spaghetti, chicken nuggets, macaronni and cheese...yada, yada, ya. Well, I love to cook and even though not every new recipe ends up being a keeper, I've had two successes in a row. Whoot whoot!

So here they are....

Baked Scallops

1 1/2 pds. sea scallops, rinsed and drained
4 T. butter, melted
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 scallions, chopped
3 pinches of ground nutmeg
salt and pepper
1/2 c. bread crumbs
2 T. olive oil
1/2 tsp. dried parsley
1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400*
2. Pour the melted butter into a 2 qt. casserole dish. Distribute the scallops evenly over the butter.
3. Combine the remaining ingredients. Sprinkle the mixture over the scallops.
4. Bake in pre-heated oven until scallops are firm, about 20 minutes.

On the side we had mashed potatoes, green salad, and french bread. Delish!

Knock out #2:

Country-Style Pork Tacos with Tomato Salsa

Paste:
1 T. kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp. granulated garlic
1 1/2 tsp. chile powder
1 1/2 tsp. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
3 T. extra virgin olive oil

1 1/2 pds. boneless country-style pork ribs

Salsa:
1 1/2 c. roughly chopped ripe tomatoes
1 large ripe avocado, finely diced
2 to 3 green onions, white part only, finely chopped
1/4 c. finely chopped fresh cilantro (Can I just say how much I L-O-V-E cilantro!!)
2 T. fresh lime juice
Kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

flour tortillas

1. Make the paste. Trim excess fat from the pork and then rub the paste all over. Cover and refrigerate the pork for 2 hrs. (or as long as 8 hrs.).
2. Make the salsa.
3. Allow the pork to stand at room temp. for 20-30 minutes. Grill over Direct Medium heat, 12 to 15 minutes. NOTE TO READER: GRILL WHENEVER POSSIBLE IN THE SUMMER TIME IN AZ. WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WANTS TO USE THE OVEN??!!!!!
4. Warm tortillas. (Can wrap in foil and place on grill for 2-4 minutes or use the microwave).
5. Cut the pork crosswise into very thin slices. Serve the sliced pork wrapped in warm tortillas with the salsa.

Serve with refried beans and fresh pineapple as your sides.

Sorry no photos of the food. Come on people, if I had to stop and take pictures, my kids would already be full on goldfish, fruit snacks, pretzels, oreos, bread and whatever else they could sneak out of the pantry. I swear as soon as I start cooking dinner they suddenly become ravishing and wither from starvation as I'm madly whipping together the ingredients. I promise they are Yum!