the new restraint

I'm trying to go low-carb again, so here's tonight's dinner:

Bay scallops—lightly seared in olive oil, butter, salt, and garlic—with faux-Greek salad ("faux" because it's missing black olives and red onions). I got the feta cheese from the downstairs grocery; was surprised that they stocked it. It tastes more goat-y than Costco's standard feta, which is a good thing in my book.

Cooked the scallops perfectly, and a lucky thing that was, too. I'm normally paranoid about cooking scallops; in my hands, they usually turn out overcooked and rubbery. Today, though, I closely controlled the flame during the cooking, drained out the oil late in the game, then did the light sear at the very end of the process. These were bay scallops, which means they were tiny, wussy little creatures, albeit flavorful. It occurred to me that they might might serve better in a stuffing, or perhaps as part of a chowder (with cold weather on the way, it'll be chowder season soon), or maybe as the meat in a sandwich.

The meal was good but brief—a fitting way to cap off my first-ever hike up Daemo-san, the local mountain. Daemo means "big mother," so I might be able to get away with calling it "Big Mama-san." The hike was hell—but more about that later. For now, I'm going to shower, then kick back and finish digesting my lovely, low-carb meal.


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