Scallops with strawberry arugula salad

Eating Paleo is not cheap! Wild caught fish, organic herbs, vegetables and fruits, grass fed beef, cage free poultry. But as I get older, I'm starting to agree that we should take care of our body and (try to) only put the best stuff to care for our body. I went grocery shopping at Whole Foods today and stock up on some essentials. I now understand why Whole Foods is popularly known as Whole Paycheck. 

Having said that, even when you do shop at Whole Foods, do pay attention to the labeling. I've bought salmon filets that aren't cheap, only to find out, upon close examination of the fine prints on the price tag, that they are farm raised and not wild caught. Don't assume everything at Whole Foods is organic. It's only organic if they say so. And usually it's slightly more expensive. I remember almost paying $1 a lemon, an organic one. Thankfully, Mitch now supplies me with meyer lemons, for free! 

Ok, back to what I had intended to blog about. My second attempt at eating Paleo was great, I made myself a delicious dinner. 

Homemade pan-seared scallops served with
strawberry argula salad

Pan-seared scallops 

(Serves 2-4 depending on whether you serve this as an appetizer or entree)

Adapted from The Food Lovers Make it Paleo and Paleo Adventure

Ingredients:

• 12 scallops
• 1 tbsp olive oil (I still haven't transitioned to using coconut oil) 
• 2 shallots, minced 
• 2 garlic, minced
• 4 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped 
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• Juice of 1 lemon (I use meyer lemon)
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste 

Preparation:

• Rinse scallops with cold water and pat dry with a paper towel, set aside.
• In a bowl or ziploc bag, place the minced shallots, minced garlic, finely chopped parsley, paprika, juice of 1 lemon and a dash of sea salt and pepper. Mix well. 
• Add the scallops to the marinade. Make sure scallops are well marinated. 
• Heat olive oil in a frying pan. 
• Add scallops to frying pan.
• Sear scallops for approximately 2 minutes per side. 
• Tip: Consider using a splatter cover. 

Strawberry argula salad 

(Serves 2)

Adapted from Laaloush's Pear, Quinoa and Spinach Salad (also very delicious, but I don't know if quinoa is Paleo)

Ingredients:

• 4 cups argula
• 6-8 strawberries, thinly sliced 
• 1/4 cup walnuts, chopped 
• 1 tbsp walnut oil
• 1 1/2 tbsp pomegranate vinegar (you can also use strawberry/raspberry balsamic vinegar)
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• Sea salt to taste (I cheated and used 1 tbsp fat free vegetable broth, probably not Paleo but I had it in the fridge)
• Optional: 1/4 tsp fresh chives, chopped  

Preparation:

• Whisk oil, vinegar, broth/sea salt, chives and black pepper in a large salad bowl. Make sure all ingredients are evenly combined. 
• Add strawberries and argula. Toss lightly to coat.