Who doesn’t love a Sunday Funday? A long brunch, a new movie, some drinks on a patio. It’s a great way to extend the weekend fun!

Yesterday I had some girlfriends over for a Sunday Funday cooking lesson. Earlier in the week we had talked about what they wanted to cook and I told them to choose something that they may not cook at home, but something that they would order in a restaurant thinking we’d get some good options from that premise.

The girls decided that they wanted to do sea scallops with some kind of healthy quinoa and small appetizer. Immediately my wheels started turning and I came up with something that I think even the most skeptic eater would like.

Starting off with a cute little appetizer and some prosecco we were ready to rock n’ roll in the kitchen.

 

In the midst of hilarious story telling about strange interactions in bars and gossip about Game of Thrones (are y’all watching that? I’m not, but after hearing about it will definitely be jumping on the bandwagon) we made a scrumptious and light meal.

 

What’d you get into for Sunday Funday?

Zucchini appetizer with Ricotta and Mint, makes about 30

2 medium zucchinis

1 cup full fat ricotta cheese

3 T fresh mint, chopped

olive oil for drizzling

salt

Heat a grill pan on medium heat. Slice the zucchini into 1/4 in rings. Drizzle the zucchini with olive oil and a pinch of salt. Grill zucchini on each side for about 3 minutes, or until grill marks show up. Remove from pan. In a small bowl combine ricotta and chopped mint. Add a small dallop of cheese mixture onto the zucchini rings. Sprinkle with extra mint and enjoy.

Italian quinoa, serves 2-4

4 large roma tomatoes

olive oil for drizzling

About 1 cup veggie or chicken broth

2 cloves garlic, crushed and minced

1 cup uncooked quinoa

1-2 cups fresh spinach

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Slice the tomatoes in half, drizzle with olive oil S&P and roast for about 25-30 minutes. Peel the skin off the tomatoes and add to a mixing bowl. With a immulsion blender puree the tomato mixture. Add enough broth to make the liquid amount 2 cups total. Add garlic and a pinch of S&P and puree together. Add the liquid to a sauce pan and bring to a light boil. Add the quinoa, stir and cover. Lower heat to light simmer and cook 12-15 minutes or until all of the liquid is absorbed into the quinoa. Fluff with a fork and add spinach to wilt.

Scallops

3 large sea scallops per person

3 T grapeseed oil

1 T ground coriander, divided

S&P

In a sauté pan, heat the grapeseed oil. Season scallops with sprinkle of S&P and coriander. Place the seasoned side down in the pan and season other side. Cook scallops about 3 minutes on each side. remove from pan and serve with quinoa.