Dinner: Zucchini-Wrapped Halibut "Scallops"

Recipe by /contributors/jessica-goldman-foung Between the bacon (around 200mg of sodium per slice) and the scallops (over 330mg per 3 ounces), the classic dish is too salty for me to enjoy. But when the bacon is replaced with smoky zucchini ribbons and t

Ingredients

1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin

Instructions

To prep, mix the ingredients for the two rubs and the glaze in 3 separate bowls. Then, using a vegetable peeler, start peeling along the length of the zucchini, beginning with the green outer layer, creating 1/2-inch-thick ribbons. Rotate the zucchini a quarter-turn after each peel in order to make somewhat even-sized ribbons. Make as many as possible and stop when you get to the seeds. Lay the ribbons out on a plate and sprinkle the zucchini rub on both sides, spreading gently it with your hands until all of the pieces are covered. It doesn't have to be an even coating, but you want every ribbon to have some color and spice.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Dip the halibut chunks into the scallop rub, making sure they are coated on all sides. Tightly wrap a zucchini ribbon around a halibut cube like a belt, so that the ends overlap. Use a toothpick to secure the zucchini and push it through to the other side. Place the wrapped halibut on a plate and repeat the procedure with the remaining fish and zucchini ribbons.
Now it's time to start on your sauce. Add the spinach to the boiling pot of water and cook for 1 minute. Immediately remove the spinach from the water with a slotted spoon, reserving the cooking liquid, and transfer the spinach to a colander to drain. Rinse with cold water and when cool to the touch, use your hands to tightly squeeze the spinach and wring out the liquid. Do this 4 to 5 times until no water remains. Finely chop the spinach into little green bits and set aside.
In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook for 2 minutes. Then add the flour and whisk until combined, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the cream and whisk until the sauce begins to thicken, about 5 minutes. Add the wine and the chopped spinach and continue to cook for 5 more minutes. The sauce will look thick, like creamed spinach. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting to keep the sauce warm.
Reheat the water you used to cook the spinach, and bring to a boil. Make sure you have your halibut rounds, the glaze, a plate, a large sheet of foil, and your serving bowl ready to go, because you are about to be moving around your kitchen quickly.
Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook for 10 minutes or according to the instructions on the package. While the pasta is cooking, heat 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil over medium heat in a large skillet (nonstick if possible). When the oil starts to hiss and sizzle, place the halibut pieces in the pan in a single layer and cook for 2 minutes. Evenly spread the glaze on the top of the fish and then flip the halibut rounds, cooking the other side for 2 minutes more. Spread more glaze on the top side again, flip, and cook for a final 1 to 2 minutes. The halibut will have a crisp, brown sear on both sides. Put the cooked fish on a clean plate and cover it with foil to keep warm. If you had to split the fish into two batches, repeat until all the halibut rounds are cooked.
Finally, drain the pasta and put it into a large bowl with a drizzle of olive oil so the noodles don't stick together. Add the warm spinach sauce to the pasta and toss.
To serve, make a nest of the sauced noodles on a plate and top with 4 or 5 "scallops" per guest. Remove the toothpicks and dig in.

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