Lemony Scallop and Spinach Pasta

This is what we had for dinner last night. On Monday nights Mario and I play Dodgeball, so I needed a nice quick dinner. The kids complained because usually when Mario and I are going out and there's a babysitter coming, it means chicken nuggets or kraft dinner for them (and they love that!). However, since we had time to eat before our game, I wanted to have a proper dinner.

This was so quick. In the amount of time it took the spaghetti to boil, I was able to prepare everything else, and then just toss it all together in a big bowl. Claire and Marco weren't too keen on the scallops, but they ate everything else.

I got this recipe from one of my all time favorite cookbooks, "The New Dieter's Cookbook" from Better Homes and Gardens. The recipes in this book are low in calories without sacrificing flavour AND (this is the important part....) without having serving sizes that wouldn't be enough to satisfy a 2 year old. You know when you make a recipe from a diet cookbook and you think its gonna be great, then you realize that the nutritional information is based on 8 servings, but the recipe only makes enough to realistically serve 2? Well that won't happen with this book. The Lemony Scallops served 4 with 358 calories and 8 grams of fat per serving, and I only ate about a sixth of the recipe.

I have never made a recipe from this book that I didn't love! Here are some of the others that I've already posted:

Stuffed Peppers
Dark Chocolate Souffles
Pork Chops Stuffed with Barley and Apricot
Orange Crusted Snapper
Chicken Breasts with Dumplings
Saffron Chicken with Peppers

Lemony Scallop and Spinach Pasta

1 lb fresh or frozen scallops
8 oz dried spaghetti
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 cups fresh baby spinach
1 cup coarsely grated carrot

1. Rinse scallops and dry with paper towel (if large cut in half).

2. Boil pasta, drain and cover to keep warm.

3. Saute scallops in butter with garlic, lemon zest and red pepper flakes over medium heat until cooked through (about 3 minutes).

4. Add lemon juice, spinach leaves, grated carrot and pasta. Toss to coat.