Where there’s smoke

Smoked Scallop and Hazelnut Fettuccine

When I taste a delicious dish, I can’t resist asking how it’smade. However, if the source is a professional chef, converting hisor her process for the home kitchen can be tricky, often demandinga modified game plan.

For example, John Howie, executive chef at Seattle’s PalisadeWaterfront Restaurant, turns out delicately flavored smokedscallops and smoked hazelnuts for this mellow and ― exceptfor the smoking ― very easy pasta. But then he has theadvantage of a commercial smoker.

Where there’s a trick, there’s a trickster: I set out to “smoke”the handful of shellfish and nuts this dish requires without buyinga smoker or ever firing up the barbecue. Modifying Howie’s initialstep a bit, I brined the scallops and hazelnuts in water, salt,sugar, and liquid smoke (made from real smoke ― a little goesa long way). Voilà! Smoke flavor that delicately permeates thescallops and hazelnuts.