Since it opened in December, Cache Restaurant & Lounge has become one of the premier places in downtown Little Rock to enjoy fine dining.
It’s because of dishes like the seared sea scallops that Cache has risen to the high ranks of the Little Rock restaurant scene so quickly. The dish was included in Soirée’s 7 Extravagant Dishes in Little Rock article by Kevin Shalin in the July issue. If you haven’t checked out the dishes included in the article, we recommend you do soon!
The folks at Cache were nice enough to share the recipe to the dish and now we’re going to share it with you. Before we do, just to set the stage for this exquisite dish, here’s how Shalin described it: “This dish, much like the restaurant itself, possesses a modern flair with sophisticated accents.”
The ingredients:
•4 U-10 scallops
•4 oz. Cauliflower Cream
•8 oz. seasonal vegetables (squash, spring onion, chantrelles mushrooms)
•Shaved black truffle
•3 Cerignola olives sliced and pit removed
The process:
Season the scallops with salt and pepper. In a nonstick skillet on high heat with a little grape seed oil, sear the scallop on each side until golden brown for a minute and a half on each side. Set aside to rest. If you add butter, add after the first flip so the butter doesn’t burn. Cut free vegetables in a medium to large dice and sauté in grape seed oil and one clove garlic until tender. Finish with a sprinkling of fresh herbs, such as parley and oregano. Cut one head of cauliflower into 1-inch pieces and place in a medium saucepan. Pour in heavy cream until almost covered. Add black truffle juice or truffle oil as desired. Bring up to a boil and immediately down to a slow simmer until cauliflower is completely tender. Place in a blender and cover. Start blender slow and then move to high until puree is smooth.
Take a large spoonful of cauliflower puree and spread onto a plate. Place the veggies in the center of the puree, then, place the scallops on top. Garnish with olives and truffle, sprinkle with sea salt and enjoy!