Seared Scallops and Asparagus Risotto

My Dad and his girlfriend were in town this past weekend, so I figured I'd cook up a good meal for them on Saturday night. We all love scallops, so I figured that would be my treat for the evening! I was able to find fresh scallops at the store, and decided to pair this with an asparagus risotto. It was delicious! This risotto would be great with any sort of meat or seafood, or on its own! Enjoy!

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

16-20 fresh sea scallops, depending on size

salt and pepper, to taste

4 tb olive oil, divided for two pans (2 tb per pan)

1/2 lemon, juiced

~1/2 tb lemon pepper seasoning (salt-free)

1 cup arborio rice

1 small shallot, diced

~ 1 cup fresh asparagus, cut into bite size pieces

1/2 cup white wine (dry is my preference)

4 cups reduced-sodium, reduced fat chicken broth

1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated

1 tb fresh parsley

Directions:

Make sure you have 2 high non-stick pans/skillets for this, along with a sauce pan. In the sauce pan, heat the chicken broth over low heat. In the larger skillet/dutch oven, heat 2 tb olive oil over medium heat and saute the shallot and asparagus for 1 minute. Add the arborio rice and stir so that the oil covers the rice and saute for approximately 2 minutes. Add the wine, a dash of salt and pepper, and stir until combined. Add 1 cup of the chicken broth and stir together so that it will not stick. Stir every couple of minutes until the broth is absorbed into the rice. Add another cup of broth and repeat that process until the broth is gone. This should take about 20 minutes. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary. In the last few minutes of finishing up the risotto, heat the other 2 tb olive oil in the other skillet over medium-high heat. Rinse and pat dry the scallops and add a dash of lemon pepper to cover both sides, along with salt. Sear the scallops for approximately 2-3 minutes per side. When done, serve with the risotto and garnish with parsley.