Scallop

Couscous with fresh herbs, and steamed green beans sprinkled with toasted pine nuts would be lovely accompaniments. Dessert? Try warm apple turnovers from the bakery; top with ice cream.

This elegant first course from American Seasons is topped with parsley oil, which is easy to make and could also be drizzled over roasted fish or steamed potatoes, and other vegetables.

Round out this menu with a salad of snow peas, cherry tomatoes, and bean sprouts dressed with a rice-wine vinaigrette. For dessert, sliced kiwis splashed with rum would be good. Look for the curry paste, coconut milk, fish sauce, and jasmine rice in the Asian foods section of your supermarket.

Cappe Sante con Mandorle Venice and nearby Trieste are two Italian cities that know how to use scallops well. After all, the shellfish is abundant in the northern part of the Adriatic. In this recipe, from Venice's Fiaschetteria Toscana, almonds add texture to an otherwise soft dish, and the brandy playing off the natural sweetness of the scallops gives the sauce a Sherry-like flavor.

Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 1 hr

Active time: 25 min Start to finish: 45 min

Here's a marinade that was inspired by the spicy food served at a favorite Connecticut restaurant of the same name. It's nice for jumbo shrimp, sea scallops and chicken. The recipe makes enough to marinate about 1 1/2 pounds of seafood or poultry. Any marinade coming in contact with raw meat, seafood or poultry must be boiled for one minute before using it for basting.

This combination has now become a bit of a classic, but Steve has put his signature on it with the mint oil. You must use the oil on the same day it's made or the mint will discolour.

A simple and sensational starter.

Serve these pastries as the first course of a special-occasion supper — maybe with a bottle of chilled Champagne.