Beet pesto pasta with scallops and foie gras & truffle, sparkled up with dill and chieve flowers.

This week I planned to cook a full on duck dinner but it had to be prepared 2 days in advance and I didn’t have time for that, so this came out all of sudden. And we were happy with it 😀

Beet is probably my most favorite root vegetable for its sweetness, and the color. Roasted beets and garlic, blended with pine nuts and parmesan cheese, easy job for such a beautiful pasta sauce. Just take a good look at this nutty sauce, how can you not like it?

Foie gras was a bit of unneccesary to be honest (I was more in search of truffle fragrance), especially when those Japanese scallops were as big and thick as button shrooms, they themselves were good enough. Anyway, that juicy taste of the ocean combined with truffle fragrance just blew my mind. Note to self: truffle oil is a must for next time.

What I liked the most about this dish is, it shows me food is not just food, food brings and makes memories. Close my eyes, with a bite of scallop in my mouth, I always imagine that beautiful afternoon in Rotorua Lakefront having fish & chips (I had oysters and scallops :P) with the family, surrounded by hundreds of seagulls haha, the always-over-excited speakers of the sea. 

And I love scallops.

P.S: 
1. Smoke salmon can be a cheaper and still beautiful option to go with this pasta.
2. This beautiful pink pasta would be a really good choice for vegeterian ladies, and gents 😉 

My illustration for this dish 😛

The beetroot pesto also helped make a beautiful yet simple brunch the day after: salad with smoked salmon and bagel with brie, pear, prosciutto and baby spinach :’>