BYLINES BY SCOTT
RECIPE: ANNE BURRELL’S SUMMERTIME SCALLOPS
A small-town girl with a distinctly big-time personality, chef Anne Burrell sees parallels between her picturesque, upstate New York upbringing and the Hamptons’ summertime bounty.
“Going out to the Hamptons reminds me of going back to my roots,” she says. “I just love all the farmstands.” The Food Network personality, who recruits for restaurants nationwide and finds the best of the worst while challenging Bobby Flay in the TV hit Worst Cooks in America, is hosting Heat’s Pink Apron Party on August 17 to benefit the Ellen Hermanson Breast Cancer Center at Southampton Hospital.
What is intriguing about visiting the Hamptons?
ANNE BURRELL: The Hamptons really shows the beauty of New York State, which a lot of people don’t know about. There is so much more [outside] of the city. The beaches are amazing!
What are your favorite summertime ingredients from the East End?
AB: Corn and tomatoes, but I also love all the fresh herbs, fruit, and lettuces.
What are your must-dos out East?
AB: The Montauk Lighthouse. Ice cream in Sag Harbor. Shelter Island for sunsets on the beach, rosé, and fun. Lunch at The Lobster Roll after a day in the sun at the beach in Montauk.
What was one of your most memorable meals in the Hamptons?
AB: I have had some super fun meals at Nick & Toni’s. It is such a casual, relaxed setting. It’s a great place to be with a ton of friends, having a laugh in a good atmosphere.
You recently visited The North Fork Table & Inn. What was your favorite part?
AB: I had a delightful dinner, and they sent us home with goodie bags of Claudia Fleming’s delicious cookies. Unfortunately I got up to eat them for breakfast and found that a raccoon had broken into the house and eaten all the cookies!
Name your go-to summer beverages.
AB: Chef Anne’s Sparkler: Prosecco with Aperol on the rocks with a twist. Or crisp white wine—on the rocks, of course!
If you could cook dinner for anyone, who would you choose?
AB: Julia Child. I would definitely want to cook with her and have a glass of wine together. We would go to the farmers market and see what we could find and where that would take us.
Who inspired you to cook?
AB: Julia Child, Lidia Bastianich, Mario Batali, and my mom.
What kind of restaurant would you love to open, and where would it be located?
AB: New York City. It would basically be opening up my home, so I could feel like the hostess every night. Small, intimate, personal, and, of course, delicious.
Many New York City chefs are establishing East End outposts. Any shot of an Anne Burrell restaurant coming soon out here?
AB: I don’t blame chefs for wanting to go East; it’s super fun, and you are on the beach. I have always thought of doing a project out East, and summer is such an exciting season.
We hear you’re hosting Heat’s Pink Apron Party this August in the Hamptons. Why did you get involved?
AB: This is for a really important cause—women’s causes are very important.
Chef Wanted, Worst Cooks in America, and Secrets of a Restaurant Chef—which do you prefer?
AB: I love all of the shows, and for such different reasons. I really have the full spectrum covered at The Food Network—from hopelessly bad home cooks on Worst Cooks, to people who want to know and learn more on Secrets of Restaurant Chef, to chefs on Chef Wanted. I love being a teacher, and I love to see people blossom from hopelessly bad cooks to achievement in their cooking. If I had to pick one show it would be Secrets of a Restaurant Chef, as it was my first show and my baby. I also loved doing Iron Chef America with Mario Batali, and I wish he would do more.
We hear you and Bobby Flay went at it again on Worst Cooks. Any gossip?
AB: Absolutely, but I will never tell. I adore Bobby Flay!
If you weren’t a chef, what career path would you choose?
AB: A therapist. I feel like being a chef is sometimes like being a therapist. There are so many issues wrapped up in food, with family, memories, and emotions. Food is truly the only universal language.
What legacy do you want to establish?
AB: I get such a joy out of cooking and providing for others. If I can be empowering and inspiring to people through my cooking, then I feel like I have done my job.
SUMMERTIME SCALLOPS
Serves 4
1 lb. watermelon
1 cup Champagne or white wine vinegar
2 tbsp. sugar
2 tbsp. kosher salt, more for seasoning
Pinch of crushed red pepper
8 large sea scallops
2–3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 watermelon radish (size of a kiwi), peeled and julienned
1 cup dandelion greens, cut into ½-inchwide ribbons
½ small red onion, thinly sliced
Cut rind off watermelon. Shave rind into 1/8-inch-thick ribbons. In bowl, combine Champagne or white wine vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper. Add ribbons; let stand at room temperature for one hour. Dice watermelon flesh into half-inch pieces; reserve. Heat grill when ribbon “pickles” are ready. Brush scallops with olive oil; season with salt. Grill until grill marks appear, about one minute. Rotate scallops 90 degrees to develop grill marks in opposite direction. Turn over and repeat; they’re done when no longer translucent—about two minutes per side. As scallops cook, drain “pickles,” reserving liquid. Toss reserved watermelon, “pickles,” watermelon radish, dandelion greens, and onion in bowl. Dress to taste with pickling liquid and olive oil; arrange on four plates. Place scallops on salad. Drizzle with olive oil.
Read the Article at Hamptons-Magazine.com HERE.
