Though our small town of Cambridge is located deep in a landlocked state, we can get remarkably fresh fish. Our own Cranberry Bob works on a fishing boat off of New Hampshire and delivers fresh tuna, flounder and large scallops on Fridays. Cranberry Bob is his own story. He is owner of the Vermont Cranberry Company which is the largest cranberry farm in the state. When not tending the bogs, he spends his time foraging wild mushrooms, consulting for vineyards, skiing or fishing professionally. It’s good to be Bob.
The scallops he delivers are my favorite and since they take to sweet sauces well, I surmised that maple would make an excellent glaze. First I needed to counter the sweetness with something earthy and miso turned out to do the trick.
To round out the flavors and bring them back from the edge of too sweet, I chose sautéed Swiss chard to place them on. I have always found that chard is a vegetable one feels they ought to eat rather than something they want to eat but here it is perfect. In fact, for this dish, I dare say it is an integral element for balance so go ahead and place that huge bunch of chard prominently in your cart knowing it will result in something delicious and not obligatory. I used red chard for the color but white or yellow also work.