How Do You Spell Seviche or Ceviche or. . .

So, once in a while you are invited to a dinner --and you go even when you are feeling low. And, because you are supposed to know how to cook, and the evening is for foodies, you feel like you are supposed to bring something spiffy not just the Kaliber, nonalcoholic beer made by Guinness, that you are sticking with these days. (By the way, I think I am allergic to the stuff. Every time I drink it, I get a headache the next day, and I know it is not a hangover.) So, in this case, the dinner. I went to one of my favorite cookbooks., James Peterson's Fish and Shellfish. Yep, I looked for something spiffy and special but not too taxing. I'm not sure I like seviche -- or ceviche -- or. . . (Click here for various spellings and meanings.) But it meets both criteria (I think): spiffy and special. So, here's what I did, rooted in large measure, but not entirely, in Peterson's cookbook, page 91 or so. 

I bought a pound of dry wild sea scallops, 4 limes, 3 jalapenos, and a bunch of organic cilantro. I sliced the scallops into thinner bits (yep, Peterson is right -- if they are too slippy or hard to cut, a few moments in the freezer will stiffen them up for slicing; I did not need to do this but tried it anyway), and let them macerate in the lime juice with cilantro and jalapeno. After 20 minutes, I served what was no longer raw scallops but seviche (or ceviche or. . . )  in martini glasses. 

And here's where I really really diverged, besides using more scallops and different amounts of everything: organic pea shoots. I bought them. I did not use them. Usually, they look great. They make swell garnish. Usually they taste great. But, when I arrived at the moment of truth -- aka garnishing-- somehow these particular pea shoots let me down. They looked an odd flourescent green. So, I abandoned them in my friend's refrigerator. 

I am still not sure if I like seviche, ceviche. . . raw scallops. Ok, it actually tasted darn good -- maybe it is just the idea that puts me off. I definitely still like Peterson's cookbook. The dinner was fine. And the beer tasty. And the next day -- headache.