15 Minute Bay Scallop Alfredo

Cooking during the summer in this house can be a chore.  It's a darling house that I love dearly, but having been built in the 1800's and gone through several owners, the quality of the various upgrades/changes varies.  The kitchen, for example, was a later addition done on the cheap--they literally plugged an 11'x10' box onto the back of the second story with no insulation and minimal underside supports.  Therefore, besides having to shore up the room before I moved in (nothing like having to ask the question "well, is it going to fall off?") my kitchen, being the outside wall on four of six sides, is pretty much the same temperature as outside.  During the winter I just make a lot of breads, stews, and other long-cooking items to keep the room toasty, but in the summer anything which adds heat to the room makes the entire floor unbearable.

Not being a takeout kind of girl (it's fine once in awhile, but all summer? Expensive and unhealthy!) instead I've made it my mission this summer to come up with recipes that minimize my time in the kitchen and don't use the oven.  Yeah, I know, there are millions of 30-minute cookbooks out there but really--isn't that aiming too low?  Dinner is totally possible in 15 minutes which I proved last night with my 15 Minute Bay Scallop Alfredo. (recipe after the break)