Scallops with orange and whisky

The other day, in a moment of madness, I bought a job lot of Seville Oranges from the market and I've been wracking my brains how to use up 25kg of buttock clenchingly bitter citrus fruit ever since.

After freezing a load, making a ton of marmalade (using a Delia Smith recipe) and steeping some Vin d'Orange (which I'll report back on when it's finished), I've been experimenting to the point that pretty much everything coming out of the kitchen at the moment tastes of orange.

Seville Oranges are sour enough that you can use them in place of lemon, unfortunately sometimes what you're after is sweetness and to cut a long story short, this recipe made with Sevilles is horrible.

So don't do it.

• 12 "queenie" or 8 "king" scallops
• the zest and juice of a (normal) orange
• 125g butter
• 1 tbsp whisky
• salt & pepper
• a bed of robust leaves like baby spinach or mizuna

Separate the corals from the white bit of the scallops and remove any sinewy bits.
Wipe butter on the base of a cold frying pan and place over a medium to high heat.
When the butter starts smoking add the scallops and sear for 2 minutes on one side, turn over, season and cook for another minute. Remove the scallops from the pan and set aside in a warm place.
Turn the heat down a bit and add the whisky, let the alcohol bubble off for 30 seconds or so, then add the orange juice and zest. Remove from the heat and add the butter swirling the pan around till it's melted and the sauce is emulsified.
Lay the scallops on your salad leaves and spoon the sauce over the top.