Scallop shell

“ Butter some scallop shells, fill them with a mixture of half breadcrumbs and half oysters, adding pepper and salt to taste, and a grate of nutmeg. Strain the liquor and divide it between the number of scallop shells you have, put a piece of butter in each shell, a few drops of lemon juice, and cover up with breadcrumbs, pressing down contents of each shell. Put into a very brisk oven till top is well browned. ”

“ Or watch the scallop with his turquoise eyes; or the comic crabs, or the minnows playing through the water, in and out of the recesses of the rocks or the thickets of the seaweed. There is no end of the pleasant sights. And day after day the creatures will grow more tame, the serpula will not dart back into his case when you approach, nor the pecten close his beautiful shell as your shadow passes over it. ”

“ Scallops, as purchased, are only a part of the animal in the shell, consisting solely of the round white muscle which operates the shell. The escallop, or scallop, is migratory, moving by a shooting motion, the mature scallops reaching the creeks and shores in the autumn, and though found in so-called beds they are not fixtures like the oysters. The flavor is sweet, and they have a quality that makes them more or less indigestible, especially when fried. They are very palatable and more digestible served in a stew made like an oyster stew. They are sold by the measure and are cheap in season. ”

“ Have six small silver scallop-shells, lightly butter the interior of each, then evenly spread a tablespoonful of fresh bread-crumbs in each shell, gently lay six oysters in each shell over the crumbs, and then sprinkle a tablespoonful of bread-crumbs on the oysters in each shell; place half a teaspoonful of good butter in the centre of each shell; place them in a very hot oven to bake for fully fifteen minutes, or until they have obtained a good golden color. Remove them from the oven. Dress the six shells on a hot serving-dish, with a folded napkin, and send to the table. ”

“ Plicatula, is another genus of this family, of which there are three British fossil species. A delicate shell, with slender depressed spines (P. inflata. Foss. South D. pl. xxvi.) , occurs in the Chalk Marl. The recent species are natives of the seas of warm climates.
Pecten.—The common scallop-shell will serve as a type of this genus. The animals of these shells, unlike the oysters, have the power of locomotion, and when in the water, may be seen moving with rapidity, and flapping their shells to and fro with great activity. Numerous species are found fossil. ”

“ The eatable part is the muscle which unites the shell. The dark colored rim should be discarded. The scallop has a sweet flavor and is so rich, however cooked, that the appetite is soon cloyed. Scallops can be stewed the same as oysters, or fried in batter, or crumbs.
No. 148. Scalloped Scallops.—This is a delicious dish. Take the scallops out raw, discard the dark rim, cut the scallops into small pieces and mix with cracker crumbs, beaten egg and a little milk or cream, seasoning to taste. ”

“ Hither this night my scallop,
[A lace band, the edges of which were indented with segments of circles, so as to resemble a scallop shell. The word "scallop" was used till recently for a part of a lady's dress embroidered and cut to resemble a scallop shell.]
bought and got made by Captain Ferrers' lady, is sent, and I brought it home, a very neat one. It cost me about L3, and L3 more I have given him to buy me another. I do find myself much bound to go handsome, which I shall do in linen, and so the other things may be all the plainer. ”

“ Among nations, too, in a high state of civilization, shells are often used for economical as well as ornamental purposes. To say nothing of mother-of-pearl, which is converted into so many articles useful as well as pretty, scallop, or oyster shells, are frequently [ix] employed as scoops by druggists, grocers, and the like; and in the country the dairy-maid, with the larger kinds of the same shell, skims her milk, and slices her butter; while sometimes by the poor people of both towns and villages, the deeper specimens are converted into oil lamps. ”

“ This also is a very active creature; it takes leaps by means of a strong muscular foot; and the ridges on the shell, like those of the Scallop, converge towards the hinges, that is to say, in the direction in which the shell moves. Another instance of a very active shell-fish with similar markings is afforded by certain kinds of Lima, a near relative of the Scallops. ”

“ The scallop beds are usually in deep water, and the fish, therefore, can be obtained only by dredging. They are rather plentiful in Narraganset Bay. Some, of a poetic turn, have called them the "butterflies of the sea;" others a "frill," from their fancied resemblance to that once indispensable badge of gentility. As much as any thing they look like an open fan. Many other shells I found, particularly the valves of quahaugs, and a periwinkle six inches in length. Its shell is obtained by fastening a hook in the fish and suspending it by a string. ”

“ To shell-fish in general drought is unwholesome. During dry weather they decrease in size and degenerate in quality; and it is during such weather that the red scallop is found in more than usual abundance. ”

“ Scallop, skol′up, n. a bivalve having a sub-circular shell with sinuous radiating ridges: one of a series of curves in the edge of anything: a shallow dish in which oysters, &c., are cooked, baked, and browned.—v.t. to cut the edge or border into scallops or curves: to cook in a scallop with crumbs of bread, &c.—p.adj. Scall′oped, having the edge or border cut into scallops or curves.—ns. ”

“ In some shells the operculum is small, in others large, and progressing step by step we find some, such as the scallop and oyster, [Pg 9] with one side round, and the other (really an operculum) flat and as large as the shell; until we come to the perfect type with each valve the same shape and size. Then the operculum disappears, as in the limpet, and the covering shell becomes smaller and smaller, till in the Scutum ambiguum (Plate IX., Fig. 23) the shell bears about the same proportion to the animal that the little bonnet, fashionable a few years ago, bore to the lady that wore it. ”

“ Young folks who are fortunate enough to have a pair of good-sized scallop-shells (picked up, perhaps, at the sea-side during the last summer vacation) , can make a very pretty little autograph album in this way:
Take a pair of well-mated scallop-shells. Clean them with brush and soap. When dry, paint them with the white of egg to bring out the colors, and let them dry again. ”

“ The shells are sometimes five or even six inches across, and of all conceivable colours and mixtures of colours. The valve shown in the plate is the flat valve, which looks like a fan. The other valve, which is rounded, makes a good substitute for a scoop. This Pecten, or scallop, is the most delicate of our edible shellfish, but is never seen in our markets. The animal moves by opening its shell, slowly swallowing a large quantity of water, and in a rapid manner ejecting it, thereby pushing the shell backwards. The Maori name is Tipa. ”

“ Excavations by four persons during a whole day were made near the shore, and at various points inland, and brought to light the shells of the oyster, clam, scallop, and quahog, in large numbers, but quite unequally distributed; the clam being plentiful in some places, the quahog in others, and the scallop in others, while the oyster abounded everywhere.
Two species of Pyrula, viz.: P. carica and P. canaliculata were found, the first in considerable numbers. Neither of these species was found in any of the other heaps. Dr. Gould states that they are not known to exist north of Cape Cod. ”

“ In Europe, the scallop is considered quite a delicacy and several tons are gathered annually. One species (Pecten jacobaeus) has been dignified as a badge of several orders of knighthood and it was also worn by pilgrims to the Holy Land a good many years ago. It was called “St. James’ Shell.”
The most common shell to the layman is the oyster (Ostrea virginica) , the cultivation of which occupies the attention of a large number of men and the investment of considerable capital. The oyster is free and active when young, but becomes attached to some submerged object early in life. ”

“ The most common shellfish are the oyster, the round or hard-shell clam, the long-neck or soft-shell clam, the scallop, and, on the Pacific coast, the abalone, which is valuable both for its mother-of-pearl shell and its meat, which is a great delicacy, the most of which is sent to Japan, either dried or canned. ”

“ Fish Scallops.—Remains of any cold, cooked white-meated fish; to each half pound fish add half a cup stewed tomatoes, half tablespoon anchovy sauce, half teaspoon made mustard, same of walnut ketchup, pepper, salt and bread crumbs. Pick fish free of bones and put into saucepan with all the other ingredients, heat without boiling, stirring the while. Take out the fish and put into scallop shells, sprinkle freely with bread crumbs, put bits of butter on top, brown and serve. ”

“ Scall′oped, having the edge or border cut into scallops or curves.—ns. Scall′op moth, a name applied to several geometrid moths; Scall′op-shell, a scallop, or the shell of one, the badge of a pilgrim. [O. Fr. escalope—Old Dut. schelpe, a shell; cf. Ger. schelfe, a husk.]
Scalma, skal′ma, n. a disease of horses. [Old High Ger. scalmo, pestilence; cf. Schelm.]
Scalops, skā′lops, n. a genus of American shrew-moles. [Gr. skalops, a mole—skallein, to dig.] ”

“ Some also are capable of motion, like the scallop, and indeed some aver that scallops can actually fly, owing to the circumstance that they often jump right out of the apparatus by means of which they are caught; others are incapable of motion and are attached fast to some external object, as is the case with the pinna. All the spiral-shaped testaceans can move and creep, and even the limpet relaxes its hold to go in quest of food. In the case of the univalves and the bivalves, the fleshy substance adheres to the shell so tenaciously that it can only be removed by an effort ”

“ When cooked enough, take the sauce off the fire, add the yolks of two or three eggs well beaten, and the oysters. Let them merely become hot again on the range without allowing them to boil. Serve immediately. If these preparations are used for scallop-shells, sprinkle some cracker-crumbs over the tops, and brown them quickly with a salamander. ”

“ The shells in it are such as still abound on the beaches of the eastern coast to-day—whelks, scallop shells, cockles, periwinkles, etc.
b. The Red or Suffolk Crag, its two names indicating its characteristic colour (a dark red-brown) and chief locality. From the base are obtained the celebrated phosphatic nodules miscalled "Coprolites," whence is manufactured an artificial manure, and with them are found the rolled and phosphatized [Pg 80] bones and teeth of whales, sharks, etc. ”

“ The fish of this class, known as the shells of Venus, are able to navigate the surface of the deep, and, presenting to the wind their concave side, catch the breeze, and sail along on the surface of the sea. Scallops are also able to leap and fly above the surface of the water, and they sometimes employ their shell by way of a bark. ”

“ Scallops when young have a curious way of changing their location by means of opening their shells and then closing them with great force, which sends them off at an angle, and so they go dancing along the bottom till they reach a spot that suits them. This shell-fish forms a beautiful addition to an aquarium. ”

“ The production for 1907-08 was 7,000 gallons, valued at $9,170. The scallops were mostly sent to the New Bedford market. The scallops are of two sizes: the smaller, which are taken in the shallow water, open only 21⁄2 quarts per bushel, while in the deeper water the larger scallops yield about 31⁄2 quarts. The rest of the body of the scallop, after the removal of the eye, is saved for bait at Marion, the scalloper receiving 30 cents per bucket. ”

“ In other localities in Massachusetts the starfish has not been so plentiful.
While the main cause of the decline of the natural clam, quahaug and oyster beds is overfishing by man, the decline of the scallop fishery cannot be so considered. The scallop has a short life, hardly 25 per cent. passing the two-year limit; so it does no harm to capture the marketable scallops which are over sixteen months old, as the scallop spawns when one year old, and dies a natural death usually before it reaches a second spawning season. ”

“ Method.—Wash the scallops, or escallops, as these shell-fish are often called; the washing being absolutely necessary, as they are always more or less gritty. Put the scallops in a stewpan with sufficient milk and water to cover them, add a small onion, peeled and stuck with a clove, also 1⁄2 a bay-leaf and a pinch of salt, and boil for 15 minutes. Take up, drain, and finish cooking in white sauce, an extra piece of fresh butter or a tablespoonful of cream being added at the finish. For the seasoning, a tiny pinch of cayenne and a grate of nutmeg is recommended. ”

“ Clam chowder, steamed soft clams, and raw Littlenecks are among the delicacies an American misses in Europe.
As for our scallop, Paderewski thinks it is the best edible thing America produces. Many other epicures doubtless agree with him.
As seen in our markets the scallop is simply the abductor muscle of the bivalve. The remainder of the body is thrown away or used as fertilizer, though much of it is tender and of fine Flavor. Nor is this wastefulness the only cause for complaint. The best scallops are small ”