Adventures in Cooking...Mariscos in Hard Cider

Last Christmas Nick's parents got me the Trader Joe's Cookbook. I have been consistently cooking through it this year and love it. Here is a recipe that I tried the other night. I didn't have every ingredient the recipe called for (original recipe was shrimp in hard cider) so here are my improvisations. Be-aware there is a fire show below!

Mariscos in Hard Cider
Ingredients:
1/2 Bag Trader Joe's Mariscos seafood mix (calamari, scallops, shrimp)
1 Tablespoon Butter
2 Cloves garlic, minced
1/4 Cup Brandy (I had EJ Gallo VSOP)
1 Cup Hard Cider (I used Trader Joe's Newtons Folly red)
Salt and Pepper

Directions:
1) In a large pan heat the butter and saute the garlic until fragrant.

2) Add the mariscos and saute until cooked through (about 5 minutes).
3) Remove mariscos to a bowl.
4) Add brandy to pan, then flambe to burn off alcohol.

5) Add the cider and bring to a boil.
6) Reduce heat and simmer until mixture is reduced to half.
7) Add back the mariscos for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

8) Add to your favorite rice (I served this over my Roasted Corn and Basil Cauliflower rice)

Note: The meal was delicous, but as you can tell the mariscos mixture was a bit soupy. Next time I could cook the frozen mariscos first, then 2 minutes before they were ready drain the water off and add the butter and garlic to saute.