Scallops are one of my all time favorite foods. If I go to a restaurant that features them on the menu you can bet I will order them. One of my dear friends even commented this weekend that when I went to the beach with her I ordered them all three nights that we were there. What can I say??
If you remember from my post last week, I thought I had purchased a spaghetti squash which I intended to pair with some scallops. When that didn't turn out exactly as planned I had to go to Plan B. In this case that meant taking a peak in the freezer. The only thing that I could find was some frozen corn (Trey lived here as a bachelor just 4 short weeks ago) so I opted for a recipe courtesy of Rachel Ray.
This turned out to be a wonderful dish, filled with an array of flavors and textures. And while I did end up pairing it with another vegetable for dinner, it was surprisingly filling on its own as well.
Don't be afraid to get creative and play around with other vegetables in the place of corn. I might try spinach next time!
Seared Scallops and Corn adapted from Rachel Ray
3 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
4 Tbsp Butter
4-5 ears fresh corn (2 cups) cut off the cobb *I used frozen*
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 large scallops
3 shallots, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
6 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped and divided
1 Tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 Tbsp fresh chives, chopped
1/2 dry white wine, preferably sauvignon blanc
Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in skillet over high heat. Add corn, a dash of salt and 2-3 turns black pepper. Toss corn to coat and cook until lightly brown and caramelized, approximately 2-3 minutes.
While corn is caramelizing pat scallops dry with a paper towel. Score them on one side with a sharp knife (aka make a small slit) and season with salt and pepper.
In separate large skillet over medium high heat melt 2 Tbsp butter. Sear scallops, score side down first, until browned and caramelized, approximately 2 1/2 minutes. Flip scallops and cook for additional minute. Remove from heat, as scallops will finish cooking in corn mixture.
Reduce heat under corn to medium high. Add remaining olive oil to pan and add shallots, garlic, 5 Tbsp parsley, chives and thyme. Add additional salt and pepper to taste, toss mixture and cook until shallots are translucent. Deglaze the pan by pouring in white wine (slowly) and craping the bottom of the pan to loosen any browned bits. Cook for one additional minute.
Cut remaining butter into small pieces and scatter over corn. Nestle scallops into corn (darker brown side up) and scrape any remaining butter and brown bits from the scallop pan into the corn. Cook until wine is reduced by half.
Top with remaining parsley and serve immediately.
