Scallops with Pesto & Creamed Corn
When scallops go on sale and it's basil and corn season, there's nothing left to do than make Scallops with Pesto & Creamed Corn. As cliche as it is to say, This dish is "summer on a plate"!
Ingredients
FOR THE BASIL PESTO
- Follow the recipe on my site for Fresh Genovese Basil Pesto or purchase your favorite brand in store. See notes for the link
FOR THE CREAMED CORN
- 2 ears fresh corn on the cob
- ¼ cup butter
- salt to season
- ¼ cup cream
- 1 small shallot
FOR THE SCALLOPS
- 1 pound dry scallops
- salt and pepper
- oil
- Pea shoots
Instructions
FOR THE CREAMED CORN
- Shuck the corn and cut the kernels from the cob. Use thin cuts so that you can get as much juice from the kernels as possible.
- Put the butter in a skillet and once it has melted and is sizzling, add the corn kernels and liquid. Salt generously and let cook until tender. Use the back of your spoon to crush the kernels a bit. Turn the heat down, then slowly, add warmed cream to the skillet. Cook on low until the cream has thickened a bit.
- Cut the shallot into thin slices and separate the rings. Fry them in a small skillet with a bit of oil until they are brown and crispy. Set aside.
FOR THE SCALLOPS
- Remove the muscle from the side of any scallop that still has it. Pat dry. Season with salt and pepper.
- Heat a {cast iron} skillet over high heat. Add oil to coat the bottom of the skillet and put the scallops in. Sear them without turning for 2-3 minutes. Turn them to sear on the other side.
- Serve them on a bed of pea shoots with the pesto spooned on top and the creamed corn topped with the crispy shallot on the side.
Notes
Just because this recipe is written for serving 2 people, presumably for a beautiful date night dinner in, doesn't mean that it can't be scaled to feed more. OR ... scaled down to make an appetizer portion.
The prep time takes into account that you might be making pesto from scratch. If you don't do that, you'll find this comes together much quicker.
To use my Fresh Genovese Basil Pesto, click on the link for the recipe.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!