Scallops on ‘Masta’ Pasta

Scallops on ‘Masta’ Pasta

Playing with my theme of simple to prepare meals while using whole foods that taste great, I love ease and simplicity of this dish.

I’m not a big advocate or personal fan of pasta, so I use zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash the same way most people use pasta. It tastes great, the vegetables have way more nutrients than refined grains and they don’t bind me up like pasta does.

Zucchini noodles are a nice way to introduce pasta lovers to more vegetables.  I find the rich authentic Italian flavours in this dish win over the biggest pasta lovers – they don’t even know the difference.

Feel free to adjust the quantities for this recipe depending on how many people you are serving.

Serves 2

What you need

1 lb fresh scallops
2 cloves garlic, pressed or grated
1 Tbsp (or more) oil to cook scallops and tomatoes in (grapeseed, avocado or coconut work well)
1 c grape tomatoes
1 large zucchini made into noodles (made by spiralizing or thinly slicing zucchini with a vegetable peeler then cutting into thin strips)
1/4 c basil pesto
1 Tbsp freshly shaved parmesan Cheese

What you do

  • Wash scallops, pat them dry with paper towel to remove any moisture and season both sides with salt and pepper
  • Prepare zucchini noodles by spiralizing them or slicing into noodle shapes
  • Heat oil in a skillet and add grape tomatoes to cook over medium heat until slightly wilted and soft
  • Once tomatoes are cooked, remove them from the skillet and use the same pan to warm the pesto over medium-low heat
  • Add zucchini noodles to warm pesto to heat them all way through – they’ll become slightly soft.  If you need to distribute pesto a little better, add some additional oil to thin out the pesto
  • Meanwhile, warm oil in a separate hot skillet, then add garlic to sauté until fragrant
  • Add scallops to the garlic and oil skillet and sear each side until cooked (this happens fast – 1 minute or so on each side). Do not overcook them!
  • Place warmed noodles on a plate, top with seared scallops, roasted tomatoes and parmesan cheese

 

Serve with a side salad and a nice glass of wine.  Mangiare (said with an Italian accent)!

 

 

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