Seared Scallops with Pepper Roses and Olive Tapenade Appetizer

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Seared Sea Scallops dressed up with a dollop of olive tapenade or roasted red pepper roses to create a simply enticing appetizer to whet the palette for your main Seduction Meal. This dish can be served with our without the garlic wine sauce, and we have presented a third variation where the scallops are served over a bed of grilled corn. Either way consider this for your next romantic meal for two, and be sure to pop open a bottle of champagne for a festive start.

seared Scallops with pepper roses and olive tapenade.jpg
seared scallops with garlic sauce .jpg
I have added a couple of variations to this recipe. You can simply sear and serve with the pepper and/or olive tapenade garnish. Or you can add a garlic wine sauce to the dish. And another variation is to add a bed of grilled corn strips to the bottom of the scallops (see the photo below), and then add the garlic wine sauce.  

Seared Scallops with Pepper Roses and Olive Tapenade
Recipe and Photos / Seduction Meals

Ingredients

Scallops

Roasted Garlic Wine Sauce Ingredients

  • 1/2 head of garlic, cut 1/4 inch of top so all cloves are open at the top
  • 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 small onion / about 1/4 cup – finely diced
  • 1 cup of dry white wine
  • 1 Tablespoon of sugar
  • 1 cup of 1/2 and 1/2
  • 1 Tablespoon of corn starch
  • 4 Tablespoons of water
  • 2 Tablespoons of cooking sherry

Directions
If you are serving the variation that serves the scallops over a strip of corn, prepare the corn by boiling or grilling. When cooked, set aside to cool. Take a sharp knife and run it from top to bottom to get a long strip of corn that can then be cut to a square or rectangle shape. Place on your serving dish and top with scallops. Follow the rest of the recipe below.

Garlic Sauce

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees
  2. Place the garlic on a sheet of tin foil, cut side up, and drizzle with olive oil
  3. Seal the top of the tin foil, so the garlic will steam as it cooks
  4. Roast for 35 minutes.
  5. Remove from oven, open the foil and set aside to cool
  6. Add 1 Tablespoon of Olive Oil to a small saucepan, heat up over medium flame. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes
  7. Add the wine and stir together
  8. Take the garlic and squeeze the roasted garlic cloves into the wine/onion mixture being careful not to drop any casings into the mixture.
  9. Bring to a boil and cook for about 5 minutes, the liquid will slightly evaporate
  10. In a cup, add 4 tablespoons of water and 1 Tablespoon of corn starch, mix together well. Set aside
  11. Add the 1/2 and 1/2 to the garlic, wine, onion mixture and stir in the water /corn starch
  12. turn the heat up medium high and bring to a boil, lightly stirring until sauce thickens – about 5 minutes
  13. When the sauce is thicken, take off the heat
  14. Pour the sauce through a sieve (or strainer) and press the garlic onion mixture through the strainer. Discard garlic onion mixture
  15. Set sauce aside

Scallops

  1. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to skillet.
  2. Be sure to thoroughly pat dry the scallops – they should not be wet!
  3. When the skillet is nice and hot (just before smoking point) add the scallops and cook on one side until nicely seared and gold brown. Do not touch the scallop while it is cooking.
  4. Using Tongs, flip the scallop and cook the other side (3-5 minutes), until golden brown
  5. Remove scallops and set aside

Plating the Dish

  1. Place four scallops on a plate
  2. Take long strips of the Red Pepper and roll in a circle, place on top of two scallops (it will look like a flower)
  3. Place a small dollop of Black Olive Tapenade on the  other two scallops
  4. Add salt and pepper to taste
  5. Serve Immediately

Variation 2: Seared Scallops with Garlic Sauce, Pepper Roses and Tapenade

seared Scallops.jpgIf using Creamy Garlic Wine Sauce – add 2 Tablespoons of sauce in the middle of the 4 scallops (middle of dish)
Serve Immediately

Variation 3: Scallops on a flat bed of corn With Garlic Sauce, Pepper Roses

seared scallops with garlic sauce and pepper roses.jpg

  1. Take the Ear of corn and with a very sharp knife, cut from top to bottom to get a flat bed or ear kernels. They will be cut in strips.
  2. Place 2-4 scallops over the strips of Corn
  3. Add Pepper Strips on top of the scallops for garnish
  4. Add the Garlic Wine Sauce to the plate
  5. Add sea salt and pepper to taste
  6. Serve Immediately