Maple Garlic Scallops with Bacon + Rainbow Chard

Maple Garlic Scallops with Bacon + Rainbow Chard

April 8, 2019

Servings: 4

Prep: 10 min

Cook: 20 min

Total: 30 min

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It's no secret that I love a good scallop and this recipe is one for the blog hall of fame. You will be licking your plate, I guarantee it!

By: A Wholesome New World

Ingredients

• 1 strip of applewood smoked bacon
• 3 garlic cloves sliced thinly
• 1 large bunch rainbow chard, roughly chopped
• The juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 cup red grapes, scaled in half
• 2 TBSP olive oil
• 1 pound sea scallops
• 1 TBSP maple garlic salt (can substitute garlic salt, see note below)
• 1 TBSP Trader Joe's Truffle Honey Mustard (can substitute honey & dijon mustard - 1 TBSP of each whisked together)

Directions

• Step 1 Start by preparing the rainbow chard. Lay the bacon strip in a cold pan and turn the heat to medium. Cook the bacon until it reaches the desired crispness ~8 to 12 minutes.
• Step 2 Remove the bacon, but keep the bacon fat in the pan. Drain the bacon well on a paper-towel-lined platter.
• Step 3 Add the garlic to the bacon fat, turn heat to low and cook until golden. Add the rainbow chard (stems included!) and sauté until wilted. Season with garlic salt and lemon juice. Roughly chop the crispy bacon and toss the chard with the bacon and grapes. Cover and keep warm while you cook the scallops.
• Step 4 Heat your broiler to high. In another large skillet, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Season one side of scallops on a plate with maple garlic salt. Place the scallops seasoned side down in the skillet in a single layer, clockwise around the pan and cook about 3 minutes.
• Step 5 While cooking, season the unseasoned side of the scallops (facing up) with more salt. After 3 minutes, flip the scallops and cook for an additional 90 seconds. (The cooking time is so fast that the Alexa timer function really comes in handy here!)
• Step 6 Remove scallops from the pan, dot with the truffle honey mustard and broil for 2 minutes. Once done broiling, serve immediately with the rainbow chard.

Mmmmm, you know spring is in the air once the outdoor farmer’s markets open! This was the kick-off weekend and we showed up in full force at the Pleasantville Farmer’s Market. Our fridge got a full restock, and then some (you think I’m exaggerating – check out the haul below!). Our first stop is always always always the Pura Vida Fisheries stall, our favorite local fishmonger from Hampton Bays, NY. They have hands down the best scallops I’ve ever tasted in my life and I will literally drop anything and everything to get in line when I know they have them. If you’ve followed us long enough, you’ve probably seen me rave about them before. Check out last year’s post for Scallops with Leek Noodles. They are seriously to die for.

If last week’s recipe was an ode to Trader Joe’s, then this week’s recipe is an ode to farm to table. Nearly every ingredient came courtesy of the market, right down to the flavored salt we used to season the scallops. My friend Naomi bought me a trio of spices from the Spice Revolution stall as a hostess gift for our last dinner party, which was beyond thoughtful and possibly the most perfect thing you could gift a food blogger. Tonight we experimented with the maple garlic salt and the flavor was so fragrant and inviting. It really elevated this dish in a way I never expected. I just explored their online store and it is definitely worth a visit if you can’t make it to Pville. I’m already drooling over the black garlic … and their vegan cookies!

If you don’t have access to this flavored salt, I encourage you to experiment with other salts. We are salt obsessed in this house so at any given time we have dozens of aromatic and flavored salts at our whim. But if you want to replicate the maple garlic flavor to a tee – I recommend seasoning the scallops first with garlic salt, then dotting with a maple syrup before broiling (or you can replicate the Truffle Honey Mustard by following the directions above!). You can also get a little more adventurous and follow Foodie with Family’s recipe for her maple garlic rub and tossing the scallops in this before you broil them too.

The aromatics from this recipe will literally have you drooling and I promise you – the flavor is BEYOND. Scallops always seem under appreciated and under featured in the food blogging world, so I’m waving my scallop flag loud and proud. If I haven’t won you over yet, this recipe will definitely turn the tide. You’ll find tons of other scallops recipes on the blog, just search scallop at the top of the page. Hope you enjoy them all!