My inept photography does not do L.'s plating justice. This was a beautifully presented dish and, to toot my own horn heartily as well, truly delicious. A meal fit for a foodie with complex flavors but easy peasy and fast. This recipe is a keeper and please attempt it soon - ramp and nettle season is very short. The scallops were perfect, buttery and lemony, and the sauce was gorgeous - creamy, briny, astringent and slightly spicy all at the same time. The leftover sauce is going to be added to pasta for lunch. Yum. Yum.
I served this with pearl couscous which I had cooked in carrot juice instead of water and to which I added a bit of butter at the end. The color and the sweetness imparted by the carrot juice worked well with the tanginess of the sauce. The only other comment necessary before my writing the recipe, is to implore you to buy the best quality, fresh, dry diver if possible, scallops you can for this dish.
2 lbs sea scallops
5 oz nettle leaves
4 oz ramp leaves, roughly chopped
1 medium shallot, finely diced
1/2 jalapeño pepper, finely diced
2 lemons - Juice and zest
2 Tbsps + 2 Tbsps butter
2 tsps olive oil
1/4 cup heavy cream
Blanch the nettles by submerging them in boiling water for a couple of minutes. Drain them and immediately shock them in a bowl of ice cold water with ice cubes so that they stay green. Drain them again, dry them and chop them finely. Set aside.
Set the scallops on several layers of paper towel and pat them dry. the drier they are, the more of a crust you will be able to get on the outside and the prettier and more delicious they will be.
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a skillet, along with the oil and the lemon zest from one lemon. Heat until the butter is browned and sizzling.
Add the scallops in one layer and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, salting each side lightly. When you turn the scallops over at the half way mark, add the chopped ramps to the pan. As soon as the scallops are cooked, drizzle them with the juice from one of the lemons.
While the scallops are cooking, make your sauce.
Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in a separate skillet. Add the shallot and the jalapeño and cook over low heat until the shallot pieces are translucent.
Add the cream, the juice and zest from one lemon, a bit of salt and stir to combine. As soon as the cream starts to bubble around the edges, stir in the nettles.
You can either serve the sauce as is, or blitz it with an immersion blender, which is what I did. It is an easy sauce and should be done exactly when your scallops are ready.
Nestle 1/4 of the scallops together on a plate and top with 1/4 of the wilted ramps. Drizzle with both the nettle sauce and some of the pan juices from the scallop pan.
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