Scallops Provencal

This recipe surprised me.  It was much easier than I anticipated. I've never been impressed when I've cooked scallops, until now.  I finally got a nice sear of these suckers.
As an added bonus, this recipe calls for wine & we all know what that means... One splash for the dish & one for me, or two for me.

I didn't have parsley that the original recipe called for so I used thyme instead. I served these tasty scallops over some rice with peas & asparagus.

Click through for the full recipe.



Ingredients

• 1 pound fresh bay or sea scallops
• kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
• all-purpose flour, for dredging
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, divided
• 1/2 cup chopped shallots (2 large)
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 3 tablespoons chopped thyme
• 1/3 cup dry white wine
• 1 lemon, cut in 1/2

Make it!

1. If you're using bay scallops, keep them whole. If you're using sea scallops, cut each 1 in half horizontally. Sprinkle with salt & pepper, toss with flour, & shake off the excess.
2. In a very large saute pan, heat 2 tablespoons of the butter over high heat until sizzling & add the scallops in 1 layer. 
3. Lower the heat to medium and allow the scallops to brown lightly on 1 side without moving them, then turn and brown lightly on the other side. This should take 3 to 4 minutes, total. 
4. Melt the rest of the butter in the pan with the scallops, then add the shallots, garlic, & thyme & saute for 2 more minutes, tossing the seasonings with the scallops. Add the wine, cook for 1 minute, & taste for seasoning. Serve hot with a squeeze of lemon juice.