Grilled Scallops - Two Ways

Pesto Crusted Scallops Wrapped in Roasted Red Peppers

Ingredients

*12 fresh or frozen (thawed) sea scallops (medium size), patted dry

*3 Tablespoons pesto (sea 51 Porter pesto post)

*3, whole roasted red peppers (jarred is great)

*4 wooden skewers, soaked in water for 10 minutes (to avoid catching fire on grill)

Directions

1.  In a large bowl, toss scallops with pesto until evenly coated.

2.  Cut roasted red pepper into 12 long strips by carefully cutting open the pepper and lying flat.  Cut horizontally in one long strip.  You should get four strips out of each pepper.

3.  Wrap each scallop with a roasted red pepper strip and place three on each skew.  Skewer through the roasted red pepper and scallop to keep the scallops together. 

4.  Heat grill (or grill pan) to high and spray generously with a non-stick cooking spray.  Place skewers on hot grill and grill for about 3 minutes on each side.  To ensure that the scallops are cooked, cut the thickest one in the center to make sure the meat is opaque and no longer translucent. 

5.  To serve, I removed the scallops from the skewers and I also removed the peppers, which basically slipped off anyways.  I chopped up the peppers and put  a teaspoon atop each scallop.  Sprinkle with a bit of fresh lemon juice and enjoy! J

Bacon Wrapped Scallops

Ingredients

*12 fresh or frozen (thawed) sea scallops (medium size), patted dry

*2 Tbs. Olive Oil

*3 garlic cloves, crushed

*1 tsp. salt

*1/2 tsp. black pepper

*12 strips bacon

*4 wooden skewers, soaked in water for 10 minutes (to avoid catching fire on grill)

Directions

1. Before grilling, you want to precook the bacon to allow it to get a bit crisp, but still pliable to wrap around the scallop.  Place 12 strips of bacon on a baking sheet (or one of those special bacon trays if ya have one) and bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes.  Until just starting to crisp up.

1.  Meanwhile, In a large bowl, toss scallops with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic until evenly coated.

2.  Remove bacon from oven and allow it to cool slightly. 

3.  Wrap each scallop with a piece of bacon and skewer with a wooden skewer.  Skewer three scallops per skewer.

4. Heat grill (or grill pan) to high and spray generously with a non-stick cooking spray.  Place skewers on hot grill and grill for about 3 minutes on each side.  To ensure that the scallops are cooked, cut the thickest one in the center to make sure the meat is opaque and no longer translucent. (Bacon sometimes can ignite on an outdoor grill when cooking direct, so keep a spray bottle with water to spritz any mini fires).

5.  To serve, remove the scallops from the skewer and place on a serving dish.  Mmm..