seared sea scallops in beurre blanc

My husband took me to see the movie, Julie & Julia. He had been out in the field for over three weeks and was finally home. He could have taken me to GI Joe and I wouldn’t have cared. But, being the adoring and wonderful husband that he is, he took me to a foodie movie. And then after, he took me out for a gourmet dinner and I had aged beef on a bed of smoked cheddar and blue cheese fondue, served with julienned summer squash and roasted Peruvian potatoes. *sigh*

He is a wonderful man.

But back to Julia. She taught us how to use the simplest of ingredients and transform them into food you can’t live without. Food that when you take that first bite, you close your eyes and savor. Food you look at in the grocery store and wonder how those humble ingredients can create something so heavenly.

Foods like shallots and butter. Oh my, the butter.

To show my appreciation, the following day we headed to our favorite seafood market and picked up some fabulous fresh sea scallops, white wine, and fresh sweet potatoes. I made seared sea scallops in beurre blanc and sweet potato puree. In honor of Julia.

It was heaven on a Sunday night.

Seared Sea Scallops in Beurre Blanc

Serves 2.

Now I did add a few ingredients to Julia’s famous beurre blanc. I know this seems ludicrous but I wanted to add my own touch…

1 pound of fresh sea scallops

2 shallots, diced

1 cup dry white wine

½ cup white wine vinegar

4 sprigs fresh thyme

1 bay leaf

Salt and pepper

1 stick unsalted butter, cut into cubes and chilled

Rinse and dry the scallops. Season with salt and pepper and lay on a clean paper towel to catch any remaining moisture. Set aside until ready to use.

In a large, clean saucepan add shallots, white wine, white wine vinegar, fresh thyme and bay leaf.

Simmer until reduced by half then season well with salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Strain the sauce, place back over low heat and reduce.

Add butter several cubes at a time while stirring until the sauce thickens. Keep warm and set aside.

Meanwhile, get a stainless steel frying pan hot over high heat. Place your very dry, seasoned scallops into the frying pan. Do not move! Let them sear for 2 minutes on that side then carefully turn over with tongs and let sear on the other side for about 1-2 more minutes. You want your scallop to be opaque on the inside and barely white on the edges. Think rare tuna.

Remove immediately, cover with beurre blanc and serve while still piping hot!