Seafood

Scallops with Cauliflower Puree and Bacon Crumble

The combination of cauliflower, bacon and scallop is just gorgeous. This is a lovely dinner-party dish. The puree and the crumble can be prepared ahead, leaving only the puree to be reheated, the crumble refreshed in the pan and the scallops to be sautéed at the last minute.

Serves:

Preparation Time:

20 minutes

Cooking Time:

15 minutes

Ingredients

½ cauliflower, grated (or processed)
250 g butter
2/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
3 rashers bacon, cut into an extremely fine dice
½ cup coarse fresh breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
12 fat scallops, preferably on the half-shell, roe removed

Method

Place cauliflower in a saucepan with milk and bring to the boil. Boil rapidly for 8 minutes or until it disintegrates when rubbed between your fingers.
Strain, reserving the milk. Put into a food processor with butter and half the salt, and process until smooth. Add reserved milk until the required consistency is reached. Taste and add more salt if required. Push through a fine metal sieve to remove any lumps. Set aside.
In a frypan, sauté the finely diced bacon. The bacon pieces should not be more than 2mm across. When the bacon is starting to cook and release its fat, add the breadcrumbs. Stir continually, until the breadcrumbs are golden and the bacon pieces are crunchy. Taste and season with salt if required – this will depend on how salty the bacon is. Drain on a paper towel.
In a hot frypan add butter and olive oil. When foaming, place scallops in and cook for 1-2 minutes until golden brown and turning opaque. Turn and cook for a further 30 seconds-1 minute.
In the half shells, (or on the dish if no half-shell), dollop roughly 1 tablespoon cauliflower puree. Settle a scallop on top of the puree, and finish with a generous sprinkle of the bacon crumble.

Credits:

Julie Goodwin’s Our Family Table, by Julie Goodwin, Random House

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