Simple Scallops & Spinach

I have always loved scallops and have had some fantastic variations at restaurants over the years. Yet somehow, I never tried cooking them at home! Since I will be heading out of town again soon I didn't want to buy a lot of groceries that would go to waste, so I figured a simple preparation would be best. This recipe is perfect because it's not only fast, but it also doesn't take a lot of ingredients to taste great.

It's also easy to splurge on scallops when you're just cooking for one! Adjust the quantities if you have anyone joining you for dinner.

Spinach

• 2 Cups of spinach
• 1/2 Shallot
• 1/2-1 Clove of garlic
• Olive oil

Scallops

• 4 Scallops
• Salt & pepper
• 1 Lemon wedge

Start by preparing and cooking the spinach. Dice the shallot finely and slice the clove of garlic very thinly.

Heat a little olive oil in a pan and saute the shallot for a couple minutes.

Then add the sliced garlic and cook for another minute or two. It's okay if the shallot gets a little brown - they're good that way!- but you don't want to burn the garlic.

Add the spinach leaves and continue to cook until the spinach is wilted. No need to cook the spinach to death.

Put the spinach on your plate and it's time to get started on the scallops! If you need more olive oil, just add a very small amount. I needed just 1/4 teaspoon if that. Heat the pan to medium/medium-high, lightly salt and pepper both sides of the scallops, then place the scallops flat side down and cook for about 2 minutes. Flip and cook the opposite flat side for just 1.5-2 minutes longer. Both sides should have a nice sear.









Plate the scallops and squeeze the lemon over the scallops and spinach, and you've got yourself a meal! For a little more substance, I seared a little ciabatta bread in the pan after the scallops and added salt, pepper and topped with chopped basil to serve on the side. Enjoy.