Seared Scallops With in Bacon On Bed of Greens

Recipe by Cheryl Dent.

Your guests will kick up their blue suede shoes at their first bite of this dish, as these bacon treats are money in your Vegas bank!Serves 4

Ingredients

• 8 Slices of Thick Cut Bacon
• 8 Jumbo Sea Scallops, fresh
• Baby Greens or Mixed Salad Greens
• Some Cherry Tomatoes
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Pear Vinegar or any fruit flavored vinegar will do
• Salt and Fresh Cracked Black Pepper
• A few Avocado Slices (optional)

Directions

• Wash and clean the baby greens. You can purchase baby greens at your supermarket or better yet, if you have access to a local farmers market, select from the many varieties of baby lettuces and greens. I wash my greens under cold running water and then dry them in a salad spinner. You can rinse and spin your greens the morning of the party and store them in the fridge until you are ready to dress and serve the salad.
• Cut the cherry tomatoes in half, and add to the cleaned washed greens.
• Fry 8 pieces of the bacon until almost cooked, but set them aside with a few minutes of cook time left. I like to use a cast iron skillet. For bacon, start with a cold pan and as the pan heats up it will gently cook the bacon.
• Sear the bay scallops in the same cast iron skillet. Theres no need to clean it after you've fried the bacon. Make sure the pan is nice and hot. The heat will caramelize the outside of the scallops. Cook the scallops 2 minutes on the first side, until you see the flesh of the scallops change from translucent to white. Carefully remove the scallops from the pan and wrap the almost cooked bacon around each scallop. Then return to the pan. Finish cooking the bacon wrapped scallops. Once they are cooked set aside. Tip I love Lodge Cast Iron cookware. They are a family owned and operated American company and their products will last a lifetime.
• Toss the salad with the tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil and the pear vinegar to taste.
• Place a small mound of the salad mixture on a plate and then place two bacon wrapped scallops on the greens. Top with fresh cracked pepper and salt to taste and then drizzle a tiny bit of the salad dressing over the top of the scallops! If you want to add an extra touch for the Vegas baby wow factor, sprinkle some tiny avocado slices over the dish.