seared scallop salad

Ah, August.

It didn't seem this year, like you'd ever come.  The weather, as I've complained here so regularly, was April rain for the entire month of June, and I missed July on my honeymoon.

But August I've seen.  August has come in full force this year.

For all of you non-New Yorkers, August in Manhattan is sort of a phenomenon.  Everyone you know is out of town from Friday to Sunday, so good luck making plans or trying to host a dinner party.  You'll go on a normal errand that you plan your weekend around, and you'll find out that the store you were hoping to visit is, doh, shut down until Labor Day.  The sidewalks are so empty that you can actually walk through most neighborhoods without having to elbow your way past oncoming pedestrians, but you wouldn't want to walk anywhere, because the city is so full of rank, muggy heat that you really can't leave your apartment.

But, most important of all (arguably), the farmer's market is full of cucumbers, bell peppers, and gorgeous, fresh husks of corn.   Can you guess where I'm going with this?

After picking up our CSA box and getting a grocery delivery early in the weekend, I actually conceived this salad without realizing that all the ingredients were sitting in my refrigerator, waiting to be assembled.  I breaded the scallops in panko and seared them for extra crispiness, and Chad, who is usually not the hugest scallop fan, actually went back for seconds on this.  If I'm totally honest with myself, I think he even liked it more than the peanut butter cake.  Men and their lack of sweet tooths, I will never understand it.

But I would happily serve this salad at a dinner party, once everyone comes back into town in September.  Hopefully the corn will still be around, because my future guests will really be missing out if I had to use frozen corn.  If you have to be stuck in New York City in August, at least we get a few perks.

Seared Scallop Salad Recipe

INGREDIENTS

3 cobs of corn, boiled and kernels cut off the cobs

1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced

1 large red bell pepper, cored, seeded and diced

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoon white wine vinegar

8 large sea scallops, patted dry

1/2 cup panko

2 addition tbsp olive oil

Salt

Pepper

DIRECTIONS

Mix the cut corn kernels, cucumber, bell pepper, 3 tbsp olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper and set aside. Divide the salad into four bowls for serving.

Dip the scallops in panko until lightly crusted.

Heat the additional 2 tbsp of olive oil (you don't need to use extra virgin for this) in a large skillet over high heat. Sear the scallops for about 2-3 minutes on each side, or until they are cooked through. Place two scallops over the salad in each bowl, and serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves four.