Recipes

Food for thought

It’s hard to believe but September is here again. An ‘ember’ month. One moment it’s hosepipe bans and excess heat-warnings, then suddenly the school run has started again and there are festive biscuit selection tins on the shelves in Tesco. Where did the sum-mer go?

Well, September has a way of stretching out those summer months for a few weeks longer. The nights aren’t dark yet, the sun is still out. Think of this month as one of those hidden tracks they used to put at the end of CDs after you thought it was all over.

SCALLOPS WITH LEEKS, BACON & GINGER

Before we all go back to eating hearty fare again as the nights draw in, there’s still plen-ty of fish and seafood out there to help maintain a Mediterranean illusion and keep our minds off the insane gas bills for a moment longer.

Scallops are one of my absolute favourites. I don’t think I have a limit as to how many I could eat before I have to throw in the towel. One of our customers suggested this method and we cooked it up for him and other diners to a clamour of acclaim.

The best scallops that you can get are hand-dived, and naturally come in their own shell – a YouTube demonstration will show you how to prepare them; it’s dead easy. If you can’t get those, you may need to get hold of shells from the fishmonger. Fortunately, it isn’t the 1970s or they’d all be currently used as fashionable-looking ashtrays.

Serves two

J king scallops (ideally in the shell) J 1 tbsp of olive oil J 25g salted butter J 6 slices smoked bacon, finely diced J 1 leek, finely sliced J 1 thumb-sized block of ginger, peeled and chopped J Salt and freshly ground black pepper J Small bunch of chives and parsley, finely chopped J Lemon juice

Cai Ross is co-owner and Maitre d’ of the award-winning Paysanne Bistro in Deganwy, which has been serving French country-style food to the fine people of North Wales since 1988. He also writes for Calibre Magazine, BBC Good Food, HeyUGuys.com and The North Wales Weekly News

Also, to coral or not to coral? Some people love the bright orange coral on a scallop, others prefer to take it off (you can use it very effectively in soups and sauces). I’ll leave that decision to you.

Take a non-stick pan and heat the oil and butter. Add the bacon and cook until starting to brown. Add the leek and cook until soft and tender. After about five minutes add the ginger. Season with the salt

and pepper and cook for about five minutes. Carefully emp-ty the mix

into a bowl and keep to one side.

Turn the oven on to about 100˚C. Wipe the pan down with a sheet

of kitchen towel. Take the scallops from their shells and put them in another bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and some salt and pepper. Meanwhile, arrange the six scallops shells on a baking tray, spoon the leek mixture evenly into the shells then slide them into the oven to keep warm.

Turn up the heat on the pan and fry the scallops three at a time, for two and a half minutes each side. Repeat with the other three. Take the shells out of the oven, place a scallop on each shell, drizzle with lemon juice, sprinkle with chives and parsley… and devour.