Sauteed Scallops with a Balsamic Reduction and Thyme infused Olive oil

I guess you must have noticed that I am back in my old habits and in my kitchen;-) And I am happy to report that there is nothing like a good home-cooking meal!

Yesterday, it was so hot that i kept pushing back the dinner time, until I really had to cook something for the crowd here. For my crowd, an easy one: Pasta Carbonara, it is easy to do and requires little time to fix. For me…. something else of course

I had fresh vegetables in my fridge, and scallops in my freezer so I was set: I was going to have tomates provencales, grilled asparagus and sauteeed scallops. It is quick and yummy!!!

Ingredients: 4 grape tomatoes, a bundle of fresh asparagus, 4 scallops per person, grated parmesan, balsamic vinegar, thyme infused olive oil, rosemary, basil, and thyme herb blend from Demarle, salt and pepper to taste.

Slice your tomatoes in half, sprinkle salt and pepper on each half, then herbs and parmesan and place on silpat. Place the asparagus flat on the silpat next to your tomatoes, sprinkle the same herbs on them, drizzle 1 tbs of olive oil, and sprinkle salt and pepper as well. Cook in the warm oven at 375 for 10 to 15 minutes. The asparagus should be a bit golden, but still crispy. And the parmesan on the tomatoes should be golden. While the vegetables are cooking, cook your scallops. Place the scallops on a plate and dry the with a paper towel. Sprinkle the scallops with the herbs blend used above, and with salt and pepper. In a large frying pan, drizzle 1 tsp of thyme-infused olive oil, and wait until it becomes hot. To see if your pan is hot enough, take one scallop and place in the frying pan. It should start sizzling. Place all scallops and sizzle for about 2 minutes until the scallops becomes golden. Flip each scallop, and sizzle for 2 minutes again. Remove the scallops from the pan, and keep warm by covering the scallops with some aluminium foil. Meanwhile, deglaze the pan with 2 Tbsp of balsamic vinegar. To serve place the asparagus on the plate, place the tomatoes above, and place the scallops along the vegetables. Drizzle the balsamic reduction on the scallops and drizzle one tsp of warm olive oil on top of the balsamic reduction. Enjoy!!!