I find this sort of starter impossible to resist whenever I see it on a restaurant menu. Naturally gluten free ingredients in a perfect combination. We decided to have a fancy dinner at home recently and it turned out that making this dish is not fancy at all – actually pretty straightforward and using a handful of ingredients.

I kept things simple with my pea puree, however if you had more time some softened sauteed onion would be a good addition to the pea puree (pre blitzing phase) to give a greater depth of flavour. For summer, however, I like to keep it simple so the freshness of the peas really comes through.

Scallops with Crispy Parma Ham & Pea Puree (Serves 2 as a starter)

Ingredients

  • 4 fat scallops
  • 4 slices of parma ham or prosciutto crudo
  • 110g peas (frozen or fresh), cooked
  • 20ml milk
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • a knob of butter

Method

  1. Prepare the scallops, season with some salt and pepper on both sides then set aside.
  2. Heat a frying pan to high and place the slices of parma ham into the pan with a drop of oil. Fry until crisp and then set aside on some kitchen towel to drain an excess oil.
  3. Cook the peas and pop them into a small food processor with the milk. Blitz until smooth and set aside until needed (leave it in the processor drum so that is stays nice and warm).
  4. Now heat the frying pan again to a medium-high heat, pop a knob of butter into the pan and then carefully place the scallops into the foaming butter. Cook for 2 minutes on the first side, then flip and cook for a further 2-3 minutes until cooked through. Set aside to rest.
  5. To assemble the plate, carefully create a bed of pea puree for the scallops to sit on. On go the scallops and then you can rest the shards of parma ham against them to create pretty presentation. Serve immediately.

For more gluten free dinner party inspiration, why not take a look at some of my other recipes:

Bon appetit! x