This is the easiest date night meal ever. I used to think carbonara and scallops were intimidating, and definitely didn’t dream of tackling both at once. Just have your ingredients ready before you begin cooking so you’re not scrambling. For the scallops, once you set them in the pan do NOT move them. They won’t develop a nice sear if they keep getting moved.
Scallop Carbonara
Perfect for date night!
Servings 4
Ingredients
Carbonara
- 1 lb pasta preferably linguine
- 8 slices bacon diced
- 1 shallot diced
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 4 green onions white and green part separated
- 2 egg yolks
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup parmesan grated, divided
- ground pepper
Scallops
- 12-16 large scallops 3-4 per person
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp butter
- salt and pepper
Instructions
Carbonara
- Cook pasta in salted water according to package instructions. Drain but do not discard the salted pasta water.
- In a small bowl, mix cream, egg yolks, and 3/4 cup of parmesan.
- Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp. Add shallots, the white part of the green onions, and garlic. Cook for 2 minutes. Add cooked pasta. Remove form skillet and place in large bowl.
- Mix cream mixture into the hot pasta. If the mixture seems to dry, add 1/2-1 cup of reserved pasta water.
- Garnish with ground pepper, remaining parmesan, and green part of green onions.
Scallops
- Blot scallops with a paper towl. Sprinkle salt and pepper all over the scallops.
- Heat 2 tbs of oil to medium heat in a large frying pan.
- Sear scallop on one side for 2-4 minutes. Do not move them or else they won’t from a golden brown crust. After 2 minutes, check to see if scallop has browned. If so, turn over and sear for 1-3 more minutes.*
- Add the butter to the pan and spoon the melted butter over the scallops. Transfer to a plate lined with a paper towel.
Notes
Cooking Scallops: Do not crowd the pan with scallops. It’s ok to sear in batches.