Spicy Tuesday – Warm Scallop Salad – Thyme

We love to share our recipes for warm soups and stew this time of year. Its always fun to fill the kitchen with aromas of veggies sautéing in a big pot. But that doesn’t mean that salads are out of the picture! A great way to bridge the gap between warm and cold is to prepare a salad like the one we are sharing below.  Luscious soft baby greens, with bright colored veggies are topped with warm scallops and just a sprinkle of prosciutto. Plus, all that goodness is flavored with the lemony taste of thyme!

Not only is thyme a delicious ingredient in this salad, it’s a nutritious smart choice, too. Thyme has terpenoids which are recognized for their cancer preventive properties. Rosmarinic and ursolic acids are major terpenoids in thyme that possess anti-cancer properties. Thyme contains an essential oil that is rich in thymol, a powerful antiseptic, antibacterial, and a strong antioxidant.

This wonderful salad will taste great and enhance your nutrition in just one plate. Add a slice of crusty whole wheat bread and you can serve dinner to rave reviews!

Warm Scallop Salad

¼ Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil + 1 Tsp, divided

2 TB Rice Wine Vinegar

1 Tsp Dijon Mustard

1 TB Thyme Leaves + more for garnish

½  Tsp Honey

½ Tsp each Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper

12 Cups Baby Lettuces

8 oz. Package Frozen Baby Peas – defrosted

2 Carrots, Julienned or Shredded

¼ Small Red Onion, very thinly sliced

4 Thin Slices Prosciutto, chopped

18 Large Dry Scallops

Step One

Make the salad dressing by placing ¼ Cup Oil, rice vinegar, Dijon, thyme, honey and salt and pepper in a large bowl and whisk together. Add the lettuce, peas, carrots and onions to the bowl and toss with the dressing.

Step Two

Sauté the prosciutto in the remaining 1 Tsp oil until crispy and browned. Remove the prosciutto from the pan and sauté the scallops in the pan. (Don’t overcook! Depending on their size, scallops will only take about 1 minute per side.)

Step Three

Divide the greens between six bowls. Top each bowl with 3 scallops and sprinkle with the crispy prosciutto and additional thyme if desired.