Green Goddess Pasta Salad with Herbed Scallops

By AzWench

Dry the scallops well with paper towels before coating with the herbs so they stick and don’t slide off while cooking.

Ingredients

• FOR THE SALAD, WHISK:
• 2 tablespoons each mayonnaise and buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon each minced fresh parsley and scallions
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons each white wine vinegar and chopped fresh tarragon
• 1 ⁄4 teaspoon each Dijon mustard, anchovy paste, and minced garlic
• BLANCH:
• 1 ⁄2 cup chopped asparagus
• 1 ⁄2 cup sliced radishes
• COOK:
• 4 ounces dry orzo pasta
• FOR THE SCALLOPS, COMBINE:
• 2 tablespoons each minced fresh tarragon and parsley
• 6 sea scallops, feet removed, seasoned with salt (3/4–1 lb.)
• HEAT:
• 1 tablespoon canola oil

Details

Servings 2

Preparation

Step 1

For the salad, whisk together mayonnaise, buttermilk, 1 Tbsp. parsley, scallions, vinegar, 1 1⁄2 tsp. tarragon, Dijon, anchovy paste, and garlic in a large bowl; chill.

Blanch asparagus and radishes in a pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, 1–2 minutes. Transfer vegetables to an ice water bath; drain and set aside.

Cook pasta in same pot of water according to package directions; drain pasta and rinse under cold water. Toss vegetables and pasta with dressing and chill.

For the scallops, combine 2 Tbsp. tarragon and 2 Tbsp. parsley in a shallow dish. Dip both sides of scallops into minced herbs.

Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over high. Add scallops, reduce heat to medium, and cook 3–5 minutes per side. Serve scallops over pasta.