Scallops in Creamy Bacon Tomato Sauce

If your scallops are frozen make sure to defrost them before making this recipe.

Chop peppers and slice mushrooms. Set aside. Mince garlic. Set aside. Chop bacon into small pieces.

In a non-stick pan, cook bacon on medium-high until crispy then remove to a paper towel. Try to leave as much bacon fat in the pan as possible.

Dredge scallops in flour and shake off excess. Add butter and olive oil to the pan you cooked the bacon in. Return heat to medium-high. When melted and hot, add the scallops. Sear about 1 or 2 minutes per side. Remove to a paper towel. Don’t worry if some flour coating sticks to the pan.

Reduce heat to medium. Add peppers and mushrooms to the same pan. Cook until softened (4 or 5 minutes). Add minced garlic and cook for a minute.

Remove pan from heat and add white wine. Stir, scraping up any bits of flour and bacon grease that have stuck to the pan, and return to heat. Let cook for 2 or 3 minutes, until the white wine has reduced.

Add tomato sauce and cream (if you want a creamier sauce, add an additional 1/4 cup of cream). Stir to combine. Add oregano, basil, salt, pepper, and a pinch of cayenne to taste. Stir. Return scallops and bacon to the sauce, and stir gently to incorporate. Let cook over medium heat for another 5 to 6 minutes to ensure that the scallops are cooked through. Stir occasionally. The sauce will turn a reddish-brown color as a result of the flour cooking and turning into a bit of a roux.

Serve over linguine or rice. We like at lot of scallops at my house, so for us this serves 2, but this could easily serve 4.