Recipe: Seared scallops on black pudding with cauliflower puree and apple straws

This is a great dish to showcase Scottish produce. it requires little prep work and really brings fine dining into the home!  It's a great dish to persuade non-seafood lovers to like fish, as scallops are quite meaty and sweet. Stornoway black pudding (I use Charles MacLeod) is another of my other favourite Scottish foods and just works so harmoniously with the other flavours in this recipe.

       

Ingredients

Serves 4

12  hand-dived scallops

4 slices, Stornoway black pudding (grated)

1 cauliflower, broke into florets

500ml  organic milk (or enough to cover)

1 onion, finely diced

1 tsp ground cumin

1 Bramley apple, cut into straws

Oil

Seasoning

25g organic butter, cubed

Method

1)      Sweat the onion in a little oil, add the cauliflower florets and cook out for 3-4 mins, add the cumin and seasoning and stir in thoroughly, then add the milk and bring to the boil.  Simmer for 15 mins until cauliflower is soft, then blitz to a smooth puree, straining if necessary.

2)      Cut an apple in half, then into thin slices, then into matchsticks, leaving a piece of skin on the end.  Place in cold water with a splash of lemon to prevent discolouring

3)      Shape the grated black pudding to 1 ½ inch long pieces (just bigger than the scallop) using a small pastry cutter and fry for 1 ½ mins each side.

4)      Heat a non-stick frying pan and oil the scallop. Place a frying pan on a high heat, oil the scallop and place in the pan, turning when caramelised (about 1 min)  Add few cubes of butter and baste for golden top.

5)      Place the black pudding at either end of the plate with a scallop on top.  Tear drop the puree either side and place a spot in between the black pudding for the third scallop.  Place the straws over the top to garnish.