Happy Valentine’s Day (February the fourteenth)

This scallops dish is a lovely special dinner for two. It’s fast, delicious and impressive. It requires two pans (you’ll likely be happier if one is a non-nonstick 12-inch pan) and a few unusual ingredients, but nothing special-ordered. If you can stir, and you can measure out three minutes, you can make this. As a bonus, it leaves you with an open bottle of champagne to drink with dinner.

Reproduced from memory from the highly-recommended Les Halles Cookbook.

2 tablespoons butter
1 medium shallot, minced
1 cup fish stock (sold frozen at Whole Foods)
1/2 cup heavy cream

1 pound sea scallops (also sold frozen. They thaw in cold water in ten minutes), tendons removed, patted dry with paper towels, salted and peppered
1/2 cup champagne
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Salt and pepper

In the first pan (a medium non-stick pan works well, but it doesn’t really matter), melt one tablespoon butter over medium heat. Cook shallot until soft, approximately 3 minutes. Add fish stock and reduce to 1/2 cup. Add cream, bring to boil, then lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Heat second pan over high heat (a 12-inch cast iron skillet works very well for me). Melt butter and place scallops flat on the pan in a single layer. Cook them without moving for 3 minutes, then flip them with a pair of tongs and cook the other side without moving for 3 more minutes. Remove scallops to a plate and cover with aluminum foil.

Add champagne to hot pan in which you cooked the scallops, scraping up the leftovers at the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Reduce until champagne coats the back of the spoon.

Add the hot cream to the pan with the champagne and briefly bring to boil. Remove from heat and add lemon juice. Salt and pepper to taste (I’ve found that the salt and pepper from the scallops and broth is sufficient, but that’s just me). Distribute scallops to serving plates, pour sauce over scallops and serve.