I learned to make these luscious scallops with roasted garlic, sliced fresh jalapeños, toasted almonds, and lime juice from Barbara Costikyan, who made it possible for me to earn a living fresh off the catering truck. I had driven cross country with my two boys to move here on April 6, 1983. Two weeks earlier, she had included me in a roundup of “Hot New Caterers” in New York Magazine.
I had met her at a party Harley Baldwin gave in his railroad flat in the famed Dakota building. I cooked home-style dishes new to food writers here. There, too, I met then-budding socialite, now major art collector and curator, Beth Rudin DeWoody, who took me under her wing and became my first sponsor.
We probably would not have been able to survive without the aid of these two ladies.
Scallops with Roasted Garlic, Jalapeños, and Toasted Almonds (Callo de hacha)
Ingredients
- 1 pound fresh sea or bay scallops
- 12 cloves whole garlic peeled
- 1 cup chicken stock preferably home-made
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1-2 jalapeño chiles stems, seeds and veins removed, cut in thin slices
- ⅓-½ cup slivered almonds toasted
- ⅓ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
- ½ cup white wine optional
Instructions
- Pat the scallops dry with paper towels. Set aside.
- Place the garlic cloves in a small saucepan and cover with the chicken stock. Bring to a boil and cook over medium-high heat until the stock is consumed and the garlic is soft and golden. Set aside.
- Heat the butter until slightly sizzling, and add the chile, almonds, and garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the scallops and cook for another minute. Add the lime juice and cook for a minute. Immediately remove the scallops from the pan and add the optional white wine to deglaze the pan. Boil rapidly until slightly thickened and pour over the scallops. Serve immediately.
