Caserecce pasta with scallops, spicy green beans and cherry tomatoes

• 5 minutes to prepare • 10 minutes to cook • Serves 4

10 MINUTES 

 

Also known by the name of shell of St. James, scallop is a fine mollusc with sweet flavour and fleshy consistency.
Its delicate flavour makes it suitable for many preparations. In Italian cuisine, it is usually eaten cooked to enrich tasty dishes such as risotto. It is also the star of one of the best dishes created by Gambero's chef Pierangelini: scallop and mortadella.

Today we will employ it in a simple and genuine first course: Caserecce pasta with scallops, crispy and spicy green beans and some red cherry tomatoes...featured to donate the dish summer-like color and joy!
This recipe is a simplified, and slightly modified, version of chef Caffarri's.

Here are ingredients for the 4-serving recipe:

 

320 g Caserecce pasta
250 g green beans
100 g cherry tomatoes
8 scallops
1 chili green pepper
1 garlic glove

EVO oil
salt and pepper

1. Start preparing the pasta sauce: in a pan pour 2 tablespoons of EVO oil and add the garlic clove - unchopped -. Make it toast over medium heat until it becomes golden, then remove it
2. Turn up the heat and add green beans, cut into thin slices, into the pan. Add the chili green pepper, too, cut into rings and braise for few minutes. Be careful not to overcook green beans as they need to stay crispy: when they are ready, put them on a plate covered with paper towels to drain the excess oil and season with a pinch of salt
3. Boil water in a pot, add salt and once started to bubble, pour Caserecce pasta. Follow the time instructions reported on the package: usually Caserecce pasta is ready in about 10 minutes. At that time, pasta should be al dente
4. Meanwhile, put cherry tomatoes cut into halves in a nonstick pan and place over low heat. Stir frequently until they soften, then season with a pinch of salt
5. Pick up a ladle of cooking water and keep aside, then drain well the pasta
6. Pour pasta into the pan with the green beans and stir over high heat for a couple of minutes to flavor Caserecce pasta; if pasta looks dry, add some cooking water
7. Add raw scallops, making them to thicken with the heat of the pasta
8. Serve hot with cherry tomatoes on top

Nutrition Facts are listed for this recipe in the table below. Data is provided per serving.

The windy day is not a day for scallops.
(Irish proverb)