Prosciutto-Wrapped Scallops with Romesco Sauce

Adapted from Bon Appetit, June 2010

Ingredients

Romesco Sauce

•     1/4 cup dry white wine
•     4 sun-dried tomato halves packed in oil, drained
•     1 garlic clove, peeled
•     1/4 cup chopped drained piquillo peppers or roasted red peppers from jar
•     1/4 cup whole almonds
•     3 tablespoons olive oil
•     Coarse kosher salt

Scallops

•     8 paper-thin slices prosciutto, each slice cut lengthwise into 3 long strips
•     12 sea scallops, halved horizontally
•     Olive oil
•     Coarse kosher salt
•     Fresh thyme leaves (for garnish)

Instructions

Step 1: For the Romesco Sauce: Combine wine, tomatoes, and garlic in small saucepan; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until wine is reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.

Step 2: Transfer tomato mixture to processor. Add peppers, almonds, and oil and blend until coarse puree forms. Transfer to small bowl. Season to taste with coarse salt and pepper. Can also be made 2 days ahead -cover and chill and let stand at room temperature 1 hour before using.

Step 3: For the Scallops: Before cooking the scallops, be sure to remove the muscle, which can be tough when cooked. Find the muscle by looking for the white strip that runs up the side of the scallop. You can usually pull it off with your fingers, but you may need to use a paring knife to tease the muscle away from the rest of the scallop.

Step 4: Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Wrap 1 prosciutto strip around center of each scallop half, pressing ends together to seal. Arrange scallops on prepared sheet.  Can be made 4 hours ahead - cover and chill.

Step 5: Preheat broiler. Brush scallops lightly with oil; sprinkle with pepper and lightly with coarse salt. Broil scallops until opaque in center and prosciutto is almost crisp, turning scallops over halfway through broiling, 1 to 2 minutes per side, depending on size of scallops. Arrange scallops on platter. Top each with small dollop of romesco sauce and a few thyme leaves.