Pleasure doesn’t have to be complicated. It can come from a walk on the beach. Seeing your kids interacting as adults and enjoying each other. It comes from a perfect simple meal. Fresh laundry and clean sheets on the bed. A new puppy sleeping soundly.

And new combinations. I took inspiration from Rachel Ray on this recipe. And there are so many ways to play with it. At the core is a simple recipe of clean creamed corn. Then play to your hearts content. Start with the recipe here, then expand to what you like to add.

Beauty Shot:

Creamed Corn with Grilled Scallops and Quick Pickled Onions

Ingredients:

1/2 Red Onion sliced thinly

1/4 C Red Wine Vinegar

1/2 C Water

1 T Granulated Stevia (of course you can use sugar in the same amount)

Kosher salt

1/2 Red Onion diced (the other half of the the thinly sliced one!)

6 Ears of Cleaned Corn (I used Peaches and Cream-was delish!)

1 T EVOO + a little for brushing the scallops

1 12 oz. can Evaporated Milk

1-1 1/2 half-pound Large Scallops, cleaned and patted dry

2 tsp Minced Garlic (cheat and use the jarred stuff here)

1/2 C halved Grape Tomatoes (if you can use yellows and reds-nice flavor add and color)

1/2 C Chiffonade cut Basil

1/4 C Chopped Cilantro

Putting it Together:

Halve the tomatoes.

For the quick pickled onions: Take the red wine, water, pinch of kosher salt and Stevia and place into medium pot on medium heat on stove. Bring to boil. Remove from heat and add the onions.

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On to the Creamed Corn: For 4 of the ears of corn, slice off the kernels and set aside. On the remaining 2 ears, grate them with a box grater. (No flour here! The grated corn will thicken the mixture.) Keep the grated and kernels separate.

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Turn on the grill and set to high heat.

On the stove, in a deep fry pan, heat 1 tsp of EVOO to medium and glistening. Add in the chopped red onion and garlic. Cook till softened, 4-5 minutes. Make sure to stir so the garlic doesn’t burn! Will turn bitter.

Add in corn kernels and cook till warmed through about 3 minutes. add in the grated corn and evaporated milk to the pan. Cook down till slightly thickened. Add in 1/4 C of the basil to the mix. This will be the base for the scallops so don’t want it to runny. Remove from heat and keep warm.

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Brush the scallops with olive oil and a bit of salt and pepper. Can skewer, or use a grill pan to grill. Grill one side for 2 minutes, then flip and grill other side for 1 minute, or until no longer opaque.

Of course, you are also welcome to pan fry. In case you are getting wind and rain like we were. Just pat dry, heat pan on medium high, add in olive oil (and a pat of butter if you are me), place scallops in the pan. Let stay with original side down for 2-3 minutes to achieve browning. After browned, flip and continue to brown for 2 minutes more.

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Serving:

Place a ladle or so of creamed corn mix to a plate. Place 1/4 of the scallops on top of creamed corn to one side. Add a 1/4 of the tomatoes next to the scallops. Next, place some of the pickled onions next to the tomatoes. Top with the some of the basil, and cilantro.

So fresh and summer like! And with corn season upon us, you will make this often!

Enjoy!

Terri