Prosciutto-Wrapped Scallops

[fitfool]

This one's very quick to prepare for a tasty but impressive dish. One friend whipped this up as an impromptu dish. She had invited us over for dinner but had forgotten my boyfriend didn't eat beef. He figured he'd just eat more of the side dishes but she emerged from the kitchen 10 minutes later with prosciutto and scallops. Yum!

If you're starting with frozen scallops, let them thaw in the refrigerator overnight.

1 pound scallops (thawed, if previously frozen)
4-5 slices of prosciutto [or substitute in bacon]
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon olive oil
freshly ground black pepper to taste
toothpicks

1. Cut each slice of prosciutto into 3 strips lengthwise. (If you're using bacon instead, you'll probably want to fry them up a bit so they're mostly cooked but still flexible enough to wrap around the scallops. Oh and you probably don't need to cut the bacon into thinner strips.)
   
2. Pat the thawed scallops dry as much as you can. Wrap a strip of prosciutto around the sides of each scallop and secure with a toothpick.
   
3. Heat the butter and olive oil over medium-high heat until the butter has melted.
   
4. Saute the minced garlic briefly until the garlic starts smelling good. (just barely starting to brown)
   
5. Add the scallops to the pan. Cook the scallops about 3 minutes each side. Sprinkle with a bit of pepper while it's cooking. (Do not overcook or the scallops will be tough and chewy)
   
6. When done cooking, transfer to a paper towel to drain briefly and remove toothpicks to serve.