Well its’ finally happened, summer weather has arrived in Nova Scotia! For a while there I was beginning to think we were going to pass spring, summer and autumn and move right back to winter! And when summer hits there are two things you can be sure of 1) we are firing up our barbecues and 2) we’re all about burgers!
Last week my friends at President’s Choice dropped off a big cooler full of goodies so I could try the Fog Buster Scallop Bacon Burger created by Halifax chef Craig Flinn. Last night I finally had a chance to make it and even though I’m not much of a seafood person it was gooooooooood. Like really good. If you like scallops you seriously need to try this! Most of the ingredients are Presidents Choice products, but if you don’t have access to them I’m sure you can find something similar in your own grocery store to create the same level of yumminess!
President’s Choice® Atlantic Canada Burger:
“Fog Buster” Scallop Bacon Burger
Created by Chef Craig Flinn, Chives Canadian Bistro
Ingredients:
For the “tartar” sauce:
- 1 250g tub PC® Spreadable Greek Yogurt Cream Cheese, softened
- ½ cup PC® Smokey Bacon Mayo
- 1 tsp PC® Ancho Chipotle Smokey Pepper Sauce
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp PC® Sweet Green Relish
- 2 tsp PC® Dijon Mustard
- 1 tbsp fresh chopped dill (optional)
For the scallops:
- 1 1/4 lbs (approximately 16 to 20 each) PC® Blue Menu® Sustainably Sourced Wild Nova Scotian Frozen Jumbo Sea Scallops
- 3 tbsp flour
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 cup PC® black label Panko Japanese-style Breadcrumbs
- 3 tbsp PC® Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Tuscany
For the final assembly:
- 8 slices PC® Naturally Smoked Bacon Rounds
- 1 cup PC® Organics baby arugula
- 4 each PC® Hawaiian Sweet Buns
Preparation:
In a bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, bacon mayo, pepper sauce, lemon juice, relish, Dijon mustard, and dill and mix well using a whisk. Refrigerate until ready to build the burgers.
Thaw the scallops overnight in the refrigerator if possible and pat dry with clean paper towels. Place the flour, salt, and pepper in a small bowl and mix well. Dredge each scallop in the seasoned flour until dusted on all sides. Place the beaten eggs in a second bowl and dip each scallop in the egg. Finally, toss each egg-dipped scallop in a third bowl containing the panko breadcrumbs. When completely coated with breadcrumbs, place on a plate until ready to fry. Using the side burner of your barbecue, heat a non-stick frying pan and add the olive oil, then fry the scallops for 3 or 4 minutes per side over high heat until golden brown and crispy. Once completely cooked, remove the scallops from the hot oil and rest on a plate lined with clean paper towels. Season with a little salt and pepper if desired.
Heat your barbecue and grill the slices of bacon until golden and crispy (about 3 minutes per side). While doing this, place the buns on the grill as well until the edges are slightly charred and the bread toasted.
To assemble the burgers, place the bottom part of the bun down and spread 1 tbsp of the cream cheese tartar sauce on the bun. Next, add several arugula lettuce leaves. Place 4 or 5 crispy sea scallops down next, then lay 2 pieces of crispy, warm bacon rounds on top of the scallops. On the top of the bun, spread another tablespoon of cream cheese tartar sauce, and place the bun on top.
The only thing I did differently is I used only 1 slice of bacon/burger (mostly because I forgot to read the directions and assumed there was only going to be one slice/burger) and it was still amazing.
They also gave me a recipe for “Annapolis Valley Honeycrisp Apple, Celery Root, Fennel and Maple Walnut Coleslaw” which I’ll be making this weekend – I’ll let you know what I think of it!
If you like this recipe be sure to “pin” it on pinterest for reference, and let me know on Facebook or tweet me on twitter!
Disclosure: I was provided with the ingredients to make this recipe courtesy of President’s Choice but am only sharing the recipe because it was super good. I had permission from President’s Choice to re-print this recipe as it cannot be found on their website at this time.