For the pan-seared sea scallops:

Get ready:

• 12 sea scallops, thawed and towel-dried
• 4 slices thick-cut smoked bacon, cut into bites
• salt & pepper
  

Now let’s play:

Turn the heat to medium high. Sear the bite-size bacon until golden brown. Use a slotted spoon to take the bacon bites out, and reserve them on a plate for the pasta. Season the scallops with salt and pepper. Sear the scallops in the bacon fat about 1.5 minutes on each side. Don’t crowd the pan. Set the scallops later to plate over the tortellini (3 servings).

After-play thoughts:

Searing scallops in bacon fat give scallops a nice smoky flavor that neither  butter or olive oil would.

For the tortellini:

Get ready:

• 12 oz frozen cheese tortollini, broiled according to instruction on the package and drained (reserve 1 cup pasta water)
• 1 Tsp olive oil
• 2 ears of grilled corn (or 2 cups of frozen corn, sauteed and drained)
• 2 roma tomato
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 Tsp basil
• 1 Tsp thyme
• salt & pepper

Now let’s play:

Add the olive oil to the pan that was used to sear the scallops (Don’t clean the pan). Sauteed the garlic for 1 minute. Then add tomato, corn, basil, and thyme. Sauteed for 2 minutes. Mix with tortellini. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add some reserved pasta water if there isn’t enough sauce. Serve immediately with scallops (3 servings).

After-play thoughts:

Use bacon bites and grilled corn give this dish a nice overall smoky aroma, very complementary to the scallops.