Pan-fried Scallops with Sweet Corn Puree, Truffle Sauce, Poached Quail Egg, Bacon Foam and Parma Crisp

This is a very indulgent recipe. The preparation is in several stages, but they can all be done in advance and so the serving is pretty stress free.

(serves 2)
6 scallops, cleaned
Small can of sweetcorn
100ml beef stock
Enough double cream to get the right consistency
1 egg yolks
125ml truffle oil
lemon
4 quail eggs
1 slice of parma ham
White wine vinegar
150ml milk
4 rashers of smoked bacon, chopped
Room temperature butter

Start by making the puree: bring the stock to boil and add the sweet corn and boil for 1 minute
Pour into a blender and blend until smooth, push through a sieve
Reheat very gently for service and add double cream if the puree is too thick
For the bacon foam: scald (bring to just under boil) the milk with bacon and leave to cool down
Remove the bacon
Reheat for service, keep adding butter and foaming the milk with hand held blender until you get glossy bubbles and serve
For the sauce: place the egg yolk in a bowl and pour the oil slowly over it, whilst stirring continuously
Season to taste, squeeze a little lemon juice in
To poach the eggs: bring a pan of water to simmer
Pour a little cold water and white wine vinegar into a bowl and crack the eggs into it
Then pour this into the poaching liquid and poach for 1 minute or until set
Remove with a slotted spoon and pop into cold water
Reheat in warm water for service
For the Parma Crisp: Heat the oven to 190°C
Grease two identical baking sheets; one on the inside, the other on the underside
Place one inside the other so the ham slices are sandwiched between the greased surfaces
Bake in the top of the oven for 9 minutes
Remove the upper baking sheet and leave to cool
For the scallops: Pour a ‘film’ of olive oil into a pan and bring to high heat (until the oil is almost smoking)
Season your scallops with salt and white pepper (black will do, but white is more delicate)
Place them into the hot oil, presentation side down (usually the larger side)
The objective is to caramelise the scallops, giving them a deep golden-brown colour
Approximate timing is 3 minutes, but do check and let the colour be your guide
Turn over, but do not caramelise the second sides, since this will overcook the scallops
Test with fingertips; the scallops should be firm but not rubbery, with a little bit of give
Just before you remove them from the heat, a squeeze of lemon juice is recommended
This will counteract the effects of the oil, whilst bringing out more of their fantastic flavour
NOTE – For extra indulgent luxury, try adding a knob of butter just before turning the scallops