Pasta with Garlicky Tomato Sauce & Bay Scallops

Pasta with Garlicky Tomato Sauce & Bay Scallops is a quick, no-fuss meal that will impress any guest. Bursting with juicy tomatoes, heart-healthy garlic and briny, protein-rich scallops, this dish is elevated with a restaurant-worthy white wine sauce. Added at the end of the cooking time to ensure the perfect texture, zucchini brings additional fiber, and the fresh basil brightens the dish. Keep reading for our expert tips on how to properly prepare and cook your scallops, as well as ingredient substitution recommendations to use what you already have at home.

Tips from the EatingWell Test Kitchen

These are the key tips we learned while developing and testing this recipe in our Test Kitchen to make sure it works, tastes great and is good for you too! 

• Always pat your scallops dry before using them, especially if they are frozen. Dry scallops will brown better.
• When searing scallops, cook them undisturbed until they develop a nice brown color. If you try to turn or stir them before they brown, they will likely stick to the pan and break apart.
• Instead of using fresh cherry tomatoes, you can substitute them with jarred passata, an uncooked tomato puree that has been strained.
• If you want to replace the wine, try using a splash of clam juice. Additionally, you can enhance the flavor of the dish by adding some chopped shallots and chopped hot chile peppers.

Nutrition Notes

• Whole-wheat spaghetti is an excellent source of carbohydrates for energy and adds fiber to this dish—great for your digestive health. Whole-wheat pasta also contains more protein than semolina pasta, so it’s a perfect addition if you’re trying to increase your protein intake. 
• Scallops are the quick-cooking tender protein for this easy, but elegant dish. As an animal protein, scallops provide vitamin B12 and zinc. They also contain a mineral called selenium, which has antioxidant properties important for fighting inflammation, but also is an important nutrient for good thyroid health. 
• Using cherry tomatoes instead of larger tomatoes ensures that you get fresh and sweet tomato flavor without too much extra water. Tomatoes contain vitamin C, which helps boost your body’s natural production of collagen—great for skin health and wound healing. 
• Zucchini is a low-carb and low-calorie vegetable and it is brimming with nutrition. It has a good amount of potassium, magnesium and fiber, which are all beneficial for maintaining a healthy heart. It is also a source of lutein and zeaxanthin, which are antioxidants for healthy vision.