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Simple and delicious Browned Butter Scallops and Burst Tomato Basil Pasta. This quick-cooking pasta is like summer in a bowl. Crisp pan-seared scallops tossed with a golden, browned butter cherry tomato pan sauce, with white wine, caramelized corn, and plenty of basil. Serve topped with creamy burrata cheese, fresh, basil, and lemon. This is the perfect summer dinner, all made using summery seafood and garden produce. Simple yet so delectable, and ready in under an hour. Most importantly…every twirl of pasta is mouth-wateringly delicious.
Here’s the deal, you can make tomato basil pasta just about any time of the year. But I always find it best this time of year, when the gardens are bursting with fresh basil and the tomatoes are just beginning to turn ripe enough to eat. Our local farmstand, Uncle John’s, has just started filling their delivery trucks full of sweet cherry tomatoes, homegrown in Colorado. They’re the best, sweetest little cherry tomatoes.
We love them.
And if you’ve been following along all summer, you know we are growing plenty of fresh herbs this year. Our basil and thyme are currently taking over the garden and I could not be happier about it. Basil is by far one of my very favorite herbs, probably my favorite. But I hate to choose solid favorites when it comes to food because my favorites really do change with the seasons.
Funny enough, this is a pasta I made many summers ago. But I love making it every year once the cherry tomatoes arrive towards the end of July. It’s the quickest pasta dinner to create. It would be amazing as a special Friday or Saturday night meal with your favorite glass of wine, yet it’s simple enough for any weeknight too.
It’s light and summery, but yet also a bit indulgent and very satisfying. An all-around completely delicious meal.
Here are the details for this summery scallop pasta.
Like a lot of my summer recipes, this pasta is simple. I used angel hair pasta because it’s what I had in my pantry. Well, wait, I have almost every kind of pasta in my pantry. Because you know I love a good pasta dinner and I love keeping the pantry well-stocked. But truth is, I love angel hair the most. My mom ingrained this into me at a very young age and I think it will always be my favorite. You can, of course, use any long cut pasta you love, but angel hair is my go-to.
The added bonus when it comes to using angle hair? It takes almost no time at all to cook up.
Sear the scallops and finish things up.
Once you have the pasta boiling, get to work on the scallops. I pan-seared them simply with salt, pepper, and olive oil. The key to a good pan-seared scallop is making sure you’ve patted the scallops very dry before searing. This will ensure your scallops brown evenly on the outside, but stay soft and buttery toward the center.
Once the scallops are seared, get them out of the skillet and finish up this pasta.
To that same skillet, add those cherry tomatoes, some garlic, herbs, corn, and butter. Let the butter get a little brown and toasty, and then add a splash of wine. Yes, wine on a weekday, and it’s the best thing ever. Obviously.
Toss in the pasta, parmesan, basil, and seared scallops. And that’s it.
Well almost…the plating is very important and should go as follows:
Pasta, room temperature burrata, a sprinkle of lemon, and then lots of fresh basil.
Seems really fancy, right? But it’s actually so simple and is made entirely in one pan (ok, two including the pasta cooking pan). And all in under an hour.
This one is as close to perfect as a summer pasta can get.
Pour yourself a glass of wine, fix up a big plate of seafood pasta, and relax out on the patio or deck…the perfect summer night dinner! Sounds pretty darn good. Lovin’ the easy summer living.
And nothing’s better than buttery, herby, seafood pasta, sweet tomatoes and corn, cheese, and wine…all together in one dish. Happiest Thursday!
PS. I’ve decided that everything in the summer months is better with burrata and fresh basil…everything!
Looking for other summer seafood recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Cajun Pepper Shrimp with Creamed Corn Orzo
Garden Herb Shrimp Scampi Linguine
Lemon Parmesan Salmon with Corn, Tomato, and Avocado Salad
Lastly, if you make this Browned Butter Scallops and Burst Tomato Basil Pasta, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Browned Butter Scallops and Burst Tomato Basil Pasta
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 629 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 3/4 pound angel hair or linguine
- 1 pound large scallops, patted dry
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 ears corn, kernels removed from the cob
- 1/3 cup dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 1/3 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped
- 1 ball burrata cheese, at room temperature (optional)
Instructions
- 1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions, until al dente. Just before draining, remove 1 cup of the pasta cooking water. Drain the pasta.2. Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Season the scallops with salt and pepper. When the oil shimmers, add the scallops and sear on both sides until browned, about 2-3 minutes. Remove the scallops from the skillet to a plate. 3. To the same skillet, add the tomatoes, garlic, thyme, and a pinch each of salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Cook until the tomatoes begin to pop, about 4-5 minutes. Add the butter and corn, cook until just browned, another 2-3 minutes. Pour in the wine and lemon juice, simmer 2-3 minutes. Add the pasta, parmesan, basil, and scallops, gently toss to combine. If needed, thin the sauce with a little of the pasta cooking water. 5. Divide the pasta among plates and top with burrata cheese, basil, and lemon. Enjoy!
Made this for our Friday night dinner with whole wheat angel hair and added the burrata. Was absolutely spectacular – we ate every last bit!
Yes!! That is so great! Thank you so much Cara-Anne! xTieghan
This is so so amazingly delicious but so easy! All the fresh flavors! Putting this in the regular rotation!!
Thank you so much Paige! I am really happy to hear that! xTieghan
I made this dish for dinner on Friday night and it was amazing!! I bought fresh scallops at Costco and used cherry tomatoes from my garden. I’ve never tried Burrata cheese before and I’m addicted now! I love all your recipes and this is now one of my favorites!
Thank you so much Kimberley! I am really glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
This was an incredibly easy and rich summer dish! pairs perfectly with sauvignon blanc (leftover from the pan sauce 🙂 ). I can’t think of a better use for peak season cherry tomatoes than this dish. Writing it down in our family cookbook!
Love that so much! Thank you Alejandra! xTieghan
So fresh and yummy! Easy to
Make to!
Thank you Carolina!! So happy to hear that! xTieghan
This looks incredible but is there a way to reduce the fat without losing too much flavor?
Hey Sue,
You could reduce the amount of butter you use. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Made this pasta last night for a little date night in and my fiancé and I both agreed that it was one of the best pastas we’ve ever made. Highly recommend, thanks so much for the recipe.
Thank you Rachel! I am so happy to hear that! xTieghan
I loved this recipe and so did my husband who is a big fan of scallops. We left off the burrata and it was fine. Also used double the amount of cherry tomatoes,Yum. Yum.
Thank you so much Engrid!! xTieghan
I loved this! One question- at what point do you add the lemon zest? I just sprinkled it on top but maybe I should have added earlier?
Hey,
You are correct, I like to add the lemon zest in step 5. Thanks for trying the recipe!! xTieghan
beautiful, as you write, a perfect summer dish, and made even better with creamy burrata, not mozzarella, but burrata, perfection!
Thank you so much! I am really glad this turned out so well for you, Sabrina! xTieghan
I am allergic to scallops – is there another protein I can use instead?
Hey Jean,
Shrimp or a mild white fish would be great! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
This looks divine but i am allergic to scallops. How do i start off the recipe without them? Thanks for all of the great recipes. Your site is my summer of 2020 romance.
Hey Joyce,
I would just completely omit the scallops or shrimp would be a great substitute. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Made this last night! It was SOO good! I had fresh succotash on hand so I substituted that for the corn. Also, used mozzarella for the burrata. A fresh summery pasta with scallops!! The best!
Thank you Jo Ann!! I am so happy to hear that! xTieghan
I had never attempted Scallops but I’m so glad I did! The combination of flavors in this dish are exceptional. Thanks for wonderful directions and for all the deliciousness❤️
I am so glad you decided to try these and they turned out so well for you! Thank you Stefanie! xTieghan
So I saw your recipe on Instagram. I follow you and I see all of your dishes that you make. When this one came across my timeline I knew I had to make it. I made this dish and it was delish! I did everything as the recipe indicated and I wasn’t disappointed. The flavors just pop when you eat this dish. The only thing I did different was used fresh mozzarella instead of the Burrata because I live in a smaller area in the south and cheddar is all they know LOL! So I had to really search for the fresh mozzarella. Also, I used fettuccine instead of the angel hair pasta used in the recipe. My daughter is 9 and she was crazy about the scallops and fettuccine! Thanks so much for a fantastic recipe! I wish I could have posted my pictures but I promise I got real close.
I am so glad this turned out so well for you, Erica!! Thank you so much for trying it! xTieghan