Vegan cuisine has come so far in the past 20 years, and yet I am still discovering new things, which is what makes it so exciting!
Those "scallops" in the photo are sliced king trumpet mushrooms, and not only do they look like their seafood counterpart, they actually taste like it. How is that possible you may ask? I do not have the answer, but as an omnivore who has eaten sea scallops, I can attest that they do.
The secret is to buy fresh mushrooms, and soak them for about 20 minutes in warm water, gently squeeze out most of the water, and then pan sear them as you would scallops. The hatch mark cutting on them helps them release liquid and cook into that scallop texture. It is pure genius whoever figured this one out!
Since I happened to have some garlic roasted white bean puree hanging out in the refrigerator, that is what I used as my cream sauce. Feel free to use dairy if you desire.