Recipes for amaretto pie, scallops arrive in twos

bakery background
bakery background

Here we are again, Wednesday companions, taking everything by twos today.

First, two old requests: The Back Inn Cafe's white bean dip with blue cheese, and easy-mail food to send to college students.

Then, two new request topics: onions and barbecue sauce. The questions are, "How do you store onions, and how do you keep them once they are cut? If the cut onion changes color, should you throw it out?"

Finally, and anonymously, how about a really good South Carolina-style homemade barbecue sauce?

AMARETTO PIE x 2

Amaretto Pie is such a Chattanooga treasure that it resurfaces on these pages every few years. This year's versions are very similar but with different crusts. The first came from Terry Keister. "I have used this many times and folks really like it."

Amaretto Cream Pie

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1 cup powdered sugar

1 (8-ounce) carton Cool Whip

1 small package vanilla instant pudding

4 tablespoons amaretto liqueur

1 1/2 cups cold milk

1 (9-inch) graham cracker pie shell

1 cup additional Cool Whip

Sprinkling of sliced almonds

Blend cream cheese with the sugar. Add the Cool Whip, and mix well. In another bowl, mix the instant pudding with the amaretto and milk. Pour into the first mixture, and blend together well. Pour into the pie shell. Cover with 1 cup Cool Whip, and top with sliced almonds. Chill for a few hours, and serve. This pie freezes well also for later serving.

The second amaretto pie, though not the official pie of Mount Vernon Restaurant, is believed to taste like it. Mary Meek sent it, straight from a family cookbook that cheerfully titled the recipe "Amaretta Pie." The family member who sent it explained that this is not a misspelling but "they pronounce it like that." Can't you just hear a Southern family calling to each other at meal's end, "Got any more of that amaretta pie?"

'Amaretta' Pie

Crust:

1 stick butter, softened

1 cup flour

1/2 cup almonds, chopped

Mix together the butter and flour, and spread in the bottom of a pie pan. Sprinkle with some of the chopped almonds, reserving some to sprinkle on top of the finished pie. Bake at 350 degrees until brown (about 15 minutes). Remove from oven, and let cool.

Filling:

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/8 cup amaretto liqueur

1 cup powdered sugar (confectioners)

2 ounces Cool Whip plus a little bit more to add to pudding and more to top pie

1 small box vanilla instant pudding

1 1/2 cups milk

Mix cream cheese with amaretto. Add powdered sugar and 2 ounces Cool Whip.

In a separate bowl, combine instant pudding and milk. Mix together, and add little bit of Cool Whip to this.

Now blend the two mixtures gently. Make sure the combined mix is well blended. Pour into cooled crust, and top with more Cool Whip. Sprinkle remaining chopped almonds over the top. Chill, and serve.

SCALLOPS x 2

Enter now two scallops recipes - and there will be more to come next week.

Lennis DuBan wrote, "I am responding to Patti Waddell's request for recipes for jumbo sea scallops. I buy them fresh at Publix when they are on sale. They also have bags that are frozen, but the scallops are not as large even though they are much bigger than bay scallops. They sometimes put the bag on sale for half price. This recipe is one I have tweaked until we are in love with it. It doesn't take a lot of time, either."

Jumbo Sea Scallops

About 1 pound sea scallops

Salt

Old Bay seasoning

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

Rinse scallops with cool water, and pat dry.

Season with salt and Old Bay on both sides.

In a large skillet, heat olive oil until hot, and add scallops, leaving room between them. Do not let them touch.

Cook 3 to 5 minutes or until bottom is browning.

Add butter, let melt and turn scallops with tongs. Continue dipping butter/oil mixture over scallops until bottom is browned, 3 to 5 more minutes. Move to a plate to serve.

Karen Slaten tested this scallop delight, and "this recipe has become a favorite. I clipped it from somewhere, but I don't know where. It does credit Nancy Vienneau as creator of the recipe with communitytable.com at the bottom of the clipping.

"It is a very forgiving recipe in that it allows for substitutions at every stage. I have substituted lemon peel for the lime peel and lemon juice for the lime juice, though it is more tart. It is good for shrimp or scallops, and I save the sauce and bake chicken in it the following day.

"I've noted below the substitutes that I use instead of vodka in the recipe. If you don't have green onions, regular onions work just fine. I've used dried parsley instead of fresh or left it out. If I'm in a garlic mood, I throw in a teaspoon of minced garlic. Hope you enjoy it as much as I have."

Ms. Slaten has given us not only a recipe but a wonderful term for cooking: "This dish is very forgiving." For those of us who like to take creative license, "very forgiving" is what we need to know about a recipe.

Lime Rickey Shrimp or Scallops

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon finely grated lime peel

1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper

1/2 pound large raw shrimp, peeled and deveined (can substitute large bay scallops)

1/4 cup lime juice

1/4 cup vodka (can substitute white grape juice, white cooking wine or any white wine)

1 tablespoon butter

1 cup chopped green onions

2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley

In a bowl, mix together olive oil, lime peel, salt and pepper. Add shrimp or scallops.

In a small bowl, mix lime juice and vodka.

In a skillet over medium heat, melt butter and add chopped green onions, and stir on low heat until soft, about 3 minutes. Push onions to the side of pan, and increase heat. Add shrimp (or scallop) mixture, and cook about 1 1/2 minutes. Flip, and cook until cooked through, another 1 1/2 minutes. Stir in lime juice and vodka mixture, and cook until shrimp (scallops) are glazed and liquid is slightly reduced. Remove from heat, and stir in the flat-leaf parsley.

Makes 2 servings.

Forgiving recipes, unforgettable food: that's the menu here, and for that I am personally thankful. Hope you are too.

Requests

* Back Inn Cafe's white bean dip with blue cheese

* Shippable foods

* Onion storage

* South Carolina-style barbecue sauce

To Reach Us:

Fare Exchange is a longtime meeting place for people who love to cook and love to eat. We welcome both your recipes and your requests. Be sure to include precise instructions for every recipe you send.

Mailing address: Jane Henegar, 913 Mount Olive Road, Lookout Mountain, GA 30750

E-mail: chattfare@gmail.com

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