The Laughing Wolf

Scallops In Coffins

No, I haven’t gotten militant on the mollusk population, but am getting ready to modify a very nice Scottish recipe. It apparently came to Scotland in part from soldiers and mercenaries who had served in India and the Far East. It is traditionally served in baked potatoes (tatties), but I am modifying it to a low-carb diet.

If I can find some good scallops today, I will prepare them as follows:

In a large skillet, sauté 2-3 cups of scallops in butter, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and an optional touch of dill or lemon zest. Dice and set aside.

In the same large skillet, or medium sauce pan, melt .25 cups of butter (.5 stick), add in 2 teaspoons of lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon of Madras (Hot) curry powder. I recommend making your own curry powder to suit (most Indian groceries can and will help), but you can use the pre-made if you like. If very spicy is not to your taste, use a regular or mild curry powder. Cook for one minute.

Add in 2 Tablespoons of regular (all purpose, not self-rising) flour and cook an additional minute.

Gradually add 1 cup of light cream (you can cut heavy with milk if needed), stirring to prevent lumps and scorching. Season mixture with salt and pepper to taste. Add in 2 Tablespoons minced green pepper and 2 cups (or a little more) of the diced cooked scallops.

Normally, you would then spoon this mixture into baked potatoes that you had scooped out, but that is a no-no for hypoglycemics, diabetics, or those on high-protein/low-carb diets. So, what I am thinking of doing is putting it into some red or yellow bell peppers. Whatever you choose to do, sprinkle the top with chopped fresh parsley and bake in a pre-heated 400 degree oven until the tops are golden.

A variation is to chop up some green onion and place it along with the parsley, or you can put on some other garnishes. Be creative, and have fun with it. Enjoy.

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