Allegro Chicken

DEAR SOS: I always look forward to the chicken Marsala served at the quaint Caffe Allegro in La Verne. I would appreciate the recipe for this most delicious dish.

--CATHERINE

DEAR CATHERINE: Owner Alain Fournier sent us his version of chicken Marsala flavored with basil and garnished with toasted almonds. He serves the chicken over fettuccine. However, you can serve it plain, over rice or other grains.

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CAFFE ALLEGRO CHICKEN MARSALA

2 tablespoons butter

6 to 8 boneless chicken breast halves, cubed

2 shallots, chopped

6 cloves garlic, chopped

3/4 pound mushrooms, sliced

2 cups Marsala

1 quart whipping cream

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

Salt, pepper

1 pound fettuccine or other pasta, cooked, optional

Sliced toasted almonds

Heat butter in large skillet until melted. Add chicken and saute until golden. Add shallots, garlic and mushrooms; saute 3 minutes.

Add Marsala and simmer over high heat until reduced by half. Add whipping cream and basil and season to taste with salt and pepper. Simmer until sauce thickens slightly, about 5 minutes.

Serve chicken over cooked fettuccine and sprinkle with toasted almonds.

Makes 8 servings.

Each serving, without fettuccine, contains about:

767 calories; 182 mg sodium; 280 mg cholesterol; 57 grams fat; 7 grams carbohydrates; 26 grams protein; 0.37 gram fiber.

Santa Maria, Pintos and . . . DEAR SOS: I’m interested in a recipe for Santa Maria Beans, which you once printed and I lost.

--KAREN

DEAR KAREN: Santa Maria, Calif., is famous for its barbecues during spring rodeo festivals. Here’s a vendor’s recipe for this traditional dish, using locally grown small, pink beans. Any small red beans or pintos may be substituted.

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SANTA MARIA BEANS

1 pound dry small pink (pinquito), red or pinto beans

1 slice bacon, diced

1/4 cup diced cooked ham

1 clove garlic, minced

3/4 cup tomato puree

1/4 cup canned red chile sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1 teaspoon salt

Cover beans with water and soak overnight. Drain and cover with fresh cold water and simmer 2 hours, or until tender.

Meanwhile, saute bacon and ham until lightly browned. Add garlic and saute 1 or 2 minutes, then add tomato puree, chile sauce, sugar, mustard and salt.

Drain most liquid off beans and stir in sauce. Keep warm over very low heat or in low-heat oven until ready to serve.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Each of 8 servings contains about:

235 calories; 512 mg sodium; 4 mg cholesterol; 3 grams fat; 40 grams carbohydrates; 13 grams protein; 3.63 grams fiber.

Cookie of World Renown DEAR SOS: Some years ago you published a recipe for cookies made with chocolate chips, nuts and coconut. They were fairly large. I would love to make them for my grandchildren, but I’ve lost the recipe.

--BEVERLY

DEAR BEVERLY: You are probably referring to everyone’s favorite chocolate chip cookies, known as Ranger Cookies or Flying Saucers, which have traveled far and wide for generations.

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RANGER COOKIES

1 cup butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup brown sugar, packed

2 eggs, well beaten

2 cups sifted flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups oatmeal

2 cups cornflakes

1/2 cup coconut

1/2 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Beat butter with granulated and brown sugars in mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs.

Sift flour with baking powder, salt and baking soda. Blend into creamed mixture.

Add vanilla, oatmeal, cornflakes, coconut, chocolate chips and walnuts. Mix until blended. Drop 2 1/2 tablespoons dough onto ungreased baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, evenly spacing out cookies. Flatten each to 4-inch diameter.

Bake cookies at 350 degrees 10 to 12 minutes. Cookies should be slightly soft when removed from oven.

Makes about 22 large cookies.

Each cookie contains about:

272 calories; 187 mg sodium; 43 mg cholesterol; 13 grams fat; 37 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams protein; 0.28 gram fiber.

Send requests to Culinary SOS, Food Section, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053. Include restaurant address when requesting recipes from restaurants. We are unable to answer recipe requests by mail.

To order Dosti’s “DEAR SOS: Thirty Years of Recipe Requests to the Los Angeles Times,” send check for $15.95 plus $3 shipping and handling to Dear SOS, Los Angeles Times, Department FS, Box 2348, Chatsworth, CA 91313-9799. Or call (800) 246-4042 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday-Friday to use Visa or MasterCard.