Wednesday is St. Patrick's Day, the day we honor the patron saint of Ireland, whose real name (at least according to most sources) was Maewyn Succat.

If you're looking for a little more than green beer, shamrock cookies and desserts made with pistachio pudding, consider whipping up some dishes that reflect the traditional Irish diet. The real fare of Ireland includes staples such as oatmeal, potatoes, seafood and mutton.

In the countryside, things are relatively unchanged from the days when many emigrated from Ireland to the United States. Thatch-roofed cottages, potato fields and peat-burning fireplaces are everywhere.

In the cities, times have changed, with innovative young chefs turning up the heat by creating menus reflecting global trends, such as sushi, gourmet pizzas and tapas. But it's in the country where the true feeling of old Ireland shines.

Rain trickling down lush green hills to small streams lends the perfect growing environment for watercress. A slightly peppery leafy green, watercress is a good source of vitamin C and beta carotene. According to legend, madmen flocked to Gleann na Gealth (Gaelic for Valley of the Madmen), a town in the Dingle peninsula, to be healed. Folks now believe that these people were actually malnourished, and the vitamins in the cress helped to cure their mental imbalance.

A lovely green watercress soup is the perfect way to begin your St. Patrick's Day meal. If your family is like mine, a little mental stability would be more than welcome.

To bring the flavor of the Emerald Isle to the dinner table, Pittsburghers often turn to corned beef and cabbage. In reality, corned beef was largely unknown to most Irish until they made their way to the United States. The true national dish of Ireland, according to Malachi McCormick, author of "Malachi McCormick's Irish Country Cooking" (Clarkson N. Potter Inc.), is colcannon, a steamy mixture of new potatoes, cabbage and leeks.

Although this is a terrific St. Patrick's Day dish, it's missing the protein portion of a meal and still requires the cook to prepare meat or seafood to go with the colcannon. Make it easy on yourself and combine some of Ireland's best ingredients in a delicious savory pie instead.

Pies are such popular entrees in Irish cuisine that McCormick gives savory pies their own chapter in his book. Made with meat, poultry or fish, the pies are topped with either a regular pie crust or with mashed potatoes.

Fish is still a main source of protein for the Irish living near the coastline, so a steamy potato-topped scallop pie serves as an easy-to-prepare entree that captures the essence of Irish cuisine.

A simple side dish of steamed green beans goes perfectly with a rich pie.

In much of the British Isles, dessert is called pudding, and a cheese course often is served after the pudding. For weekday meals, it's just too much fuss to have dessert and a cheese course, so we recommend skipping dessert and going right to one of our favorite foods, cheese.

A wedge of the sharp Vintage Irish Cheddar or the full-bodied Dubliner Irish Cheddar served with spicy rhubarb chutney is a special way to end your Irish feast. Other available Irish cheeses include creamy, Gorgonzola-like Cashel Blue from County Tipperary, as well as the marbled Cahill's Farm Porter from County Limerick. It gets its flavor from the addition of Guinness Stout.

If you don't mind island hopping, Welsh cheeses, such as Harlech, a sharp horseradish cheddar, and Red Dragon (think mustard seeds and ale) also go well with an Irish farmhouse meal. Serve the cheese with Carr's English Wheatmeal biscuits or plain crackers.

Cheeses mentioned in the article can be found at Whole Foods in East Liberty. Carr's Wheatmeal Biscuits are widely available.

For the recipe for Scallop Pie With Potato Crust, send a request to food@post-gazette.com. Please include name, city and state.

Mary Miller is a Fox Chapel-based registered dietitian and food writer. Her column appears monthly. For questions or comments, she can be reached at marymar333@comcast.net.

RELATED RECIPES

WATERCRESS SOUP

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
  
• 1 1/4 cups potatoes, peeled and chopped
  
• 1 1/3 cups yellow onion, finely chopped
  
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
  
• 2 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
  
• 2 1/2 cups milk
  
• 2 bunches chopped watercress, coarse stems removed.

Melt butter in a heavy-bottomed saute pan. Add potatoes and onions and toss until well coated. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper. Cover the pan and sweat the vegetables over low heat for 10 minutes. Add the stock and milk, bring to a boil and cook until potatoes and onions are soft. Add the watercress and boil with the lid off for about 4 to 5 minutes until the watercress is cooked. It will taste soft and tender. Do not overcook or the soup will lose its fresh green color. Puree the soup in a blender or food processor. Taste and add salt and pepper, as needed. Serves 6.

Adapted from a recipe from the Ballymaloe Cooking School

SCALLOP PIE WITH POTATO CRUST

• 1 pound potatoes, peeled and sliced
  
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely sliced
  
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
  
• 6 scallions, chopped (keep green ends and white ends separate)
  
• 2 pounds sea scallops, halved
  
• 1 pound small button mushrooms, halved
  
• 2 tablespoons flour
  
• 1 cup light cream
  
• 4 tablespoons sherry
  
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Put potatoes in a saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until tender, and drain.

Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a frying pan and saute all but 1/2 clove of the garlic for 2 minutes, taking care not to brown it.

Add chopped white scallions to the pan. Saute for 2 minutes. Add scallops and mushrooms, and saute for 3 minutes. Sprinkle on flour and stir well. Add cream slowly, stirring well. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. Stir in sherry and remove from heat.

Once potatoes are cooked and drained, add a tablespoon of butter, remaining garlic and reserved chopped scallion tops to the potatoes. Mash potatoes in the saucepan, adding a little milk and the remaining butter if necessary. Put the scallop mixture into an 8- or 9-inch-deep dish or pie pan. Spoon mashed potatoes on top and spread evenly. Use the fork to make furrows on top of the pie crust. Put pie in the oven for 20 minutes, or until the potato furrows are browned. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve Serves 6 to 8.

'Malachi McCormick's Irish Country Cooking'

RHUBARB CHUTNEY

• 2 cups diced rhubarb
  
• 1 tart apple, peeled and chopped
  
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
  
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
  
• 1/2 cup raisins
  
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
  
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin

Combine all ingredients in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Bring slowly to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the rhubarb and apple are very soft but still hold their shape. Do not allow them to turn into mush. Cool and chill before serving.

Makes 2 1/2 cups. The chutney will keep for a week in the refrigerator.