Gnocchi with Spinach, Bacon and Mustard Cream Sauce and a Giveaway

I've always wanted to make gnocchi but there was one thing missing.  I didn't have a Potato Ricer and, while I could have spent hours mashing and pushing potatoes through a sieve - it never really appealed.

However, just before Christmas OXO Good Grips sent me a Potato Ricer to review and it is now one of my favourite kitchen tools. It makes the most fantastic smooth mashed potato, lumps are a thing of the past and that is why you need one to make good gnocchi.


I made my gnocchi using a recipe I found on Pinterest which was posted by Nicole at Cooking for Keeps: How to make Light as Air Gnocchi.  It was a very simple process, once the potatoes have been pushed through the ricer, you add eggs, flour and salt, then roll out the gnocchi, cut and press a fork into the cut edge.  The gnocchi is then boiled for 7 minutes before being served with sauce.

One of the joys of social media and the Foodie community is that you get some great advice about making the best of new recipes you are trying.  I had posted a photo of the uncooked gnocchi expressing my hope that it would taste as good as it looked once cooked.  Becca from Amuse Your Bouche replied to suggest that I sauted the gnocchi in butter after boiling in water to improve the flavour and texture.  You can read more about Becca's Sauted Gnocchi in Simple Garlic Butter Sauce  you don't need much more than this simple sauce when you saute your gnocchi.


The sauce I made had a few more ingredients wasn't too complicated. It's another recipe I found on Pinterest for Gnocchi in Mustard Cream from Maras Wonderland (it's a German blog, but if you scroll down Maras also has the recipe in English.  I added about 200g of spinach to the pan with the onion and let it wilt down before adding the other ingredients.

The most excellent news is that I have one OXO Good Grips Potato Ricer worth £30 to Giveaway to one lucky person, just follow the instructions on the Rafflecopter.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Labels: Amuse Your Bouche, bacon, cream, giveaway, Gnocchi, mustard, potato, Potato Ricer, spinach, win

posted by Janice @ 06:00 122 Comments

Posh Burgers, Velvet Chicken and Scandi Salad - all in a box!

Do you find it difficult to decide what to cook?  And sometimes when you find a recipe you want to make, are you thwarted by not having all of the ingredients?  If the answer is yes, then you might want to order a Gousto box, especially as I have a special discount for your first order (see bottom of post).  Here is how it works:

• You choose the recipes from the website
• Gousto does the shopping
• Gousto measure everything
• Gousto deliver for free
• You cook and enjoy

Since the last time I reviewed a Gousto Box in 2012 they've made their boxes even better. Prices have been lowered by 17%, so meals now only cost £4.00 - £5.80 including delivery (three meals £34.99). That's on average 16% better than most supermarkets according to Moneysupermarket.com

The boxes still deliver the same great quality, using high quality animal welfare meat from British farms and Soil Association certified organic vegetables.  Gousto also have a new website so you can easily make your menu choices on your mobile phone, you can also rate the recipes more easily.
There are two new chefs at Gousto, Remi and Alice, who are creating amazing new recipes every week.  Have a look at the menu, there are 10 new recipes every week for you to choose from.  I had three recipes, each for two people,  in my box and every single one of them was super delicious and I learned a few tricks that I will use in future cooking.
Posh Burger and Chips with Homemade Ketchup: Rosemary-rubbed chunky chips, shards of melted cheddar and a trio of delicious handmade condiments make this burger something really special. This was a straightforward recipe to make even though there were lots of different components.  Including chunks of cheese in the burgers works really well, you don't really taste cheese, it just adds a lovely creaminess to the meat.  The star of the show was the homemade ketchup which I will definitely be making again.
Crunchy Chicken Cashew Stir-Fry with Basmati Rice: This recipe uses the velveting technique.  Velveting is cooking meat in egg for an extra moist finish. It sounds challenging, but it's surprisingly simple and makes this chicken stir-fry extra special. Cashew nuts make a delicious addition to a stir-fry and they are also rich in essential minerals like magnesium, iron and zinc.

The stir-fry chicken was really simple to make and made two generous portions, I reckon you could serve it to three people without any complaints.  The velveting made for the most tender chicken I've ever stir-fried and I will certainly do that again.

Summer Mackerel with Warm Gem Salad: The use of lemon in this dish helps to give the recipe a real zing and brings out the flavour of the mackerel.  

The quality of the mackerel was excellent and the flavour combinations were reminiscent of Scandinavian food. The onions are immersed in vinegar which reduces the pungency of it's raw flavour, another thing I hadn't tried before.

If you would like to try a Gousto Box you can get £25 off your first box by using the code FARMERSGIRL which works out at approx £9.99 for three gourmet meals for two.  

I received a Gousto box to review, I was not paid for this review and all opinons are my own. 

Labels: Burgers, Chicken, chinese, discount, Gousto, potato, review, salad, smoked mackerel, velvetting

posted by Janice @ 19:39 5 Comments

Kitchen Garden Experts - Lamb with Savoury Potatoes - a review

I should be presenting you with Charcoal-Cooked Lamb Rack with Savoury Potatoes, however what you are actually getting is Slow Roasted Lamb Leg with Herby Potatoes.  This dish sums up my difficulty in reviewing Kitchen Garden Experts, let me tell you more...



Kitchen Garden Experts features the chefs and gardeners at twenty of the UK's most exciting restaurants, hotels, pubs and cafes, focusing on how they produce the best fruit and vegetables to appear on their menus.

The TWenty Chefs include:
Raymond Blanc and Anne-Marie Owens at Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, Gill Meller at River Cottage, Sir Terence Conran at Barton Court, Simon Rogan at L'Enclume, Tom Lewis at Monachyle Mhor, Jack Stein at Padstow Kitchen Garden, Skye Gyngell at Heckfield Place,  Carina Continti at The Scottish Kitchen Garden and Ruthie Rogers at River Cafe.

The Author is Cinead McTernan, a horticulturally trained writer and gardening editor of The Simple Things magazine.  She was previously editors of The Edible Garden magazine and worked on  The English Garden and BBC Gardeners' World magazines.

Award-winning photographer Jason Ingram has worked on numerous garden and food magazines.  His published books include the Ethicurean Cookbook.

The Kitchen Garden Expert is a really good read, with lots of great gardening tips and a fascinating insight into the interaction between gardeners and chefs.  However,  I found it incredibly difficult to find many of the recipes that I either had access to ingredients for, or  for which I was prepared to do all the cheffy preparation.  If you have a fabulous kitchen garden full of unusual vegetables and herbs, or you live close to a superb market or greengrocer,  and you have a penchant to cook like a top class chef,  then I think you would really enjoy  cooking from The Kitchen Garden Expert.

Here are a few of the recipe titles:  'Paris Market' and 'Sugarsnax' Carrots with Ham Fat Cream and Nasturtium; Sorrel Frittatta, Whitby Lobster with Quail Eggs and Garden Beans; Winteringham Wood Pigeon with Home-Grown Cabbage and Spring Onion, Plum and Almond Tart.  

If like me you are more of a home cook on the run from work to table then you can still enjoy reading the book and maybe make adaptations to the recipes to suit your ingredients and cooking style, just as I have done, so here is the original recipe for Charcoal-Cooked Lamb Rack with Savoury Potatoes and my adaptation.

Charcoal-Cooked Lamb Rack with Savoury Potatoes
Justin Hammett (Jekka McVicar and the Company of Cooks)
Serves 4

2 racks of lamb (6 bones in each)
salt and pepper
4 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
Edible flowers to garnish (optional)

Red Wine Jus
750ml chicken stock
375ml red wine
Sprig of mint
small sprig of rosemary

Savoury Potatoes
120ml extra-virgin olive oil, plus some for coating ovenproof dish
1.2kg potatoes, Desiree or King Edward, peeled and thinly sliced
250g onions, thinly sliced
4 sprigs of winter savoury
Salt and pepper
500g cherry tomatoes

Roasted Vine Tomatoes
6-7 cherry tomatoes, on the vine
2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
Sprig of winter savoury

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.  Heat 3 pieces of wood charcoal, each 4cm long, over a gas flame until they glow red.  Create a cup shape from a square of tinfoil and leave on one side.  Season the lamb racks with salt and pepper.  Heat the oil in a sturdy, cast-iron casserole and seal the lamb, fat-side down.  Drain off any excess oil.  Put the tinfoil cup into the casserole alongside the racks, and using tongs, carefully place the glowing charcoal pieces in it.  Put the lid on the casserole and place in the oven for 20 minutes.  The juices of the lamb should run pink when pierced with a skewer.  Leave to rest for about 20 minutes before carving into cutlets.  Discard the charcoal and skim any fat from the surface of any juices left in the pan.
2. For the Red Wine Jus, simmer the stock with the red wine and herbs until syrupy and thickened.  Add any charcoal infused juices from the lamb to the jus. Strain and discard the herbs.
3. For the Savoury Potatoes, preheat the oven to 180C. Brush the bottom and sides of a shallow ovenproof glass dish or small toasting tin with olive oil.  Arrange some potatoes in a singe overlapping layer in a concentric circle over the base of the dish or tin. Scatter with one third of the onions and a sprinkling of winter savoury leaves, season with salt and pepper, add one-third of the cherry tomatoes and generously drizzle with 40ml of olive oil  Repeat this process three times, finishing with the onions savoury and tomatoes on top. Season and drizzle with the remaining olive oil. Bake for 45-50 minutes until the tomato skins have darkened and the potatoes are tender.  Remove from the oven; leave to cool for a few minutes.
4. For the roasted vine tomatoes, turn the oven up to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Put eh tomato vine in a small roasting tin drizzle with oil and sprinkle with winter savoury leaves.  Roast for about 10 minutes, until the skins have blistered and the tomatoes softened.
5. To serve, place the roasted vine tomatoes over the savoury potatoes before serving with the lamb and red wine jus. Garnish with edible flowers.



Farmersgirl Kitchen Version
Lamb: Cook your leg of lamb as you prefer.  I seasoned the lamb and cooked  in a roasting tin, covered with tin foil  with rosemary and 1/2 pint of water at 160C for 3 1/2 hours until meltingly tender.
Red Wine Jus: I made the wine jus as per the recipe.
For the Savoury Potatoes: I used small new potatoes and left their skins on, substituted chives for the onions and mint for the winter savoury,  the tomatoes I used were not cherry tomatoes so I sliced them, otherwise as per the recipe.  I added chive flowers sprinkled over the bake before serving.
I didn't add the roasted vine tomatoes.


The lamb was delicious and I would certainly make the red wine jus again, it was a nice change from gravy.  The potato bake brings a summer flavour to a traditional roast meat dish and would be good to serve at a barbeque.  I would probably use less olive oil and add some stock, so that the potatoes soak up flavour rather than oil.

Kitchen Garden Experts
by Cinead McTernan
Photography by Jason Ingram
Foreward by Raymond Blanc
Hardback RRP £20
Published by Frances Lincoln

If you would like to win a copy of Kitchen Garden Experts complete the questions on the Rafflecopter Widget, there are only two, nothing too difficult.  The competition is only open to residents of the UK.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Labels: Bake, Cinead McTernan, Jus, Kitchen Garden Experts, lamb, potato, Raymond Blanc, red wine gravy, tomato

posted by Janice @ 12:00 65 Comments

To a Haggis - a new way with a traditional favourite 1/2

I am a huge fan of haggis.  Many people are a bit squeamish, but it's really just a big, round, peppery lamb sausage, so don't be put off and do try some.  There are also some very good vegetarian versions of the haggis now, if you are not a meat eater.

You can eat haggis at any time of year but there is a huge peak in demand around the 25th January, the birthday of Robert Burns, Scotland's National Bard.  There are Burns Supper celebrations everywhere just now in Scotland and, indeed, all over the world, so why not have a look at Scotland.Org and in particular the Celebrate Scotland pages where you can find out about events happening in Scotland, particularly this year, the Year of Homecoming, 2014.

But back to the haggis!  There are many different ways to use Haggis in your cooking and on Scotland.org you will find some restaurant quality recipes prepared by Jacqueline O'Donnel

Dingwall Haggis Bon Bons


and Vegetarian haggis with hisky glazed turnip pearls, straw potatoes with chive and malt cream sauce


Both recipes look delicious, but do recommend the use of a deep fat fryer which is something I do not have.  However, nothing daunted, I scanned the recipes to see what I could learn and decided that I would try something just a little bit different.

First microwave your haggis, I read the instructions on the back of the haggis, this involving much squinting and removal of my glasses to read the tiny writing.  Normally I would simmer the haggis in water for an hour, but was pleased to see that I could 'deconstruct' the haggis (take all the packing off), slice and cube it and microwave for 9 minutes.  I have a top power model of microwave so it only took 6 minutes to heat it through, brilliant!

Second add cream and whisky to your 'neeps' or turnips (Swede), you know the orange one.

I would usually add butter and black pepper to my turnip and then mash, but this time I added a splash of double cream and a tablespoon of whisky.  Oh my goodness, what a fantastic addition, you couldn't really taste the whisky but the mashed turnip tasted fantastic, sweet and very very moreish.  I will be doing this every time, it was outstanding.


I'll be back later in the week with a way to make one small 2-3 person haggis stretch to feed 6-8 people. In the meantime check out the Address to a Haggis in many and varied languages.

Labels: Burns Night, haggis, mashed potato, Neeps, potato, Scotland, Scottish, swede, Tatties

posted by Janice @ 07:30 6 Comments

Sweetcorn Chowder for No Croutons required

It's Lisa's turn to host 'No Croutons Required' this month: "As the winter holidays are soon upon us, this month I want you to come up with a vegetarian soup or salad that you would serve as part of a special holiday meal. It can be simple or elaborate - the choice is up to you." 

We had a family party yesterday, it's usually a pre-Christmas party, but the weather has prevented us from holding it a couple of times, so we decided to bring it forward.  The soup I made for this celebratory meal was a Sweetcorn Chowder, it was easy to make and lovely and creamy, the herby cheese really adds to the flavour and I had lots of positive comments from my guests.

Sweetcorn Chowder (serves 8)

4 shallots, finely chopped
2tbsp olive oil
400g (14oz) potatoes, peeled
50g (2oz) flour
350g frozen sweetcorn
900ml (1 1/2pt) vegetable stock
2 bay leaf
400ml (7fl oz) milk
50g Boursin (herb) cheese
bunch flat leaf parsley

1. Sauté the shallots in the olive oil gently for 4 minutes, making sure they don't colour. Cut the potatoes into small cubes. Add to the shallots and cook for a further 2 minutes.
2. Remove from the heat and add the flour, mixing well.
3. Add the frozen sweetcorn to the pan along with the stock and bay leaves. Mix well, bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes.
4. Add a little of the milk to the Boursin cheese to slacken it, mix into the rest of the milk then add to the soup and bring to the boil again and serve topped with finely chopped parsley.

Labels: Boursin, chowder, No Croutons Required, parsley, potato, Soup, sweetcorn, Sweetcorn Chowder

posted by Janice @ 20:33 4 Comments

King Prawns with Roasted Garlic & Herb Sauce from The Saucy Fish Co.

I wouldn't usually serve prawns with potatoes and green beans, but we have been eating rather a lot of rice, pasta and couscous recently and I just felt like having some potato.  This was our Friday evening meal which means minimal cooking and  this Saucy Fish Co. dish definitely involved minimal preparation and cooking

These prawns come from The Saucy Fish Co.  and come in a foil bag with the garlic and herb butter, ideal just to pop into the oven.  The bag part steams and part bakes the prawns, blending the flavoured butters to create an amazing seafood dish.  It certainly has a real garlic kick!

  This is what the bags look like before they are cooked.  Simply prawns and a herb/garlic butter sealed in a bag which has foil on one side and a clear window on the other.

Once cooked, the prawns have turned pink and are swimming in the flavoured butter.  The portions are generous with each pack creating a good sized serving for two people. There is no denying that you could cook some prawns in a pan with butter, some crushed garlic and finely chopped herbs just as quickly, if not more quickly than using this product.  But if you are looking for convenience and good flavour then The Saucy Fish Co. King Prawns with Roasted Garlic and Herb Sauce does the job. 

The Saucy Fish Co. King Prawns with Roasted Garlic and Herb Sauce is exclusive to Asda, RRP: £4.00

I served the prawns with  Quick Scalloped Potatoes and some green beans which my neighbour kindly left for me.   

 Quick Scalloped Potatoes (serves 2)

2 large potatoes, peeled and sliced
50g butter
50ml milk
salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 200C

1. Use a little of the butter to butter an ovenproof dish.
2. Layer the sliced potato, seasoning between the layers.
3. Pour over the milk
4. Cover with clingfilm
5. Place in microwave and cook for 4-6 minutes, until the potatoes start to yield.
6. Dot the rest of the butter over the top of the potatoes
7. Bake for 10 minutes until starting to brown and crisp on the top.

 I was supplied with the pack of King Prawn with Roasted Garlic and Herb Sauce to review by The Saucy Fish Co. All opinions expressed are my own.

Labels: convenience, garlic, herbs, potato, prawns, quick, Scalloped Potato, The saucy fish co

posted by Janice @ 13:28 2 Comments

Shepherd's Pie

Boiled some potatoes and mashed them with milk and butter, put them roughly on top of the meat mixture in the dish, rough as you like so you get lots of cripsy bits, then stuck it in the oven at 200C for 20 - 30 minutes, until it was heated through and the top was nice and brown and crispy.  Serve with a green veg, we had savoy cabbage.

Labels: crispy, lamb, potato, shepherd's pie

posted by Janice @ 15:41 11 Comments

Double Bubble Easy Tomato Soup!

Yes, indeed!  It's a double challenge this time because Dom from Belleau Kitchen and Jac from Tinned Tomatoes have got together to run 'Random Recipes does No Croutons Required'.  As these are two of my regular challenges I just had to join in.

There weren't any real instructions as to how to choose your Random Recipe this month just that it should be a soup or salad to meet the requirements of No Croutons Required.

Labels: Belleau Kitchen, challenge, No Croutons Required, potato, Random Recipes, Rose Elliot, Soup, The New Vegetarian Cookbook, Tinned Tomatoes, tomato

posted by Janice @ 19:45 10 Comments

Bacon or Ham Stewpot

The recipe states that you should remove the rind and cut up your ham into cubes, but as I wanted to use it for other things,  I cooked it, covered in water, for 20 minutes in the pressure cooker until it was just tender.  I kept the ham stock to make soup later.

6. Serve with a green vegetable.

As I wasn't using the cubed bacon but had the whole joint in the pot, so once it was cooked I took out the bacon joint, halved it and cut half into cubes then stirred them back into the vegetable mixture.


This makes a huge pot of delicious, filling and warming food, which would feed 6-8 people.  It would be ideal for a Halloween or Bonfire Party and, even better,  I still have half the ham which I'm making into a pie and will feature in another post soon!

Labels: bacon, Bookmarked Recipes, carrots, casserole, Gammon, ham, haricot beans, Le Creuset, potato, stewpot, Vegetables, vegetarian

posted by Janice @ 16:16 13 Comments

Baked Stuffed Trout

The recipe I used comes from BBC Good Food website,  Stuffed Baked Trout click through to get the recipe, it is very simple and uses things that most of us have in the larder.  Many other recipes that I saw used fennel which would have been nice, but I didn't have any!


I served the trout with this variation on potatoes Daupinois, I sliced the potatoes thinly and seasoned between the layers with salt & freshly ground black pepper.  Then I mixed 150g of left over  Philadelphia Cream Cheese with enough milk to give a creamy consistency and poured this over the potatoes, then baked in the oven until the potatoes were cooked and the top of the dish was golden brown.

Labels: brussel sprouts, fish, potato, trout

posted by Janice @ 14:54 3 Comments

Is it Summer?

Labels: carrots, courgette, onions, potato, pressure cooker, Soup

posted by Janice @ 13:47 8 Comments

The Abel & Cole Cookbook

I was contacted by Emma Healey of Abel & Cole to review some products for them.  Unfortunately, Abel & Cole don't deliver to the wilds of south west Scotland yet.  So I wasn't able to review their lovely organic veggie boxesm, but I Emma was able to send me the Abel & Cole Cookbook.  It arrived on Thursday but I didn't have much chance to look at it until today.

As a cookbook it is written in a very relaxed style.  I enjoyed the introductions and finding out about the history of the company.  The book is set out by the seasons: Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter and the idea is that you should cook by the seasons.  Even though I have only had a superficial look through the book so far, I can see that I generally don't cook seasonal produce, and how restrictive seasonal cooking would be unless you have access to the likes of Abel & Cole.  Certainly the south of Scotland is not the place for growing vegetables, it is dairy, beef and lamb country.  A few potatoes but the ground just isn't suitable for vegetables other than for potatoes.


Not a Spring recipe at all, but a Summer recipe for Honey Glazed Salmon Steaks.
Heat a ridged fying pan to a very high heat, then rub it with a little oil.  Sear the steaks for about 3 minutes on each side, turning only once.  The fish is cooked if it flakes easily when lightly prised with a fork.  The cooking time may vary depending on the thickness of the salmon steaks and how you like them cooked.  Remove from the girll, bursh with any remianin glaze and serve.

I served the salmon with roasted cherry tomatoes ( oops imported) and a Leek and Potato bake - YES, seasonal cooking at last.  There isn't a recipe in the book for a Leek and Potato Bake, but there is one on the Abel and Cole website HERE.
and the finished plate....
The salmon was moist and delicious and the leek & potato bake went very well with it, as did the tomatoes.

I'll be back with more recipes from the Abel & Cole Cookbook very soon.

Labels: Abel and Cole, Leeks, potato, salmon, tomatoes

posted by Janice @ 20:55 8 Comments

Lunch!

I've accumulated quite a lot of eggs, we get them from someone at DH's work and although it's only half a dozen every week, some weeks I seem to end up with a dozen at the weekend knowing that there are another half dozen arriving on Monday!

I have plans for a frittata for supper on Sunday but thought I'd make something different for lunch today. A quick scoot round BBC Good Food and I found a recipe for a Potato Cake with eggs and chilli. As I didn't have a fresh chilli, mine is more of a potato cake with eggs and black pepper!

Potato Cake with Eggs

Ingredients
550g potatoes (about 4 medium)
1 onion
2 tbsp olive oil
4 eggs (I only used 2 as it was lunch)
salt & freshly ground pepper
crusty bread to serve ( I favour Tesco's Rye and Sunflower)

1. Peel and coarsely grate the potatoes, then squeeze out as much liquid as you possibly can with your hands. Set aside on kitchen paper, dabbing off any leftover juices. Grate the onion and do the same (I chopped my onion finely rather than grate it).
2. Heat the olive oil in a large, non-stick frying pan, tip in the onions and cook over a medium heat for 5 mins, stirring until soft and lightly golden. Stir in the potatoes and mix. Fry the mixture in an even layer for about 15 mins until cooked and golden underneath. Meanwhile, heat the grill to high.
3. Slide the pan under the grill and cook for 5 mins or until golden on top. Using a spoon, make four dips in the surface of the cake. Crack the eggs into the dips, season. Cover with a lid or baking sheet, place back on the hob and cook for 4-5 mins, depending on how you like your eggs cooked. Serve straight from the pan with lots of crusty bread.

You do need to make sure the potato is well seasoned otherwise it doesn't taste that good, but overall this was a tasty dish, not particularly quick but a good and substantial dish when you don't have a lot else available.

Labels: eggs, potato

posted by Janice @ 12:49 9 Comments

Stuffed!

I started out with a recipe for Mustard Stuffed Chicken from BBC Good Food but no mustard was involved and I couldn't get any nice mozzarella so used some Dolce de Montagne from M&S. All I did was put the cheese in the centre of the chicken breast and wrapped it in smoked bacon, then put it in an ovenproof dish added a little chicken stock covered with foil and baked in the oven for 35 minutes, then took off the foil for another 5-10 minutes to brown the bacon.

I served this is potatoes boulangere, a recipe I haven't made for a while. Sliced potatoes are layered with sliced onions and seasoned, pour over about 1/4 pint of stock and bake in the oven for 40 minutes until the potatoes are cooked through. I usually cook it covered and then remove the lid for the last 5 minutes to brown. Are you seeing a pattern here?

This is what the potato dish looks like when it comes out of the oven, nice and crispy on top and soft and unctious underneath.

Labels: bacon, carrots, Chicken, potato

posted by Janice @ 19:46 6 Comments

Address to a haggis

The annual celebratory tribute to the life, works and spirit of the great Scottish poet, Robert Burns (1759-1796). Celebrated on, or about, the Bard's birthday, January 25th, Burns Suppers range from stentoriously formal gatherings of esthetes and scholars to uproariously informal rave-ups of drunkards and louts. Most Burns Suppers fall in the middle of this range, and adhere, more or less, to some sort of time honoured form which includes the eating of a traditional Scottish meal, the drinking of Scotch whisky, and the recitation of works by, about, and in the spirit of the Bard.
Address to a Haggis
1786

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o' the pudding-race!
Aboon them a' yet tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye wordy o'a grace
As lang's my arm.

The groaning trencher there ye fill,
Your hurdies like a distant hill,
Your pin was help to mend a mill
In time o'need,
While thro' your pores the dews distil
Like amber bead.

His knife see rustic Labour dight,
An' cut you up wi' ready sleight,
Trenching your gushing entrails bright,
Like ony ditch;
And then, O what a glorious sight,
Warm-reekin', rich!

Then, horn for horn, they stretch an' strive:
Deil tak the hindmost! on they drive,
Till a' their weel-swall'd kytes belyve
Are bent like drums;
Then auld Guidman, maist like to rive,
Bethankit! hums.

Is there that owre his French ragout
Or olio that wad staw a sow,
Or fricassee wad make her spew
Wi' perfect sconner,
Looks down wi' sneering, scornfu' view
On sic a dinner?

Poor devil! see him owre his trash,
As feckles as wither'd rash,
His spindle shank, a guid whip-lash;
His nieve a nit;
Thro' blody flood or field to dash,
O how unfit!

But mark the Rustic, haggis-fed,
The trembling earth resounds his tread.
Clap in his walie nieve a blade,
He'll mak it whissle;
An' legs an' arms, an' hands will sned,
Like taps o' trissle.

Ye Pow'rs, wha mak mankind your care,
And dish them out their bill o' fare,
Auld Scotland wants nae skinking ware
That jaups in luggies;
But, if ye wish her gratefu' prayer
Gie her a haggis!

source Robert Burns Country

I didn't go to a formal Burns Supper, but we had haggis, neeps (swede known as turnip in Scotland) and champit tatties (mashed potatoes) for our supper tonight.

One or two questions have been asked so I am adding a little to this post.
1. Yes that is a bottle of malt whisky behind the haggis, we didn't have it with the meal but had some after with our coffee.
2. You can find out about what goes into a haggis HERE although personally, I think it is better not to know because it tastes nothing like any of the ingredients, it is peppery and delicious.

Labels: haggis, potato, Robert Burns, swede, whisky

posted by Janice @ 20:34 8 Comments