Scottish Recipes
JD Cooper asked for a haggis recipe
Contributed by Sinclair
1 sheep's pluck (stomach bag) the make artificial bag also
2 lb.. dry oatmeal
1 lb. suet
1 lb. lamb's liver
2 1/2 cups stock
1 large chopped onion
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper, Jamaica pepper (Allspice) and salt
Boil liver and parboil the onion, then mince them together. Lightly brown
the oatmeal. Mix all ingredients together. Fill the sheep's pluck with the
mixture pressing it down to remove all the air, and sew up securely. Prick
the haggis in several places so that it does not burst. Place haggis in
boiling water and boil slowly for 4-5 hours. Serves approximately 12
Address to a Haggis
FAIR fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o' the pudding-race!
Aboon them a' ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Well 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 wad 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 lyke 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 fricasse wad mak her spew
Wi' perfect sconner,
Looks down wi' sneering, scorfu' view
On sic a dinner?
Poor devil! see him owre his trash,
As feckless as a wither'd rash,
His spindle shank, a guid whip-lash,
His nieve a nit;
Thro' bloody 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' heads will sned,
Like taps o' thrissle.
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!
Robert Burns
JD responds the Sinclair's Haggis recipe:
I'm still waiting for the dew to get off the pastures, so I thought I'd
tell the story of how I managed to rub elbows with haggis:
Granddad on Mom's side was a pure hard nosed Scott. He was the son of an
even harder nosed Scott immigrant who brought a wife with him. They were
farmers. One day when I was about 12-13 (as I remember) we had all
traveled to Illinois for some sort of gathering. I do not recall what it
was, but somehow Granddad was looking for some info on his Tartan as the
name he used is spelled differently than the norm having an "A" instead
of an "O". The outcome of the quest is unknown to me now, but among the
things available was haggis. I had no idea what it was but I have never
once in my life been afraid of food. I distinctly remember chewing a
small plate full and thinking it was somewhat bitter and, well... sorta
unusual. It also had an odd smell as I recall. I did not ask for more
but was not afraid of it at all. It figgers it might be that way because
where I live in Texas it might just as well be Mexico and a lot of guts
are chowed on 'round here. Mexicans like Tripe, Menudo, brains and a
host of other such internal delights. I may not like the stuff, but when
handed a tripus taco I eat it. Everywhere ya go 'round here there'll be
a great huge skillet over a fire just a-cooking away at that tripe. Rip
some off, roll it in a tortilla and chow down! Heck! If I can choke down
cow guts, I can sure choke down sheep guts! Also, if you are a bit
squemish, it's usually a good idea not to ask what is in the tamales.
There's not a lot of Scotts around here so I suspect I'll not bump into
haggis again unless I travel. We have lots of Germans and Poles and
other sausage making fools, and it is often anyone's guess what is in
the sausage, so why get put off by a good pot of haggis?
JD<---Think now I'll have a big T-Bone steak tonite.
Cadzow Butter Biscuits:
Contributed by AnneJ
8oz plain flour
4oz butter
˝tsp salt
cold water
Sift flour and salt into a bowl. Work butter in lightly with
fingertips. Mix to a firm dough with cold water. Roll out into 1/8
inch thickness. Prick with a fgork and cut into rounds. Place a little
apart on a greased tray and bake in a moderate oven 350°F/190°C/Mk4
until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack. Spread with butter and
sprinkle with caraway seeds.
Steak in whisky sauce:
Contributed by AnneJ
4 steaks rump/fillet/sirloin
2oz butter
1 onion, finely chopped
4oz mushrooms, finely chopped
6 tablespoons whisky
2 teaspoons worcester sauce
Season steaks with salt and pepper
Melt butter in frying pan
Fry steaks until cooked to personal taste
set aside and keep warm
Fry onions and mushrooms in steak juices for about four minutes, then
add whisky and worcester sauce
Return steak to pan and bring to boil
Adjust seasoning and re-heat meat
Serve with new potatoes & owt else that takes your fancy
Chicken and Whisky Cream Sauce
Contributed by Sinclair
4 chicken breast fillets;
1 teasp French mustard;
2 green shallots; 1/2 cup chicken stock;
2 tablespoon Whisky;
1 tablespoon chopped parsley;
30 gm butter; 15 gm butter (extra, if necessary);
1 tablespoon plain flour;
1/2 cup single cream;
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Melt butter and mustard in pan.
Brown chicken on both sides, reduce heat,
cover and cook gently for five minutes or until tender. Keep warm.
In pan,
add extra butter, shallots and flour to pan juices. Cook one minute,
stirring, and gradually stir in stock.
Stir until sauce boils and thickens.
Add cream, Whisky, lemon juice and parsley.
Simmer for a few minutes and
serve over chicken.
Sinclair
Black Bun:
Contributed by AnneJ
Traditionally baked a few weeks before Hogmanay and kept to mature in an
airtight tin.
Pastry:
2 cups plain flour
Pinch salt
6oz butter
Water
1tsp baking powder
Sift flour & salt
Rub in butter
Stir in baking powder and enough water to make firm dough
Roll out very thinly and line a greased 9" square cake tin, reserving
enough to cover the top.
Fruit mixture:
1lb sultanas
1lb raisins
1lb currants
4oz chopped peel
4oz butter
2oz sugar
3 eggs
1 cup plain flour
1tsp cream of tartar
˝tsp baking soda
Pinch of salt
˝tsp pepper
˝tsp freshly ground nutmeg
1dsp cinnamon
1dsp mixed spice
˝tsp ground ginger
˝tsp ground cloves
2oz chopped almonds
Cream together butter and sugar
Beat in eggs, one at a time
Sieve floour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt into mixture
Add spices, floured fruit and chopped almonds
Mix well
Fill the pastry lined tin with the mixture
Place pastry on top
moisten edges and seal together
Bake for 3 hours at 400°F/200°C/Mk6
Store for about three weeks and devour. As with most of the
recipes, this dish serves one average greedy pig.
Drumlanrig pudding:
Contributed by AnneJ
1 bunch rhubarb
sugar to taste
˝ loaf of white or wholemeal bread
Method:
Stew rhubarb with plenty of water and sugar. Put in a pudding basin a
layer of bread, then pour on the hot rhubarb. Add another layer of
bread and more rhubarb until the dish is full. Cover with a large plate
and leave for 24hrs in a cool place. This pudding is delicious served
with sugar and cream on a hot day. Other soft fruits may be added to taste.
Serves some.
Source: Margaret Fairlie.
DUNDEE CAKE
Contributed by AnneJ
6 ozs soft margarine
6 ozs light soft brown sugar
1/2 teasp. almond essence
7 ozs plain flour
1 level teasp. baking powder
6 ozs sultanas
6 ozs currants
2 ozs chopped cherries
1 oz ground almonds
3 large eggs
Whole blanched almonds
Grease a 7 inch square baking tin, or an 8 inch round tin, and line
it with greased greaseproof paper.
Cream together margarine, sugar and almond essence.
Into another bowl, sift flour and baking powder, then mix in the
dried fruit and ground almonds.
In a third bowl, beat the eggs.
Fold egg a little at a time, likewise the fruit, into the creamed
mixture. **Do not beat**
When all the ingredients have been mixed together, pour into baking tin.
Level the top.
Bake in a warm oven Gas 3, 325F or 160C for about 1 3/4 hours, when
cake will be brown, and firm to the touch. During baking the whole
almonds are placed carefully on the cake. Do this while the top is
still just moist but *not too soon* or they will either sink into the
mixture, or burn before the cake is cooked.
Leave in tin to cool.
Baked Apples with Walnut Butterscotch Sauce:
Contributed by AnneJ
6 large Bramley apples (cored)
4oz raisins
2 tablespoons whisky
2 tablespoons apple juice
and for the sauce
4oz butter
2 tablespoons golden syrup
2 tablespoons black treacle
4oz soft brown sugar
5fl oz double cream
3oz chopped walnuts
Method:
Set oven to 350F/gas 4
Put raisins in a bowl with whisky and soak for 15 minutes.
Score around the circumference of each apple with sharp knife,
this helps prevent bursting during cooking.
Place apples in oven proof dish and stuff with soaked raisins.
Put into oven and cook 35-45 minutes.
Meanwhile make sauce as follows:
Melt butter, syrup and treacle in heavy bottomed pan.
Add sugar, stirring continually until it has dissolved and the
mix is bubbling.
Remove from heat and stir in cream.
Bring back to boil.
Remove from heat and stir in walnuts.
Remove apples from oven, pour on butterscotch sauce and serve immediately.
Serves one
ANNE'S CLOOTIE DUMPLING.
Contributed by AnneJ.
Sinclair gave us one too, that is on the Easter page :-)
Before you start, if you are making a full-size Dumpling, you
will need a very large pan (I use a dutch oven) a pressure
cooker might do the job! (Don't cook under pressure, though!)
You will also need a large cloth (a pillow-slip slit down the
*long* side and the end is perfect!) Must be pure cotton, or linen!
Put the cloth in the pan and boil, make sure that there is no
trace of detergent, etc. left!
Now for the ingredients:
1 lb S.R. Flour
1 1/4 lbs Mixed Fruit
1 cup Suet
l cup Breadcrumbs
1 cup Sugar
1-2 teaspns Mixed spice
1-2 teaspns Cinnamon
2 teaspns Baking Powder
1 grated Cooking Apple
2-3 tablespns Treacle
Milk to Mix
In a large mixing bowl, assemble the dry ingredients, add grated
apple and treacle and mix. Add enough milk to make a 'sloppy'
constituency (between 10 and 15 fl. ozs, usually) the amount
depends on how much treacle you add, and the size of the apple!
Take the 'cloot' (cloth) out of the pan, and replace the water
with boiling water from a kettle, and keep to a rolling boil.
Spread the cloth out and dust with flour, tossing it around so
that the cloth is covered with a thin layer of flour.
Pour the mixture into the cloot, allowing for the mixture to
swell 2 to 2 1/2 time in size (This is the only difficulty,
and it only comes with practice!)
Tie securely with string, and place in pan of boiling water.
(I use a metal steamer in the base of the pan, with the water
*just* covering the base of the steamer) Boil for 4 hours,
making sure that the pan does not boil dry. Top up from time
to time with boiling water.
Remove the dumpling from pan and remove the cloth very carefully.
You should attempt to keep the 'skin' intact. The cloth may
stick the first couple of times that you use it, until it becomes 'seasoned'
If the cloth has been too tight, your dumpling will be hard, and
not properly risen, if too loose it may split when the cloth is removed!
The latter is easily remedied, simply replace the cloth, and twist
hard, making the parts clamp together. Leave for 5 or 10 minutes,
then remove cloth again.
Place dumpling in a warm oven for 2 or 3 minutes to dry out and
give it a smooth, glossy skin. Enjoy!!
For a special Hogmanay Dumpling, the fruit can be left to soak
overnight in whisky! 1/4 - 1/2 bottle should do it. You will
require less milk in the mix. It is also possible to add coins
(used to be silver sixpences, but 5p's are the right size) wrapped
in greaseproof paper, for a special Birthday Dumpling. Take great
care when eating this dumpling!!