What I've been reading: Rise and Watersmeet
My love of reading precedes my love of cooking. I spent my primary school years devouring the books of Enid Blyton, I was fortunate to be able to go home for lunch and after eating my lunch I would lie on my bed for half an hour reading before heading back to school. I seem to have much less time to read novels these days, but always have at least one book on the go, usually manage a couple of chapters before I go to sleep at night. I also like to have books on my tablet, that I can read when I'm travelling, so can be reading more than one book at a time.
I've been fortunate that, through reviewing cookbooks, publishers have also offered me some novels to read and review. So every now and then you will find my first love creeping into my kitchen to claim a little spot here where I can share with you the books I am reading.
RISE by KAREN CAMPBELL
The Blurb
Justine is running for her life. Escaping a city and a man, who, between them, have almost broken her. She heads north to the mountains and the valleys of the Highlands, looking for somewhere to hide.
Michael and Hannah are also running. With their two sons and their tattered marriage they have come to the village of Kilmacarra. They are looking for somewhere they can call home.
In a place of standing stones, an ancient landscape in a country on the brink of change, a brutal accident causes their lives to intertwine. Tangled together in threads of guilt and love, with Scotland rushing towards a referendum and the community around them fracturing, each must question where they truly belong.
Tackling contemporary questions of nationhood and identity through the issue of Scottish Independence and the debates surrounding sustainable energy, Rise is an important and powerful story of living in the modern world.
My Thoughts
I reviewed Karen Campbell's previous novel,
This is Where I Am which, although challenging, I really enjoyed. I found Rise even more challenging, Michael and Hannah's unhappiness and the underlying threat and menace to Justine were disturbing, and as I neared the end of the book I had to force myself to continue reading. I think the blurb over estimates the impact of the referendum on the plot, it could have as easily been set around a council election and I was only aware of any issues of 'nationhood' through the discussions Michael had with his political mentor, John Donald. More significant were the environmental and local activist messages and the exploration of mental health and marital breakdown.
This isn't a thriller, but it had a similar impact on me as a psychological thrillers which I generally avoid. I carry away a little of every story with me after reading and found myself having several nights of disturbed sleep after reading Rise. There were many good things in this book, not least the portrayal of Scottish village life, and the characters you might find there. However, I found that the the lack of honesty amongst the characters combined with the latent terror, violence and sadness in this book, made it a book I found hard to enjoy. If you are made of sterner stuff, then there is no doubt it is a well written novel with recognisable characters and situations, it just wasn't for me.
My Rating: 7/10
Rise by Karen Campbell
Published by Bloomsbury
26th March, 2015
RRP: Hardback £16.99/ e-Book £14.99
WATERSMEET BY RACHEL COTTERILL
And now to introduce to you a writer you may know in a different guise.
Rachel Cotterill is talented writer who combines her love of cooking, and photography on her blog
'Rachel Cotterill'. In her 'spare time' Rachel is a computational linguistics PhD student, writes and publishes fantasy novels and I thought I was busy!
The Blurb
When a stranger tells her she's a mage, Ailith is intrigued but she's also afraid. Magic is heresy, and heresy means death under the Temple Law. Even literacy is suspect in a girl of her background, and her sister's impending wedding only serves as a reminder that she should be focusing on her future. Then a local priest asks her to rescue his son, and she starts to wonder if her talents could be a blessing, after all.
The Lord Baron of Watersmeet, Leofwin isn't accustomed to welcoming uninvited visitors. A commoner turning up at his gates should be no more than a minor footnote to his day, but something about Ailith catches his attention. Alchemy can be lonely work and an apprentice might be just what he needs.As their lessons grow into shared experiments, Leofwin wonders if he might even trust her with his greatest challenge. But Ailith can't forget why she came to the castle.
My Thoughts
I've read a couple of self published books before and have been disappointed, but this novel did not disappoint. There is quite a bit of scene setting in the first few chapters, but once Ailith reaches Watersmeet, the pace quickens and I couldn't put this book down, I just wanted to find out what was going to happen next.
It's a love story, an adventure, a story of betrayal and, of course, magic! The characters are fully rounded and complex and I can see that some of those lurking round the edges of this story may come to the fore in future novels. Once I had finished
Watersmeet, I immediately wanted to read more of the Twelve Baronies Novels, alas they have not yet been written. However, Rachel has written a short prequel
The Falconer which you can download for FREE from Smashwords to see if you are as taken with Rachel's writing as I was..
Labels: Bloomsbury Publishing, fantasy, Karen Campbell, magic, Rachel Cotterill, Rise, Scotland, The Falconer, The Twelve Baronies, This is where I am, Watersmeet
Cloutie Dumpling in the Slow Cooker (nae clout)
My Granny (Dad's Mum) was not a very adventurous cook. She made an amazing peppermint slice, mince and tatties and broth, but her 'signature dish' was her Cloutie Dumpling. A Cloutie Dumpling is a sweetened fruit pudding, boiled in a cloth (clout), the cloth is floured giving the pudding a 'skin'. My Granny made a Dumpling at Christmas and for my Dad's birthday and we ate it as dessert with custard. She would always send us home with half the dumpling and Dad would fry it in butter and dredge it with caster sugar, that was my favourite way to eat it. I know a lot of people also serve it with a full Scottish breakfast.
My Mum, who is an excellent cook and baker, tried to replicate Granny's Dumpling but she never could get it to taste the same. Granny would mix the Dumpling in her washing up bowl, sterilised with boiling water, she didn't weigh anything it was a handful of this and a handful of that and she added a whole tub of mixed spice. We had such a laugh one Christmas when Granny put a piece of holly on top of the Dumpling and put it back in the oven to dry off after boiling (as you do). When she took it out, the PLASTIC holly had melted in a green pool on top of the dumpling! We just scraped it off and at the Dumpling anyway.
I'm not sure whether it was Mum's failure that put me off, or the fact that I am not really that keen on Dumpling, but I've only made it once, it worked okay but boiling puddings for hours is a luxury I really don't have.
Having learned a few things about cakes and puddings in the Slow Cooker recently, I wondered whether it would be possible to cook a Cloutie Dumpling in the Slow Cooker as it has a sort of steaming effect. I decided against using a 'clout' and lined the Slow Cooker with a baking parchment cake liner. I perused a number of different recipes for Cloutie Dumpling, every Scots Granny seems to have her own recipe, but none uses a whole tub of mixed spice! In the end I ditched the breadcrumbs and suet in favour of butter in this hybrid
'Nae Clout' (No Cloth) Cloutie Dumpling, I don't pretend it's a real Cloutie Dumpling more a boiled/steamed fruit cake, but the smells coming from the pan and the finished texture is pretty good, without having your windows steamed up and constantly checking to see that there is still enough water in the pan!
Slow Cooker Cloutie Dumping
350g mixed dried fruit
110g caster sugar
220ml water
110g butter
1tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp mixed spice
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 eggs, beaten
110g plain flour
110g self-raising flour
Put the dried fruit, sugar, water, butter, spices and bicarbonate of soda into a pan and bring to the boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside until just warm.
Add the eggs a little at a time alternating with spoonfuls of the flour. Mix well.
Line your Slow Cooker with baking parchment or a cake tin liner, cook on high for 2 1/4 hours.
Slow cookers do vary in timing, so it may take 15 minutes either side of this time. If your cooker has a clear lid, you can see the change to the top of the dumpling as it bakes. I did test this one with a skewer after 1hr 45 minutes but the middle wasn't cooked. Lifting the lid does increase baking time, so do keep an eye on this as it reaches the 2 hour mark.
This is my entry for my own Slow Cooked Challenge, the theme this month is St Andrew's Day and what better way to celebrate than a Cloutie Dumpling!
I was listening to BBC Radio Scotland's Kitchen Cafe programme last Friday, as I was on holiday from work, the programme was all about Food Blogging and I tweeted about the Cloutie Dumpling with 'nae clout', I got a mention on the programme and the tweet below from Sue Lawrence, well known Scottish cookery and food writer and ex Masterchef winner.
I'm also entering the
Cloutie Dumpling with nae clout for
Tea Time Treats, the monthly blogging event run alternately by Karen at
Lavender and Lovage and Jane at
The Hedgecombers . Jane is hosting this month and the theme is Bonfire Night, I think a nice slice of dumpling would be perfect for bonfire night, with or without custard!
Labels: Cloutie Dumpling, dessert, Scotland, Scottish, Slow Cooked Challenge, slow cooker, St Andrew's Day
St Andrew's Day Out and St Andrew's Night In
CELEBRATE SCOTLAND’S NATIONAL DAY ON YOUR
DOORSTEP THIS NOVEMBER
Scots encouraged to enjoy a St Andrew’s Day Out
with largest ever programme of events
Pupils from Royal Mile Primary in Edinburgh today (Wednesday 29 October) accompanied Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs, Fiona Hyslop in launching St Andrew’s Day Out 2014, encouraging Scots and visitors to Scotland to take advantage of the wealth of events and offers available across November to celebrate St Andrew’s Day.
P4 pupils Sophie Martin (chef), Angelina Wood (skier), Siaka Jateh (golfer) and Erkan Gullupinar (surfer), all aged eight, got into the spirit of the celebrations, dressed to represent the vast range of activities on offer across Scotland - from food and drink events and surfing lessons to skiing experiences and mini golf – all to mark our national day on 30 November.
Over 200 participating attractions across the country are offering
2 for 1, kids go free or free entry, presenting a huge variety of fun days out to suit every taste.
Culture vultures can enjoy visiting House for an Art Lover in Glasgow and the latest exhibits at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, while outdoor enthusiasts can take in the best of Scotland’s scenery at the Nevis Range, explore the countryside with Segway tours in Dumfries or go Nessie hunting at the Loch Ness Centre. Budding scientists can investigate the cosmos at Satrosphere, Aberdeen or learn about the world underwater at Macduff Marine Aquarium.
In addition to over 200 attractions in Scotland running discounted offers, there are a variety of St Andrew’s Day events taking place through the Scotland’s Winter Festivals programme, funded by the Scottish Government and delivered by EventScotland.
To find out what’s on across Scotland this St Andrew’s Day, and download your event vouchers, visit www.scotland.org/winter
After an action packed St Andrew’s Day Out
, what better way to carry on the celebrations than with a
St Andrew’s Night In - dining on the quality produce that Scotland has to offer.
Scotland’s natural larder has a wealth of local produce to create a delicious meal for all the family to enjoy and November is one of the best times of year to plate up something seasonally Scottish. Scotch lamb is a warming family favourite which is in season, or a hearty fish dish is a good way to pay a nod to Saint Andrew’s life as a fisherman and indulge in Scotland’s array of seafood. All recipes can be found at
http://www.scotland.org/recipes/collections/st-andrews-day-menu
Look out for more information about St Andrew's Night In here at Farmersgirl Kitchen.
Labels: Edinburgh, events, Glasgow, Scotland, Scotland.org, St Andrew's Day
Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood at BBC Good Food Show Scotland 2014
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| Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood |
Mary Berry and
Paul Hollywood were definitely the stars of the
BBC Good Food Show Scotland this year. I attended the show on Friday 17th October, this was my first show in Scotland and the first time as a GFS Blogger, so let me tell you all about my experience.
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| Mary and Paul opening the show and at the Supertheatre |
The show was opened by guess who? Yes, Mary and Paul stepped up with the giant scissors to cut the ribbon and start the show. They were also first up at the Supertheatre where they entertained the packed theatre with great recipes and the kind of banter that you have come to expect from watching
The Great British Bake Off and the spin off Masterclasses.
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| The Showguide and Recipe Collection |
I was super-impressed by the
Showguide and Recipe Collection. Not only was it well laid out, with the floor plan and event timetables, featured right at the front, but it was also full of recipes featured in the shows and some extras too. There was a full A-Z listing of all the producers and a product guide which was also helpful.
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| The Good Food Show Bloggers |
One of the real pleasures of the day was the chance to catch up with the other Good Good Show Bloggers. A special treat, and one of the main reasons I wanted to attend the show, was meeting Christina Conte of
Christina's Cucina. Christina and I have been friends through
Facebook but, although Christina is of Scottish/Italian descent she lives in California, so we had never met in person. Christina was visiting the show as part of a series of events including the Scottish Baking Championships and
The World Porridge Making Championships Speciality Award which she won with her
Sticky Toffee Pudding Porridge.
Just a few of the producers at the BBC Good Food Show, Scotland clockwise from the top left
Heck Food (fabulous sausages which previously featured at Farmersgirl Kitchen in some
chorizo burgers I made from a Nigel Slater recipe); local to me in the SW of Scotland,
Waulkmill Cider from Langholm;
Seed and Bean Chocolate from Cornwall and Award winning
David's Chilli Oil.
Across the top: sauces, mayonnaise, mutard chutney and relishes from
Le Mesurier;
The Little Veg Company, a veg box delivery company in Glasgow and the West of Scotland;
Scotia Spice, authentic Punjabi Cookery School and Spice Kits and the bottom photo shows Gusto Artisan Foods purveyors of a wide range of oils and vinegars.
Once I knew I was going to the
BBC Good Food Show, I was on a mission to get my 30+ year old
Fast Cakes by Mary Berry signed by Queen Mary herself. Although I have been baking since I was a child, this is the book that really gave me confidence to bake and also the understanding of baking to allow me to experiment and create my own cakes and bakes.
The rules for book signings are pretty strict and only certain books could be signed. I saw one poor girl who had stood for 30 minutes turned away because she had a Bake Off Book rather than a Mary Berry book. I bought Mary's latest book,
Mary Berry Cooks the Perfect, to be signed and given as a gift (that's why I'm not showing it here) and slid my old, cake batter splattered and scribbled on book underneath. I was nervous as I approached the table, wondering if I would be refused the signature. However, I need not have worried, as I handed over the new book, I explained about Fast Cakes and there was no problem at all. Mary signed and gave me a big smile, then continued working her way through the long queue.
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| Janice meets Paul Hollwood |
After the 2.30 pm Supertheatre show, the bloggers had the opportunity to go back stage for a photo opportunity with Paul Hollywood. There was no opportunity to speak to Paul or to Mary, who was there only fleetingly, on her way to the Interview stage. I have to say I was hugely impressed by Mary Berry's stamina, she had few breaks and still looked fresh - she is the ultimate professional.
Overall it was a great day out and I can thoroughly recommend it. The Scottish show is over for this year, but there are still loads more
BBC Good Food Shows that you can visit in the coming months.
Labels: BBC Good Food Show, chilli, chocolate, Christina's Cucuna, Food, Glasgow, Mary Berry, Paul Hollywood, Scotland
Haggis, Neeps and Tattie Pie - Burns Night on a Budget 2/2
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| Photo Frames by Coppercurls Designs, digital baking elements by Kate Hadfield - katehadfielddesigns.com |
On Monday I showed you a traditional Burns Supper of Haggis, Neeps and Tatties with a few subtle changes. That made a hearty meal for three. Today I'm going to show you how the same ingredients can be stretched to become a pie that will feed eight.
Haggis, Neeps and Tattie Pie
1 small haggis
1 small turnip (swede), peeled and cut into 2cm dice
3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 2cm dice
1 pack of short crust pastry sheets or make your own pastry using recipe in the Frequently used recipe page.
2 eggs
100 ml double cream
1. Heat the oven to 200C. Simmer the turnip and potatoes in salted water until just starting to soften, about 5 minutes for the potato and about 10-15 for the turnip.
2. Open the haggis packaging , slice and dice the haggis and cook in the microwave according to the pack instructions.
3. Mix the haggis, potato and turnip together with 1 egg, 100ml double cream and the whiskey if using.
4. Line a medium baking tray with one sheet of pastry, brush round the edge with beaten egg. Add the filling mixture and cover with the other sheet of pastry, crimping the edges of the pastry to seal. Make two or three steam holes in the top of the pie and brush with more beaten egg.
5. Bake the pie for 30-40 minutes until the top is golden brown. Serve sliced with green vegetables, you may also wish to serve gravy if you prefer.
The texture is similar to a Cornish Pasty and I can report that the pie also tastes good served cold, as I had a piece for my lunch today!
2014 is
Scotland's Year of Homecoming with spectacular sporting events such as the Commonwealth Games and the Ryder Cup taking place in Scotland. The 2014 Food & Drink campaign is a collaboration between Scotland Food & Drink (the lead partner); Scottish Enterprise; The Scottish Government; Scottish Development International; Highlands & Islands Enterprise; EventScotland; and VisitScotland. All of these agencies are working together to promote Scottish produce, our natural larder during the year of 2014.
There are also many fantastic festivals and entertainment events coming up too, Find out more about the events taking place in Scotland in 2014 at
HomecomingScotland.com
Labels: haggis, Haggis Neeps and Tattie Pie., Homecoming 2014, Scotland
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 Y
ear 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
Twitter #ScotFood Chat - 6th January, 9-10pm
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| Sheena of @GallowayChilli |
Those of you who tweet will know that I love to chat about food on twitter. I've taken part in a couple of organised
#ScotFood chats on Twitter since they started in June 2013. The driving force behind this monthly Twitter Chat is @SusanMcNaughton in her role as social media manager for Crail Food Festival in Fife.
The idea behind the chats is to provide a regular meet up between
foodies, food producers, chefs, restaurants, cafés and anyone with an
interest in promoting or consuming Scottish Food and Drink. Joining in
the chat provides you with new ideas, allows you to meet new people who
share your interests, and to discover more about our abundant Scottish
larder. A different region of the country provides the hosts each
month, allowing others to discover more about regional differences as
well as seasonal specialities. This month the hosting regions are Borders and Dumfries and Galloway which is how I came to be involved.
#ScotFood chat is on Monday 6 January 2014 at 9 –
10 pm. All you need to join in is a Twitter account, and to tag your
tweets #ScotFood.
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| It's not all Haggis, Neeps and Tatties! |
Even if you don't live in Scotland, you can still take part, as there are some more general questions.
Here is some information, from
Susan's website, to help you prepare:
Follow the hosts for the first ScotFood chat of the year to see the questions being tweeted out:
Janice Pattie
@FarmersgirlCook
Sheena Horner
@Galloway Chilli
Leslie McKie
@AbbeyCottage
Kerry Waddell
@Giacopazzis
The hosts, and
@SusanMcNaughton will be tweeting out the questions for the chat, which will be:
21:00 Q1 – Introduce yourself: first name, first part of postcode, your business or reason for joining #ScotFood
21:05 Q2 What are your food and drink resolutions for 2014? #ScotFood
21:15 Q3 What kind of food events do we need in D&G and Borders in 2014? #ScotFood
21:25 Q4 How would Scottish food businesses like to work with food bloggers? #ScotFood
21:35 Q5 Food budgeting in January – suggestions for cost cutting while still creating good meals. #ScotFood
21:45 Q6 Burns night is coming, celebrated traditionally with haggis,
neeps and tatties. Any alternative ideas for the menu? #ScotFood
21:55 Q7 What famous foods from southern Scotland do you use regularly in your cooking? #ScotFood
Photo sharing is welcome throughout the chat – the more the better!
Just tag your photo #ScotFood or use it to answer one of the questions.
22:00 #ScotFood chat ends – till the next time 3 February where we move to
Orkney and Shetland, and are looking for hosts!
Would you like to host a future #ScotFood chat or find out more?
http://www.susanmcnaughton.co.uk/2013/10/tips-for-hosts-scotfood-chat/
If you’d like to join in the #ScotFood chat here are the tips for participants:
http://www.susanmcnaughton.co.uk/2013/10/tips-for-participants-scotfood-chat/
I'd love it if you could join us!
Labels: Chat, ScotFood, Scotland, Twitter
Escape for the Night - My Dream Wedding Menu
I don't do a lot of competition posts but I've been tempted by the prospect of a night in at Stanley House, a luxury hotel in the North West of England, with breakfast, dinner and spa treatments included. Anyone who knows me, knows I love an overnight in a hotel with spa treatments.
Brian and I have been married for 32 years, the photo above is from 2011 which was our 30th Wedding Anniversary and is taken outside the hotel where we had our wedding reception.
To enter this competition you have to write about your dream wedding menu which really got me thinking. At our wedding, so long ago, I went for simplicity. As it was June, I chose traditional Scottish summer dishes: a whole side of poached salmon served cold with a buffet, followed by Scottish strawberries and cream, to be honest I can't remember much else about the food. I didn't want a big wedding, just family and a few close friends, it was all very informal.
My Dream Wedding Menu
For my
Dream Wedding Menu, I would still choose beautiful fresh Scottish produce, but this time it would be a slightly more formal dinner, for a slightly different group of family and friends as many of those invited to our wedding are no longer with us.
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| Pittenweem Smoked Langoustines |
There is a little smokery in the East Neuk of Fife where they smoke Langoustines straight from the boat. I was born and brought up in north east Fife where we always had access lots of very fresh fish. These Langoustines are totally delicious, they need no more than to be served simply, as above, with lemon and accompanied by slices of brown bread and butter. A fresh, sharp Sauvignon Blanc would be the perfect accompaniment to this first course.
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Aberdeen Angus sirloin steak with peppercorn sauce, onion rings and fries
(photograph taken at The Kailyard by Nick Nairn) |
For the main course, it is hard to beat a tender piece of Aberdeen Angus Steak cooked to perfection and served with a peppercorn sauce, crisp onion rings, roasted tomato and fries. As beef farmers, albeit part-time, we would want to support Scottish Beef. The wine served with the steak would be a warm, but not too heavy, red. Most likely our favourite Italian red, Montepulciano.
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| Iced Cranachan with Tayside Raspberries |
To finish we would serve
Iced Cranachan with Tayside Raspberries. Cranachan is a mixture of cream, toasted oatmeal, whisky and honey, this iced version is one I made for the Scottish round of Best of British. I served it with beautiful rasps from Tayside, where the best raspberries are grown, a raspberry coulis and some toasted oatmeal. As the dessert contains some whisky, a 'wee tot' of malt whisky would be served to those who like it, with an alternative of a cream whisky liqueur for those with a sweeter tooth.
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| Petit Fours including Scottish Tablet *back left* (photograph taken at TheSeafood Restaurant, St Andrews) |
I would finish with coffee and petit fours including traditional Scottish tablet, that sweet melting confection that isn't quite fudge. It's a childhood memory, and always the first thing sold out at of fund raising events, we love it.
I hope you enjoyed reading about my Dream Wedding Menu, I certainly enjoyed fantasising about it!
Labels: Iced Cranachan, langoustines, Menu, raspberries, Scotland, Scottish, Sirloin Steak, Spa, Stanley House Hotel, Tablet, wedding
Smoked Haddock Bake for St Andrews Day 'Night In'
On the day that Scotland's First Minister, Alex Salmond, launched the SNP's
independence blueprint, which argues the nation would prosper should
there be a "Yes" vote in next September's referendum, I thought it was rather appropriate to post a recipe for
St Andrew's Day 'Night In' Whatever your views on Scotland's Independence debate, you can't deny that there is some fabulous produce in Scotland or that Scots know how to celebrate!
So who was St Andrew?
- St Andrew is the Patron Saint of Scotland
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St Andrew is celebrated on 30 November
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St Andrew's Day is a day to celebrate Scottish culture, food and dance
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St Andrew's flag is the flag of Scotland
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The flag is in the form of a white X on a blue background and is commonly known as The Saltire
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St Andrew's Societies celebrate Scottish culture around the world
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St Andrew's Day is a bank holiday in Scotland but entitlement to leave depends on the employer
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St Andrew is also the patron saint of Romania, Greece and Russia
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Scotland is one of the few countries to have one of Christs disciples as their patron saint
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St Andrew was one of the Twelve Apostles (disciples of Jesus) and brother of St Peter
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St Andrew is believed to have died on a diagonally transversed cross
which the Romans sometimes used for executions and which, therefore,
came to be called St Andrews Cross
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St Andrew's Day is connected with Advent, which begins on the first Sunday after November 26
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St Andrew's Day marks the beginning of Scotlands winter festivals.
St Andrew's Day falls on 30 November and is a bank
holiday in Scotland, with many organisations enjoying a day off and events taking
place across the country to celebrate St Andrews Day in a patriotic
fashion, sadly I don't get this day as a holiday, but this year it is on a Saturday so most people will be able to celebrate the day. The last few years have seen many more events taking place
across the country with a number of Scotland’s historic attractions
allowing free admission for the day.
Information from Scotland.Org
Seafood Scotland's Young Chef of the Year, Adam Newth, has created a couple of fish dishes for
Scotland.org, the Gateway to Scotland. I made the
Smoked Haddock Bake after a long day preparing for a pre-Christmas family feast. It was so quick easy to make and pop into the oven, everything is in one dish
, we really enjoyed it. There are lovely contrasting textures of salty, smoky fish, creamy but sharp creme fraiche, tender pieces of potato and the crispy breadcrumb and parmesan mix on top. The dish also contains broadbeans and peas making it a great one pot meal.
Check out the rest of the St Andrew's Day menu and maybe you could have a St Andrews Night In this Saturday?
I was not paid to write this post and all opinions are my own. Labels: fish, Scotland, Smoked Haddock Bake, St Andrew, St Andrews Day
Best of British - The Scottish Round Up
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| Loch Tay from Kenmore |
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When the sun shines, Scotland is one of the most stunning places you could ever visit. Glorious hills, lochs and coastal villages. There is also a rich heritage and culture to enjoy.
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| Pittenweem Harbour |
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We also have some incredible produce, beef, lamb, seafood, milk, cheese, butter cream and glorious raspberries, strawberries and blackcurrants.
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| Langoustines | | | | |
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| Blackcurrants | | | |
We are lucky that
New World Appliances as proud BRITISH manufacturers
of kitchen appliances are sponsoring this event for the first six
months. Each month, one entrant will be picked AT RANDOM to receive a
£50 Amazon voucher. And, at the end of the six month period we will
have a regional showdown, with a judge to pick the best entry (we are
still working on who that will be and should be able to announce it
shortly). New World Appliances have kindly offered £300 of Amazon
vouchers for the overall winner, so if you enter every month you have 6
chances to win the grand prize!
Thank you to all the lovely food bloggers who entered the Scottish challenge for
Best of British in partnership with New World Appliances , it was fun to read about what Scottish food means to you and see the delicious meals that you made. Fiona will also be blogging the round up at the Face of New World blog
'A Whole New World', in the next few days.
1. First past the post was Chris Halfmann from
'Cooking Around the World' with his
Scottish Whisky Cake and remember, the whisky is supposed to go IN the cake!
2. Next up is this fantastic
Pork and Haggis Meatloaf with Honey Mustard and Whisky Apples from Claire at
Under the Blue Gum Tree. Claire is based in South Africa and really impressed me sourcing haggis from local butcher with Scottish roots!
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| Skirlie |
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| Selkirk Bannock |
3. Jill from
Lapin d'Or and More wrote a lovely post telling about her time cooking at a shooting lodge in Tomintoul and a bit about Catherine Brown, author of Scottish Regional Recipes, the book the recipes for
Skirlie and the Selkirk Bannock came from.
4. Ros at
The More Occassional Baker consulted her Scottish friends who suggested she make one of the most difficult, but total delicious, Scottish sweets -
TABLET! Tablet is notoriously difficult to get right and although Ros felt hers was a bit on the soft side, it tasted just right, mmmmm I love tablet.
5.
Scottish Mum brings us
Traditional Scottish Oatcakes a quick and simple biscuit (cracker) and a great accompaniment to stovies, corned beef hash, or any slow cooked meal, stew or stroganoff. In fact that reminded me that as children, we used to crumble them into any gravy left on the plate, usually from mince, totally delicious!
6. Jacqueline of
How to be a Gourmand made me laugh with her quote from Billy Connolly “There are two seasons in Scotland – Winter and July” although I have to say that this year, it would be hard to tell them apart! Jacqueline chose Scottish Raspberries and made this lovely looking
Scottish Raspberry and Pinenut Bake.
7. Caroline of
Caroline Makes decided to recreate a Scottish tea time favourite,
'Tunnocks Teacakes' using some Marshmallow Fluff she had found at a bargain price and was happy enough with the results that she plans to make them again and may even make her own marshmallow next time.
My own entry is an
Iced Cranachan with Raspberries. Cranachan contains cream, honey, oatmeal and whisky. I used these ingredients to make an icecream and froze it into little moulds just to make it look more cheffy!
8. Karen at
Lavender and Lovage brings us some traditional Scottish baking, not in the oven but on the girdle, as we call it in Scotland, with her
Scotch Griddle Cakes with Heather Honey . These were probably the first thing I ever baked, standing on a stool at my granny's cooker, dropping spoonfuls onto the girdle and the eating them warm and dripping with butter.
9. It's breakfast time and time for
Tattie Scones at the home of
Tinned Tomatoes blogger, Jac! Jac says "These are traditional potato scones, made in Scotland. A simple scone
made from mashed potato, flour and butter. Once cooked they can be kept
in the fridge and re-heated in a toaster or under a grill."
10. Back to the sweet stuff with traditional shortbread with a twist: this is
Chocolate Scottish Shortbread from Janine at
Cake of the Week and it come highly recommended!
11. Choclette at
Chocolate Log Blog used the challenge as an opportunity to make
Cranachan, she says "It's been on my list of things to make for years AND I wasn't going to
miss this opportunity to give it a whirl. For the uninitiated cranachan
is a traditional Scottish celebration dish consisting of oatmeal,
whipped cream, honey & whisky and sometimes raspberries." It looks great and, of course, as it was from Choclette, it includes some sprinkles of white chocolate!
12. Caroline from
Cake, Crumbs and Cooking is a big fan of Scottish Cook, Sue Lawrence, and chose to make
Treacle Scones and Parlies. Here's a photo of the Treacle Scones but you will have to visit Caroline's blog to exactly what the Parlies might be!
13. And so back to breakfast again, you would think that we Scots ate nothing but breakfast and tea, although those are some of our best meals. Fiona of
London Unattached is the instigator of the
Best of British Challenge with help from Karen at Lavender and Lovage and a few co-conspirators hosting the regions. Inspired by childhood memories of her Scottish aunts, Fiona chose to make a breakfast dish of
Kippers and Oatcakes.
14. And so we come round full circle with a
Whisky and Honey Cake from Gloria's
Canela Kitchen. A lovely confection of whisky, honey and almonds.
And the WINNER, chosen by Random Number Generator, is......drum roll please..........................
Congratulations to Chris and commisserations to all the other entrants. Thank you so much for entering Best of British, Scotland, I hope you enjoyed it and are ready to move south to beautiful and diverse Yorkshire, where
Karen of Lavender and Lovage is waiting to welcome you to the next
Best of British challenge.
Late Entry:
Hungry Hinny contacted me to say she had posted very late last night and unfortunately didn't make the round up. However, I'm popping her entry on the end here as like Ros she attempted to make
Scottish Tablet. She admits that the addition of raspberries was probably a mistake but it certainly looks pretty!
Labels: Best of British, cake, Cranachan, Griddle, haggis, honey, kippers, oatcakes, pancakes, raspberry, Scotland, Scottish, Selkirk Bannock, shortbread, skirlie, Tablet, Tattie Scones, whisky
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