Archive for the ‘Food & Drink’ Category

While the start of the Christian period of Lent is celebrated around the world with elaborate carnivals and Mardi Gras celebrations, the British are more prosaic, with ‘pancake day’ or ‘Shrove Tuesday’.

The origins of pancake day are the same as Mardi Gras (or ‘Fat Tuesday’) in using up extravagant ingredients such as eggs prior to the Lenten period of denial. The British cook pancakes, which is basically a batter mix cooked in a frying pan and tossed (flipped in the air to cook the previously uncooked side). Pancakes are usually about twelve inches in diameter and wafer thin, served with sugar and lemon juice.

Of course, there are some British eccentricities – pancake races.

The most famous of these takes place in the village of Olney, about fifty miles northwest of London.

The Olney Pancake Race, was first ran in 1445, supposedly to commemorate that the year before a housewife, while cooking pancakes, had heard the church bells calling the residents to the ‘Shriving Service’ and hurried to the church still holding her pan.

Today the race is more formal, and takes place just before mid-day, ladies of the town (wearing a skirt, apron and headscarf) are required to run a 415 yard course carrying a frying pan and pancake. After crossing the finishing line the winner is required to toss the before being greeted by the verger of the church with a kiss of peace.

Other towns and villages hold pancake races, including one held at the old Trueman Brewery in Spitalfields, London. Teams race to win an engraved frying pan.

Battenberg Cake is a popular sweet cake, often served with afternoon tea.

It’s square in cross section, but long and rectangular, made from sponge and wrapped in yellow marzipan (a sweet almond paste).

Within the square cross section there are four squares, two each of lemon coloured sponge and two of pink. The most popular theory for this pattern is that it was created in 1884 to commemorate the marriage of Queen Victoria’s granddaughter to Prince Louis of Battenberg. Each of the four squares represents each of the four Battenberg princes: Louis, Alexander, Henry and Francis Joseph.

The name Battenberg has further connections with the British royal family – the aforementioned Prince Louis  of Battenberg changed his name to the British version of the name – Mountbatten – during the first world war at the suggestion of King George V as anti German sentiment was running high. Indeed it was during that war that the royal family adopted the name Windsor from the somewhat Germanic “House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha”.  Prince Louis’ son – also named Louis – was a much loved and respected member of the royal family – best known as Earl Mountbatten of Burma until his death in 1979 at the hands of the Provisional IRA.

The distinctive chequered pattern of Battenberg cake has also given its name to the fluorescent patterns used to identify police and emergency vehicles in many European countries.

Robert (or Rabbie) Burns is generally accepted to be Scotland’s finest poet. He was born in the village of Alloway on 25 January 1759 and died on 21 July 1796.

His best known works include the lyrics to ‘Auld Lang Syne’, ‘ A Red, Red Rose’, ‘A Man’s A Man for A’ That’, ‘To a Louse’, ‘To a Mouse’, ‘The Battle of Sherramuir’ and ‘Tam o’ Shanter’.

In 1801 a group of Burns’ friends got together on or about his birthday (bizarrely to commemorate the 5th anniversary of his death) with a special supper.

The tradition of ‘Burns Night’ on or around January 25th continues to this day amongst Scots – particularly expat Scots.

The main features of a ‘Burns Night’ supper are Scotch Whisky and Haggis, served with Turnips and Potatoes – or as they’re known colloquially ‘Neeps and Tatties’.

Traditionally a ‘Burns Night’ supper will start with the ‘Selkirk Grace’ – a traditional Scottish grace that Burns is said to have modified :

Some hae meat and canna eat;
And some wad eat that want it:
But we hae meat and we can eat
And sae the Lord be thankit.

The main course of the meal will comprise the aforementioned Haggis, usually ‘piped in’ – that is, brought in to the room ceremonially, led by a piper playing the bagpipes. Once the haggis has circled the room, it is ‘addressed’ with some ceremony and the words to Burns’ poem ‘Address to a Haggis’:

Address to a Haggis

Fair fa’ your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o the puddin’ race!
Aboon them a’ ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye wordy of 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 slight, (it is at this point that the Haggis is sliced open)
Trenching your gushing entrails bright,
Like onie 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;
The 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 mak her spew
Wi perfect sconner,
Looks down wi sneering, scornfu 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 make 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!

A toast to the Haggis is then drunk, with Scotch Whisky.

There are plenty of translations of the address around the Internet, but the original lowland Scottish, delivered with gusto is quite an impressive spectacle.

The Haggis is then served with the aforementioned Turnips and Potatoes, and plenty of Scotch Whisky.

Robert Burns was a well known freemason, and many Masonic lodges incorporate a Burns Night supper into their calendars.

This topic was suggested to me by Wayne, the barman in The Rising Sun public house in Stanford Le Hope, Essex.

The terms ‘delicacy’ and ‘bar snacks’ don’t sit well together, and I’m afraid this posting is no exception.

There’s no way to gloss this one up, in simple terms, ‘Pork Scratchings’ are deep fried pork rind.

A slightly more respectable form of cooked pork rind is ‘crackling’ – this is created by salting the flesh of a pork joint before roasting. The skin crisps during cooking and is usually served alongside a roast pork meal.

Scratchings, on the other hand, are deep fried and salted, and served cold in packets, much like potato crisps. The consensus is that they’re actually healthier than potato crisps, being high in protein and low in carbohydrates and have actually been taken on Arctic and Antarctic expeditions.

In the 1986 film ‘Highlander’ the character Conor MacLeod (played by Christopher Lambert) has a bizarre conversation with Juan Sanchez Villa-Lobos Ramirez (played by Sean Connery).

Ramirez: Haggis? What is haggis?

Connor MacLeod: Sheep’s stomach, stuffed with meat and barley.

Ramirez: And what do you do with it?

Connor MacLeod: You eat it.

Ramirez: How revolting!

This is one of those occasions when discretion over the contents of food is probably the safer option, few of us would ever eat a pork sausage if we stopped to consider that the only part of the pig isn’t processed for food is the oink!

Haggis is a Scottish ‘delicacy’ described by the Scottish poet Robert Burns as ‘great chieftain of the pudding race’. It is, as Conor MacLeod observes, traditionally made using the heart and lungs of either a pig or a lamb, minced and mixed with oatmeal, onion and spices and then stuffed into a sheep’s stomach. Although these days most are wrapped in more modern materials like some form of plastic.

While the ingredients of Haggis sound alarming, the final result, which is an effective way of utilising meat products that would otherwise be wasted. It’s often spicy and peppery and forms an important part of the ‘Full Scottish Breakfast’.

Haggis is widely available these days in supermarkets around Britain, and even by mail order, but if you can’t find readymade Haggis, or want the authentic Haggis experience, the basic recipe follows.

First you’ll need to find a butcher who can supply sheep’s heart, lungs, stomach and liver. The sheep’s stomach can be tricky, but beef bung (intestine) is more widely available and often used instead of sheep’s stomach.

Ingredients:

Set of sheep’s heart, lungs and liver (cleaned by a butcher)
One beef bung or sheep’s stomach.
3 cups finely chopped suet
One cup medium ground oatmeal
Two medium onions, finely chopped
One cup beef stock
Salt and pepper
One teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon mace

Method:

Trim off any excess fat and sinew from the intestine and, if present, discard the windpipe. Place in a large pan, cover with water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for an hour or possibly longer to ensure that they are tender. Drain and cool.

Some chefs toast the oatmeal in an oven until it is thoroughly dried out (but not browned or burnt!)

Finely chop the meat and combine in a large bowl with the suet, oatmeal, finely chopped onions, beef stock, salt, pepper, nutmeg and mace. Make sure the ingredients are mixed well. Stuff the meat and spices mixture into the intestine until it’s just over half full. Then press to expel any air and tie the open ends tightly with string. Make sure that you leave room for the mixture to expand or else it may burst while cooking. If that looks likely then prick the haggis with a sharp needle to reduce the pressure.

Place in a pot and cover with water; bring to the boil then immediately reduce the heat and simmer gently, covered, for about three hours.

Maybe it’s easier to buy one ready made!

Traditionally the haggis is served with ‘Neeps and Tatties’ – that is turnips and mashed potatoes; and if you want to really make your haggis special, pour a large measure of scotch whisky into the haggis after it’s been cut open.