Haggis, Neeps and Tatties

Last Saturday, the 25th January, was the annual Scottish celebration of the poet and master wordsmith Robert 'Rabbie' Burns. Usually this event passes me and the OH by and we barely make any effort to join in the celebrations. It is a pity really considering the festival itself, whilst being a celebration of a Scottish writer, it mainly revolves around food, namely the noble Haggis.

Now the haggis, has got an interesting reputation, you either love it or you are immediately repulsed by the thought of it, with its use of offal as it's main ingredients. I was once in the latter camp until I tried a bit many years ago now at the Good Food Show and oh was it delicious.

Fast forward to last week and after seeing some lovely posts on blogs I read namely; Belleau Kitchen's Chicken Thighs & Haggis and Janice's at Farmers Girl Kitchen's excellent pie, I was determined to not let it slide by for another year especially as it would get me right in the mood for a trip to Edinburgh in a couple of weeks.

We couldn't attend a couple of Burns Night events that we wanted to at the weekend due to work and a visit to one of our favourite Leeds Supper clubs on the Saturday night.

So on Saturday we had a 'little' toast to Robert Burns in North Bar with an excellent pint of  Pale Ale from the Scottish brewery, Alchemy. We rounded this off with a wee dram of a very peaty Whisky from Adberg Distillery, which the OH practically downed in an effort 'to get it over and done with'.....

 

...and on Sunday, I cooked my very first haggis and served it up in the traditional way with Neeps (what we call swedes, combined with carrots for colour), Tatties and onion gravy.

A fine way to toast a fine poet if you ask me.

Address to a Haggis by Robert Burns