What makes a good Burns supper?

[louisiana]

Do you do a Burns supper? What are your favourite ingredients? (comestible or otherwise)

[Help-Ma-Boab]

A good Address to the Haggis. Sets the tone I think. Downhill thereafter. Im addressing the Haggis on saturday...

"Yer powrs that mak mankind its care

and dish them oot their bill o fare

Auld Scotland wants nae skining ware

That jaups and luggies

But if you wishe her grateful prayer

Gie her a haggis.."

[dita-on-tees]

funny I was just looking recipes up. I dont like haggis just by itself, its pretty strong. However if you stuff a chicken breast with it then its a bit less full on, then the obvious neeps and tatties. i suspect my Glaswegian nana would turn in her grave but she also put salt in porridge which I could never go for either.

Then a little Balvenie ...

[Asset]

Yes Yes, shoot me down - we do a veggie haggis (McSweens) with all the trimmings. Pour a wee bit whisky on the haggis before you serve and drink plenty obv.

Cranachan for pudding - yum.

Had ours last night.

[womanofdulwich]

Everyone HAs to recite a Burns poem- in their best attempt at a scots accent. Tam O shanter - verse each is a very good one.Whisky on your haggis- maybe a spot of brown sauce on the side too. Soup to start- cock a leekie or ham and lentil.

[Marmora Man]

Last year we held a small "sort of" Burns supper for 12 - haggis only featured as a starter. Essentials are:

Some haggis somewhere

Addressing the Haggis (we made guests put the various verses in the right order to start with)

Someone in a kilt

Whisky, more whisky and perhaps just another wee snifter of that single malt you've been hiding away.

Scottish dancing is optional - but fun.

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

Can I buy tablet locally does anyone know? Need it for a Burns Night gift.

[karter]

Thanks MM interesting. Bought some Mcsweene veggie haggis from Smbs and some hardcore haggis from Franklins.

[Applespider]

Oh yes - and the haggis is definitely the most important part of it. I really should get in the habit of eating it more regularly.

[Loz]

Marmora Man Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Whisky, more whisky and perhaps just another wee

> snifter of that single malt you've been hiding

> away.

There IS only single malt. Nothing else will do.

[Mick Mac]

Loz Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Marmora Man Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

>

> > Whisky, more whisky and perhaps just another

> wee

> > snifter of that single malt you've been hiding

> > away.

>

> There IS only single malt. Nothing else will do.

whisky snob.....;-)

[Marmora Man]

Malt whisky is fine and I drink a lot of it. Sometimes tho' a Grouse & water, or a Bells just hits the spot. I can be elitist about malt - after all I am a long standing member of the Scottish Malt Whisky Society so have spent too much on cask strength, single cask malts - but I say again sometimes just a Grouse is what I need.

[Loz]

Mick Mac Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Loz Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > Marmora Man Wrote:

> >

> --------------------------------------------------

>

> > -----

> >

> > > Whisky, more whisky and perhaps just another

> > wee

> > > snifter of that single malt you've been

> hiding

> > > away.

> >

> > There IS only single malt. Nothing else will

> do.

>

>

> whisky snob.....;-)

Not exclusively. I can be a wine snob as well!

[Narnia]

karter Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Thanks MM interesting. Bought some Mcsweene veggie

> haggis from Smbs and some hardcore haggis from

> Franklins.

Eh? Surely a veggie haggis is like calling something that pretends to be meat a veggie steak?

[Alec John Moore]

Hmm, the whole thing is a bit anachronistic. Follow this link for an alternative view of the event:

http://entertainment.stv.tv/opinion/222249-address-to-burns-suppers-time-to-go-get-stuffed/

While I donlt agree with everything in the article, I do think that the Burns Supper formula doesn't do the man's poetry or the image of Scotland any favours.

I do love a veggie haggis, though.

[Annette Curtain]

Shank of Venison braised slowly so it's falling of the bone, neeps & tatties of course.

I love a Mc Sweens BUT it doesn't love me ( oh the heartburn, feels like "I swallied tha lump o' coal from hogmanay" )

Glenmorangie 10 year old ( Madeira casked, West coast girlie Whisky apparently )

And of course a wee poem ( McGonagall's The Tay Bridge Disaster )

Lastly, this year we've a Fiddler to play the supper in ( which is nice )

:) Annette

[Alec John Moore]

Interesting take on the Burns Supper standard format. Particularly nice to see the use of another poet's work.

[Narnia]

As interesting as the concept of a veggie haggis Mr.AJM, don't you think?

[Alec John Moore]

I like veggie haggis and I like some of Burns's poetry. I'm also interested in how Scottish identity is expressed, interpreted and appropriated through events such as Burns night. Coming from "Burns Country" I also like the way his work plays a part in my life. His line "The best laid schemes of mice and men gang aft agley." often comes to mind in the course of my working life.

[karter]

Narnia, some of us will be eating meating tonight whereas some of the others will not hence the veggie version haggis.

[louisiana]

Alec John Moore Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Hmm, the whole thing is a bit anachronistic.

> Follow this link for an alternative view of the

> event:

>

> http://entertainment.stv.tv/opinion/222249-address

> -to-burns-suppers-time-to-go-get-stuffed/

>

>

Written by someone who reckons whisky is 'undrinkable'.

'Nuff said.

[Narnia]

karter Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Narnia, some of us will be eating meating tonight

> whereas some of the others will not hence the

> veggie version haggis.

It can hardly be called haggis though can it?

[karter]

Narnia Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> karter Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > Narnia, some of us will be eating meating

> tonight

> > whereas some of the others will not hence the

> > veggie version haggis.

Well, it's written on the packet.

>

> It can hardly be called haggis though can it?

[MrBen]

Nice to see so many tipping the hat this week. For me, Haggis and malt (blended or single) go together extremely well. For some reason I also need proper scottish neeps (turnip) - the orangey kind - none of this palid white nonsense that passes for it south of the border. We also usually have a malt tasting competition where we all bring a bottle of something interesting. Last years featured a 1972 Aberlour and a bottle of Grouse (Bossman Wines 2010). I address the haggis most years at a suitable gathering but this time round calls for a quiet one.

Happy Burns' to all o' ye!

[Alec John Moore]

Just to add to the identity confusion, the orange Scottish "turnips" or neeps are actually swedes. So, for all Burns Supper afficianados, here's tae us, wha's like us, gie few and they're a' deid.