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The Scots kitchen - A cookbook

Discussion in 'Food & Cooking' started by gunnar, Jun 2, 2010.

  1. Jun 2, 2010 #1
    gunnar

    gunnar

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    The full title is "The Scots Kitchen its tradions and lore with old-time recipes" by F.Marian McNeill

    first published in April 1929 last reprised in 1948,  the handwritten note to my grandmother on the empty page  signed in 1951 when she was gifted with the book.

    I bring this up cause I was cleaning out my grandmothers stuff (she died 3 years ago) from storage and trying to figure out what to keep and what to get rid of, when I found this book.

    I haven't had a chance to cook anything from it but the cover says it has over 260 recipes . what is real funny is that 3 of them are for Haggis... Cottage, Meg Dod's (she has a few recipes in this book) and Royal.  Some of the names of stuff just kill me for instance:

    in the section titled : Dishes of Meat

    we have -  Forfar Brideis

                       Inky-Pinky

                       Potted Hough

                       To boil a Gigot with turnip  (lol, turnip,  whats that?)

    in the section titled (what else):  Dishes of Vegetables

    there is- Colcannon

                     Kailkenny

                      Clapshot

                       Rumbledethumps

    all sorts of stuff n the other section of pies,sweets puddings, bannocks, cakes and a  section called savouries that has scots rabbit, woodcock, scots egg and nuns beads.

    lol, i need help from across the pond as it were. whats a better sweet? a crokain (after reading the recipe it's a sugar/caramel cage or a hedgehog (an almond and cream paste doted with with slivered almonds)? other issues are some the old style of measurements and milldy incomplete descriptions.
     
    Last edited: Jun 2, 2010
  2. Jun 2, 2010 #2
    ishbel

    ishbel

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    I have my Granny's first edition of this book, much loved and used by Granny,Mum and me.  In fact, I bought a new edition about 6 years ago, so that the old first edition wouldn't completely disintegrate!

    France and Scotland were what was called 'The Auld Alliance' - hence the use of many French names (obviously anglicised over the centuries) such as gigot (a lamb chop) and ashet for serving dish (from the French asiette).

    A Forfar bridie is a kind of Scots version of a Cornish pasty (but obviously from the town of Forfar).

    Turnip, in Scots parlance, is what Americans call a rutebaga, but there are also wonderfully sweet, purple/lilac tinged small French turnips, too.

    Most of the dishes are part of my family's repertoire - and we are still using almost the same recipes from a family receipt book  from the early 1800s.
     
  3. Jun 2, 2010 #3
    gunnar

    gunnar

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    that is so cool. When I go to try something from this I will send a PM, I am sure I could use the pointers. LOL, I do know what a turnip is I just had no idea what a Gigot was though and decided a little tongue in cheek was in order.
     
  4. Jun 2, 2010 #4
    ishbel

    ishbel

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    We use some French  butchery terms in Scotland, hence gigot.

    Blame it on the inter-marriages between the Scots and French royals.

    Rumbledethumps, clapshot, skirlie, scotch woodcock (no game bird in that little treat!) are all still all commonly made/eaten in many Scots households, including mine!
     
  5. Jun 3, 2010 #5
    boar_d_laze

    boar_d_laze

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    In French anyway, a gigot is a leg of lamb and not a mere chop.

    BDL
     
  6. Jun 3, 2010 #6
    ishbel

    ishbel

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    Yes, but in Scotland, we refer to a certain style of lamb CHOP as a gigot chop - that's why I said the terms were anglicised to our meanings of French terms.