Gie Her A Haggis!

Battered Haggis with chips

Now before I get buried underneath a wall of anger with folk yelling "those are not real Haggis! Boo! Hiss!" No this dish did not consist of a regular type of Haggis. These were in fact Haggis Bites that I bought from Farmfoods, but it should matter not dear moshers because they are still made with real Haggis and when all is said and done, Haggis is Haggis right?
But what is it exactly? What is this food that the Scots have made so famous? Basically it is the heart, lungs and liver of a sheep, called the sheep's 'pluck' and is minced with oatmeal, suet, onion, salt and spices. If you were to cook it in the way tradition dictates then you would simmer this mixture in the sheep's stomach. (2 ~ 3hrs should do it).
Were you to follow the route of tradition further, you would serve Haggis with 'neeps and tatties' (Scottish for swede, turnips and potatoes). I veered off the route (like I often do) and cooked some chips to go with it. Result? Bloody lovely! Its not unlike black pudding or even sausage and I think most meat eaters would enjoy Haggis if they would only get over the ingredients and traditional cooking method. (I won't mention the 'lovely' stuff used to make chicken nuggets again. Oops I almost did).
I am now a keen lover of this Scottish delicacy and aim to pick a 'proper' Haggis up from the butchers. You'll no doubt hear from this dish agian on these here pages, but next time served with the neeps and tatties.

Music to eat to ~ Alestorm

Arr ! Me Hearties !!

Lamb Hearts and Potatoes

Owing to what this dish consists of, the heart of a ickle, ickle lamb, most people turn their asses around and run from a plate of this. More fool them sez I, because lamb hearts roasted with potatoes is a very fine and tasty meal. Trust me on that. And not only is it great tasting but its easy on the wallet too. You can pick up three hearts for under £2, and one heart would fill the average person when served with potatoes, swede, etc.
Simple to prepare; lob three hearts in an oven dish, surrounded by potatoes and bake for 1 hr 10 mins on a medium heat, making sure to baste them every 15 mins or so. Throw in some chopped onions on the last quarter of an hour and mosh! A delicious, nut twistngly good meal.
Lamb Hearts are not without their health benefits also because they contain CoQ10 which is a powerful anti-oxidant. Here are some hearty facts regarding health;

1. Destroys free radicals before they can damage your cell membranes.
2. Prevents arteriosclerosis by reducing he accumulation of oxidized fat in your blood vessels.
3. Eases heart disease, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol.
4. Reduces chest pain and improves exercise tolerance in patients with chronic stable angina.
5. Regulates the rhythm of the heart rate.

So eat until your hearts content (terrible pun I know) for there might be some truth in the lore that eating somethings heart will empower the eater. Enjoy !!