Adam Balic

I have had a good version using white wine, while staying in Macon. I guess that in this instance the cocks blood is used. I wonder how many people use the cocks blood even in very traditional regions?

I got a sample bottle (200ml) of 21 year old 50% Port Ellen for christmas. Happy happy joy joy. Burns probably enjoyed lowland or Campbletown whiskies, probaby rough as a bear's arse, and probably flavoured with all sorts. Prior to legalisation of stills in 1823 and the legal minimum maturation of three years (1900s, I think) most 'standard' whisky would have been similar to poteen, only rougher. :) ← Yikes, my family makes home stilled grappa, so I can imagine the effect.....

A very new release. Retails (Oddbins) for £28. Which is more expensive then the 10 yo (all this young version is at barrel strength). Bought it out of interest to see what a young Islay would be like (very sweet) and when you think about it, it is proberly closer to the old 'illegal' whisky that Burns et al. most likely drunk. Maybe.

Sure did, but it is only a six year old.

Oh, thank you. The Camera is an Olympus C-765 UZ. I have only had it for a few days, but the results look good and should get better as I work out light levels etc.

I am Australian (now living in Scotland) as is my wife, but her family is Scottish. They have a recipe for "Russian Toffee", which turns out to be "Tablet". We make this every Christmas, along with a few other items. I haven't got much of a sweet-tooth, but I quite like "Sour Plooms" and "Rhubarb and Custard" sweets. RE: Burns' Night Authenticity etc. I'm still not sure what it is all about. It seems to be more about celebrating "Scottishness" (which isn't a bad thing) then actually much to do with Burns, especially regarding the food. But it is fun.

The Clapshot recipe I have is from F. Marian McNeill's book (so is pre-1930's?), offers chives as an optional extra. No Chives at Sainsburys and the spring oinions were at the larger end of the scale. There are Colcannon recipes from Scotland, but there seem to be a blend of root veg, without the addition of onions. If there is one think that is true of Burns' night is that tere isn't anything really accurate or 'authentic' about the food, just a mismash of scottish theme dishes.

The only raspberries I can get at the moment are Spanish and they are pretty poor in comparison to the amazing Scottish ones. But you are correct about it being rich, it was originally a special enriched verion of the everday oatmeal dish (Crowdie). Being Australia day on the 26th I day I actually added passionfruit for the acid element.

Happy Australia Day. For the occasion I made Lamingtons. Enjoy. Chocolate: And the more rare Strawberry.

From my own Burns' Night for two this year: Main: Haggis, Neep Purry and Clapshot. The raw ingredients: Haggis, Swede (=Neep=Turnip (in Scotland)=Rutabaga), Potatoes and green onions. The cooked dish: Up close and personal with a haggis. Notice it is mostly grain, not grey slimy stuff. Scottish Kibbe infact. Dessert: Cranachan or Cream Crowdie. The Raw ingredients: Cream, pinhead oatmeal, heather honey and whisky. Raspberries are an optional extra and as the Scotttish ones are not in season I would prefer to wait. The Dish:

Clifford Wright has this to say about one of the possible origins of this style of couscous. "The coriander seed-type appears to be a form of pasta secca, called maccarone in fifteenth century Sicily, that later became known as maghribiyya in Syria, also known as the name of a dish, and the muhammas of Tunisia and the burkukis of Algeria." An early mention of it is in the 13th century Muslim Andalus recipe collection, which would suggest a Berber origin. However, I have heard of millet 'couscous' style preps from the Sub-Sahara, so maybe there is a non-Berber origin as well.

Sadly, not possible in the long term as I am a sucker for cooking equipment. It was only by an act of great will that I turned down an Alessi couscousier for the bargin price of £120 .

Ah, thanks for that suggestion. All I need now is to find a couscousiere in the UK. I use my french friends one at the moment. Infact, I used her couscousiere on monday, along with the tagine I got in Meknes. I have also been using barley couscous recently, tastes good and looks good as well. Well I gues the Almoravids and the Almohads were Berbers, so no wonder it turns up in Andalus. I wonder if it comes down to a preference for steaming verses boiling. Would be interesting to know what influenced this preference (if there was one), kitchen layout maybe.

Very interesting stuff. Having made couscous (following Paula's methods) I was surprised by how easy it is to make (and would be easier if I had the correct sieves!), but one think that I am interested in is why couscous at all? Why is couscous so prevalent in the North Africa, rather then other durum wheat/semolina products like dried pasta? The 13th C, muslim cookbook "Kitab al-tabikh fi al- Maghrib wa’l-Andalus" (Charles Perry translation) mentions three "pasta"* type products, one sounds very much like berkoukes/muhammas etc, the others more 'conventional' pasta types. I have seen recipes for pasta steamed in a kiskis like couscous from North Africa, so pasta is used in some cases, but while is couscous more widely seen? May be there is a historical or religious reason for this, but could it be that not wheat (millet/barley) couscous where more common wheat couscous historically and these are not very good for making pasta? * I guess that couscous is technically not a pasta, but I hope that you know what I mean.

What Alberto said and oregano is sometime called 'Wild Majoram'. Oregano and Thyme are both great when dried, but different to the fresh in flavour profile. One word or warning is that many expensive and pretty looking bunches of oregano are often worthless from a cooking point of view as they seem to have been ried using some type of process that preserves their colour and form, but not the flavour. It is like cooking with dried grass. Would not use dried basil though.

From Hannah Glasse in the 18th century. "When I bid them lard a Fowl, if I should bid them lard with large Lardoons, they would not know what I meant: But when I say they must lard with little Pieces of Bacon, they know what I mean. A lardon is a strip of smoked bacon in this sense and in the above recipes. Cut streaky bacon into 1 cm thick slices and cut these into strips. The must not be to thin or they will dry out. I brown the beef in the fat from the lardons. I imagine that the use of this ingredient suggests the the meat in B.B. was originally larded with lardons to keep them tender.

You can still buy her icecream books and well worth it they are too. But, 'icecream cones' are slightly older then her, Wafers thankfully still British though.

Beef marinated in cooked off onions, carrots and celery, red wine, thyme, salt and pepper for 24 hours. Meat taken out and dried well marinade strained and only the liquid is kept. Brown meat, lardons and onions (I actually use shallots) seperately. Put meat back into pot, cover with marinade and extra wine if required. Cook in a very slow oven until meat is tender and the liquid is reduced, adding the lardons and the onions in the last 40 minutes. Drain liquid and keep meat et al covered and warm. Reduce liquid and wip in cold butter to make a shiney thick sauce. Add back meat er al. Serve with plenty of parsley. I never use tomato, but sometimes I add chocolate (achieves the same effect of colour enhancement without the flavour/acid). Meat is served with either fried triangles of bread, steamed potatoes or buttered pasta. Wine used. When in Burgundy I used burgundy, out of it I use either a pinot noir or a Cotes de Rhone.

Ah, thank you for the information. Unfortunately I am in the UK, so the best think may be to look in the frozen food sections.

I like fresh horseradish, sourcream, lemon juice and walnuts as a sauce for smoked fish and blini. n.b. I have read that "Wasabi", the green paste in tubes isn't actually wasabi (Wasabia japonica), but is infact just dyed horseradish (the central European plant) and true wasabi is rarely found outside of Japan. Was'up with that?

There are a few 18th century mens club 'punch' recipes about. One that I make quite often is Meyer's, half lemon, half lime juice, sugar to balance and diluted with "spring water".

I would agree that there is little evidence for something as monolithic as an "Islamic cuisine" anymore then there is a "Christian cuisine" (although I'm sure that it would be possible to find specific examples of dishes that fit the critieria for this if one cared to look hard enough). But, the culinary contribution of a nation or culture may not be about specific dishes or even an identifiable cuisine. I would say that Islam has been a great communicator and transmitter of food culture I can't even conceive of what world food would look like with out the contribution of Islam.

Kangaroo, Moreton Bay Bugs, Barramundi, Australian meat pies and barbecue.

Actually that book has been written and it is into it's second edition.

I think that to cook well involves considerable time, effort, knowledge, equipment or expense. If it comes easy then either you are very lucky or you are doing something wrong. Unless you have a particular interest in the activity why would you bother?