Cock-A-Leekie Soup and Cranachan

Happy Birthday Robert Burns!

Celebrating Burns Night with Cock-a-Leekie soup & Cranachan Dessert

Cock-a-Leekie soup w/chicken, leeks, and bacon garnish

Cranachan, a mousse-like dessert w/toasted oats and berries

 

Robert Burns portrait
attributed to Archibald Skirving

  

Robert “Rabbie” Burns, Scotland’s favourite son, renowned and beloved poet, was born today in 1759. Scots celebrate his legacy this day by hosting Burns Night Suppers which feature traditional foods, bagpipes, poetry, toasting and imbibing whiskey. Some suppers are very fancy and may include professional entertainment or dancing. I had the pleasure, many years ago, of performing several highland dances for a formal supper in Madison, WI when I belonged to the Heather Highland Dancers troupe. Other suppers are very casual and home-based. But all suppers have the same elements. Hosts and/or guests wear the tartan. The Selkirk Grace is said before eating; the haggis (or main course) is brought in with pomp, circumstance & bagpipe music; Burn’s poetry is read aloud; “The Immortal Memory” is the main speech underscores the reasons why Burn’s legacy is, and should be, immortal; and the evening ends with a rendition of Auld Lang Syne. 

Typical menus include a starter soup, meat with veggies, cream & berry dessert, and whiskey for toasts. Vegan and vegetarian menus are also readily available – modern hosts are very creative.

PHOTO CREDIT: Rampant Scotland; Tatties, Haggis & Neeps

Here’s a sample menu:

Meat version                                             Vegan version

Cock-a-Leekie soup                                 Potato Leek soup

Haggis, sausage, or meatloaf               Vegetarian haggis (lentil/veggie bake)

Tatties & Neeps                                          Mashed potatoes & Mashed turnips

Cranachan dessert w/cream                Berry & toasted oat parfait using coconut milk

Traditional Shortbread                          Shortbread cookies w/margarine or coconut oil                                                                                                   

For my celebration, my family will have Cock-a-Leekie soup, oatmeal meatloaf, tatties, Cranachan with blackberries, traditional shortbread, and Drambuie. Before I share my recipes, here are several links for more info on Robert Burn’s life, legacy and Burns Night Suppers –

PHOTO CREDIT: G.A. Lawson; Burns statue in Victoria Park, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Enter the “World of Robert Burns” by by the G&D Burns Association, for a comprehensive collections of bio info, supper tips, poetry analysis, the meanings behind certain songs and more. 

The Academy of American Poets highlights some of his poems, has bio info and resources. 

Today inLiterature highlights stories about him, works by him and has resources. 

The Robert Burns Gallery displays and sells artworks of and relating to Rabbie, his loves, and his poetry/songs. They even sell greeting cards! 

I highly recommend the historical fiction novel The Witching Voice: A Novel from the Life of Robert Burns, by Arnold Johnston, for an entertaining read and taste for Scotland in the 1700's. The story centers on Robert's life right before his first daughter is born and up until he and Jean Armour get married.

Rabbie Burns was an amazing man and accomplished much in his brief 37 years in Scotland. My deepest appreciation lies most with his reworking/revival of the auld Scottish folk songs. He kept the Scots dialogue alive. He didn’t write Auld Lang Syne as an original song, he reworked it and popularized it and we still sing it today. That’s amazing. He never achieved comfortable financial success, despite his hard work and talent; however, he achieved a kind of immortality through the works and children he left behind. No bones about it, he was a womanizer. He loved women and indulged his passions frequently. He fathered at least 12 children by at least 4 women (some sources suggest 14-16 children with 6 different women); regardless, his wife Jean Armour, who bore him 9 children herself, mothered all the children. He was also known to imbibe frequently, and it’s thought that he especially drank when he felt depressed. He contracted Scarlet fever at some point, which progressed to Rheumatic fever and cardiac complications. He died due to his heart disease. On either the day of his death or the day of his funeral, his youngest son Maxwell was born. He left us much too soon, yet he lives on.       

Cathi’s Cock-a-Leekie Soup

Inspired by a combination of two recipes, one from the American Institute for Cancer Research which they posted for a St. Andrews Feast and a second for a traditional Scottish recipe at the Rampant Scotland website

Ingredients:

2 strips of bacon

2 leg quarters, with skin

10 cups water

*2-3 medium leeks, thinly sliced (white with some green)

1 Tbsp. fresh thyme (or ½ tsp dried thyme)

½ Tbsp fresh parsley (or ½ tsp dried parsley)

1 sprig fresh rosemary (or ¼ tsp dried rosemary)

1-2 fresh sage leaves (or 1/8 tsp dried sage)

2 pinches kosher salt

10 black peppercorns

1 bay leaf

6 pitted prunes (or 1/3 cup raisins)

diced carrots (about ½ bag baby or several regular)

diced celery  (1-2 stalks)

¼ cup long grained brown rice

1 can evaporated milk – optional

*NOTE: Leeks are notorious for retaining sand. Different cooks have their own tips, here’s what I do. I slice the leeks first, going through all the white and up into the green. I discard a a few inches from the top. I put the sliced whites/greens into a deep bowl with cool water. I put my hand in and shake the sliced leeks around. I push out the white slices so they separate into rings. I figure the agitation will loose the sand grit, which will then sink to the bottom of the bowl. Then I lift the white rings and green slices out with outspread fingers and transfer to a sieve. (I dump the sandy water down the drain.) I rinse the leeks over, while still in the sieve, then shake off the excess water and leave to drip dry in the sink.

Leeks soaking in water

Leeks rinsed and drip drying in sieve

Directions:

Fry bacon in stockpot, when crisped remove to paper-toweled plate.

 Place leg quarters skin side down in hot pot, to brown.

 Pour water over. Add ½ the sliced leeks, herbs and dried fruit.

Bring to a boil, then lower heat and gently simmer for 2 hours.

Carefully pour soup through sieve into second large pot. Remove chicken meat to cutting board. Discard skin, bones, whole herbs, dried fruit, and cooked leeks.

This is what gets discarded

This is the lovely and dark broth to make the soup

Carefully pour strained broth back into original pot.

Cut the chicken meat into small pieces and add meat back to broth. (You can use meat from 1 leg and save the other for a different meal or you can use all the meat in this soup.)

Add raw veggies and uncooked rice, along with the remaining raw leeks. Bring back up to heat and simmer for ~30 minutes until the veggies and rice are cooked and tender.

Check for flavor to adjust seasonings. If desired, add in evaporated milk to make creamy soup.

Finished soup without cream

Garnish with ground black pepper and crispy bacon crumbles.

VEGETARIAN OPTIONS: By definition this is a chicken soup; however, it is in keeping with the spirit of Burns Night to substitute a completely vegetarian menu and include all tastes. Serve Potato & Leek soup instead. Recipes for vegetarian haggis (usually with a lentil base) can be found online.

ALLERGENS: No top 8 allergens if you skip the creamy option. Dairy present if you add milk or cream. Leeks are in the onion and garlic family.

ALLERGY ACCOMODATIONS: Serve soup as clear broth.

Cathi’s Cranachan

Adapted from Mike Lewis on the Veg World website.  

There are many variations for this dessert. Some are all inclusive of the ingredients, like a mousse, others separate out the ingredients into a parfait - toasted oats on bottom, berries or puree next, whipped cream on top in layers. This recipe is all inclusive. 

Ingredients

2/3 cup raw oatmeal

1½ cups heavy whipping cream*

2 Tbsp maple syrup

2 Tbsp Drambuie whiskey liqueur (substitute 1 tsp vanilla extract for nonalcohol option)

2½ cups fresh or frozen blackberries (thaw the berries, if frozen)

Directions

Scatter oatmeal onto cookie sheet in even single layer. Toast in the oven at 325°F for 5-7 minutes, or until golden-brown. Standby and stir the oats several times to prevent burning. When done, take out of oven and allow to cool. (If desired, sprinkle ½ Tbsp of demerara sugar over cooked oats and toss to add a bit of sweetness.)

In a tall bowl, pour in the liquid whipping cream, syrup, and whiskey. Whisk to combine.

Whip the enhanced cream – I use an immersion blender, but you could also use special attachment on a hand mixer.

*NOTE: Usually the process from liquid to fluffy, solid whipped cream doesn’t take very long. You can check your progress by using a plastic spatula and folding over the cream. If anything drips off the spatula or looks thin – keep whipping. Your spatula should hold a fluffy swirl like you could imagine on a slice of pie. Be careful not to whip too long or you will end up with butter!

This shows my immersion blender with whipping attachment; cream almost done

 Fold in the toasted oatmeal with a spatula. Then gently fold in the berries. Chill for an hour or overnight. (The oats will soak up some moisture from the cream and the overall consistency will be like a mousse.)

folding in toasted oats

folded in berries & oats; ready for chilling

Serve in a fancy cup or bowl. Can garnish with additional toasted oats for a little crunch or with additional berries.

VEGAN: can be converted to vegan if you use coconut milk, see note below

ALLERGENS: contains dairy

ALLERGY ACCOMODATION: I haven’t tried this yet myself, but full fat coconut milk can be whipped and replace the cream. Angela at Oh She Glows blog has detailed step-by-step directions and photos here.  Because the coconut is solid before you whip it, wait to add the whiskey and syrup until after the coconut is whipped, and then whip a bit more to incorporate.