To beg any of you Scottish mumsnetters to help me with a Burns Supper?

[Diddydollydo]

In his drunken rantings on NYE, DH has invited 4 other couples to our house at the end of Jan for a 'Burns Supper'. DH's best mate is Scottish, hence the idea and thought it would be a nice change for the rest of us. I'm quite happy to do this as I love cooking (except our house is tiny so it'll be a squeeze . Now here is my problem - I have NO idea what to serve apart from haggis, tatties and turnip (neeps?) so I need help! I want to do a haggis dish and a simple chicken dish and also serve some other traditional Scottish bits like shortbread etc so Scottish mumsnetters, HELP!

I know a lot of people wont like this but I mix grated cheese in with my haggis and neeps, if you don't like the taste much then try that.

Black pudding scotch eggs!!! I've never heard of anything quite so delicious sounding. I will plan an excursion to Waitrose.

They are massive as well and cost about a pound. We got them from the one in Byres road, DP said they were lovely. I couldn't stomach the thought of them, pregnancy has made me go off pretty much all food.

They had them at the deli counter.

That's near my work. Bang goes the new year diet.

Schro - where sells tablet ice cream? I demand to know this!

I don't like Irn Bru myself but I was at a wedding in Scotland where they had an ice cream counter serving Irn Bru ice cream!
We used to do Burns Night every year with another family (both dads are from Scotland) when all our kids were small. I remember my young daughter attracting amused stares in the supermarket (we're in the south east) when she asked for Haggis for tea. We ate it a lot and I agree with the earlier poster who recommended vegetarian haggis - much nicer than it sounds.

I would have haggis balls to start, followed by stovies. Only cos i looooveee stovies

Tablet is straightforward enough to make but getting the temperature/times/colour can be tricky.

Irn Bru as well.

My gran used to make clootie dumpling but ive never liked it, too much along the lines of wedding cake/christmas cake etc

I love tablet, but tablet ice cream is grim IMO.

visocchios in the ferry sell tablet icecream, tasty but vair expensive.

at tittytitty. That's where I got it too. Thought it was shocking.

I though it lovely but im sure we were over £20 for 4 cones, which even for doublers is a bit

It is expensive but worth it for the raspberry ripple.

Agent I am jealous you are near Waitrose.

Hazel It was either Tesco or Asda, I will have a look later and get back to you.

We do burns night, haggis on oat cakes, cheese, nibbles. Bring a poem.

Stovies with oatcakes and beetroot! Yum!
You can go posh and have smoked salmon, scallops etc to start, or a lovely Cullen skink, haggis always good even for a taste, you could have Angus beef, Stornoway black pud... The Balmoral chicken is a great idea and the cranachan too. Pinhead oats and a decent glug of whisky is best :)

Definitely got to have some poems and some set dancing (Gay Gordons, anyone?) - singing too if you're game! A cd of Scottish music if not. Whisky, irn bru, shortbread, tablet... Everyone has to wear tartan :)

I flipping love a good burns supper.

If you want to make tablet you can spend ages getting it just right with lots of boiling and stiring or you can just google microwave tablet......

We did a taste test recently and it got the thumbs up!

oooh stovies..... I must have stovies.

Ye banks and braes oh bonnie doon

Totally in the mood for a burns supper now!

Agree with McSweens Haggis and Mackies ice cream. Proper cranachan is lovely for pudding. And Edie Reader has a fantastic voice but you may need something a bit more upbeat and funky to mix it with.

And get some decent malt. ( go to an independent whisky shop if you can for advice, tell them the style you would like: peaty, smoky, golden, milder, smoother etc and they will be able to help you choose. ) I like island heavy peaty malts like Talisker and Laphroaig. also enjoy ardbeg, bruichladdich etc with spicy haggis but some lighter Speyside /Highland malts might be easier if you are not used to whisky. Glenlivet is over commercialised shit and don't for gods sake buy crappy blends if you value your guests (and their throat linings).

Have fun!!

Glenfiddich or McAllans are nice whiskeys if you can't get to a whiskey shop.

See, Toomuch - your listed malts are lovely for supping, but for cranachan, I'd want something sweet, and really unpeated. For me, the best cranachan malt is Dalwhinnie, with its honey notes. Macallan would be my No 2 choice (for cranachan).

Oh Im so hungry for haggis now! and stovies too.

Not forgetting the tablet.

I also want to know about SGBs Burns night depravity.

I would definitely agree with making chicken balmoral . That way you are making all the same dishes so it's easier for you. But if anyone doesn't like haggis they can just eat the chicken (I'm Scottish and hate haggis !)

Yy to irn bru and mackies too

And I would get tennents lager as well !

Traditionally the haggis is piped in with the chef carrying it so if you really want to get into it I'd get a cd and have the haggis "piped" in !

A good beginner's whisky would be A'Bunadh (by Aberlour) or Tomintoul 16. The gentle dram, I believe they call it! A fine whisky distilled by nice people

I'd not bother with anything West Coast unless you know your guests like it. The smoky taste makes me yak and I don't mind a wee dram.

Highland Park is a lovely malt for people who don't like the iodiney taste of the Islay malts.