Burns Night - 25 January - the Great Robbie Burns

Burns Night

Recipes are at the bottom of the page, after Robbie's most famous work.

Robert Burns was born on 25th January 1759 and died 21st July 1796 aged just 37 and often referred to as The Bard.

His poetry is just brilliant - try this one:

To A Mouse

Wee, sleekit, cowrin, tim'rous beastie,
O, what a panic's in thy breastie!
Thou need na start awa sae hasty,
Wi' bickering brattle!
I wad be laith to rin an' chase thee
Wi' murd'ring pattle!

I'm truly sorry man's dominion,
Has broken nature's social union,
An' justifies that ill opinion,
What makes thee startle
At me, thy poor, earth-born companion,
An' fellow-mortal!

I doubt na, whiles, but thou may thieve;
What then? poor beastie, thou maun live!
A daimen icker in a thrave
'S a sma' request;
I'll get a blessin wi' the lave,
An' never miss't!

Thy wee bit housie, too, in ruin!
It's silly wa's the win's are strewin!
An' naething, now, to big a new ane,
O' foggage green!
An' bleak December's winds ensuin,
Baith snell an' keen!

Thou saw the fields laid bare an' waste,
An' weary winter comin fast,
An' cozie here, beneath the blast,
Thou thought to dwell -
Till crash! the cruel coulter past
Out thro' thy cell.

That wee bit heap o' leaves an' stibble,
Has cost thee mony a weary nibble!
Now thou's turn'd out, for a' thy trouble,
But house or hald,
To thole the winter's sleety dribble,
An' cranreuch cauld!

But Mousie, thou art no thy lane,
In proving foresight may be vain;
The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men
Gang aft agley,
An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,
For promis'd joy!

Still thou art blest, compar'd wi' me;
The present only toucheth thee:
But och! I backward cast my e'e,
On prospects dreaer!
An' forward, tho' I canna see,
I guess an' fear!

Robert Burns

I guess his most famous work has to be Auld Lang Syne - how many could sing the whole song?

Auld Lang Syne

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne!

Chorus - For auld land syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.

And surely ye'll be your pint stowp!
And surely I'll be mine!
And we'll tak a cup o' kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.

Chorus...

We twa hae run about the braes,
And pou'd the gowans fine;
But we've wander'd mony a weary fit
Sin' auld lang syne.

Chorus...

We twa hae paidl'd in the burn,
Frae morning sun till dine;
But seas between us briad hae roar'd
Sin' auld lang syne.

Chorus...

And there's a hand, my trusty fere!
And gie's a hand o' thine!
And we'll tak' a right gude-willie waught,
For auld lang syne.

Chorus...

Robert Burns



Celebrate with us and enjoy the same Burns Night Fare as we shall be serving:

Scotch-ish Broth

Burns Night Pie

Kranakan Mess

and raise a wee dram to The Bard

For more poems by Robbie Burns, click here

Everything you always wanted to know about Robbie Burns, click here

Scotch Broth for Burns Night

Scotch-ish Broth

As Burns Night approaches, Fancy Pans are putting on some good Scottish fare and this is my take on a traditional dish of Scotch Broth, which I hope Robbie would have enjoyed.

This is a substantial soup which doesn’t need any bread to accompany it.  In fact, the best accompaniment is a tot of good single malt such as Glenmorange.

You will need:

A large pan – big enough to hold all the ingredients.

2lbs Lamb bones – or neck of lamb 4 pints of water

3 oz pearl barley (or 6 tablespoons) OR, risotto rice (or lentils if you really must)

Place the lamb bones into the saucepan, pour on the water and bring to the boil. If there’s a scum on the surface after it has been boiling for a few minutes, scoop it off and discard. Add the Pearl Barley (or the washed lentils, if you must) and leave to simmer for about an hour.  If you are going to use risotto rice, add this with the vegetables later.

You can do your vegetable prep now.

These ingredients need to be peeled (if they need peeling) and chopped into fairly small pieces:

2 sticks of celery – de-stringed

2 large carrots

2 small leeks (or one large one)

A small swede or half a large one

1 large onion (or two small ones)

Plus

2 rashers of bacon – can be smoked or un-smoked, the choice is yours - also chopped into small pieces.

A sprinkling of mixed herbs

Salt and white pepper to taste.

After the bones have been simmering for an hour, add all the other ingredients and cook for a further 20-30 minutes. If you are using risotto rice, add it with the vegetables.

When the vegetables are cooked, remove the bones and discard.  If you have used neck of lamb, you can strip off the meat, chop it finely and put it back into the broth.

Check the seasoning and add more salt and pepper if you need to.

And that’s all there is to it.