Last week, we scribbled about Burns Night and traditional Scottish dishes.

Today, we are going to combine the two and give you a couple of recipes which you might want to cook for Burns Night.

The recipes are a traditional Cullen skink from Andrew Fairlie, the chef who runs Scotland’s only two Michelin star restaurant, followed by an unusual idea for a parsnip crème brûleé from Paul Wedgwood, chef patron at Edinburgh’s Wedgwood.

For more recipes, as well as a complete guide to Burns Night and the man’s poetry, take a gander around here.

If you have ever wondered what you would look like performing Burns’ Address to a Haggis then this is fun.

Andrew Fairlie’s traditional Cullen skink

Ingredients

Serves: 4

1 tbsp olive or vegetable oil

1 leek, well-rinsed, chopped and cut into rough 2cm cubes

1 litre fish stock

200g waxy potatoes, peeled and cut into roughly 2cm cubes

300g undyed smoked Scottish haddock fillet

1 bay leaf

Freshly ground pepper

2 tbsp whipping cream

Chives, roughly chopped

Method

Warm the oil in a pan. Add the chopped leek, cover and gently cook for a few minutes until soft. Add the stock, bay leaf, potato and haddock.

Season lightly with black pepper.

Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes.

Remove the haddock from the pan with a slotted spoon. When the fish is cool enough to handle, remove any skin and bones, then flake the haddock back into the pan.

Blend a ladle full of the soup in a liquidizer and return to the pan. Stir in the double cream and simmer for another 2-3 minutes.

Add more black pepper if necessary, then sprinkle with the chopped chives and serve.

Serve with chunks of fresh wholemeal or granary bread.

Paul Wedgwood’s honey roast parsnip crème brûleé

 

Ingredients

Serves: 4

200ml double cream

4 medium sized parsnips (500g purée)

12 large egg yolks

150g caster sugar

1 whole egg

2 tsp vegetable oil

2 tbsp honey

Method

Peel and core the parsnips and cut into a 2cm dice. Place on a baking sheet with oil and honey. Cover with the foil, and bake for about 20 minutes at 180°C/350°F/Gas mark 4 until soft. Leave to cool.

Place the cream into a heavy-bottomed pan and bring to the boil.

Cream together the eggs and sugar until light and fluffy.

Pour over a little of the hot cream mix to ‘scald’ the egg mix. Add the rest of the cream.

In a food processor, blitz together the parsnips and crème brûleé mix, and pass through a fine sieve.

Keep working as much of the mix through as possible. Skim off any foam. Pour into ramekins.

Place into a bain-marie, in a warm oven, for about 10-15 minutes.