Feasts and Festivals: Burns Night

Robert Burns is considered to be Scotland's greatest-ever poet. He's honored every year on January 25th. Traditionally, the thing to do on Burns Night is to eat haggis and read aloud Robbie Burns's "To a Haggis." A couple of years ago, I had a rather disastrous haggis-making experience. I thought I'd have some genetic predisposition toward it, seeing as a huge chunk of my ancestry is from Scotland. No such luck. So, this year, I'm incorporating sheep in a different way--roasted and with some yummy vegetables.

According to Mrs. Beeton, roast shoulder of mutton should be served with baked potatoes and stewed onions. I have complied with her suggestion and added carrots, as well. Mutton really should be used this time of year, but it's impossible to find, so I've used a shoulder of lamb I bought at the westside farmers market this summer and have had in the freezer until now. It's amazing that I could have forgotten about seven pounds of lamb, but there you have it.



Since I only have a combined electric range/oven and no fire (not even in the living room--a previous owner took out the fireplace in a round of misguided 1960s renovations), Mrs. B's Shoulder of Mutton recipe isn't much use to me. Also, Victorians must have eaten the most appallingly overcooked vegetables. So, I've made a few changes to suit my kitchen and my taste.

Roast Lamb Dinner

Roast Shoulder of Lamb

1 bone-in shoulder of lamb (7 lbs)
coarse sea salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Rub lamb all over with sea salt, place in a roasting pan fat side up and cook approximately 35 minutes per pound. Unlike lamb chops, a shoulder of lamb is served well done. A seven-pound shoulder should take around four hours.

When roast is finished, allow to rest 15 to 20 minutes before serving. Shred and serve with caramelized onions.

Serves 8

Adapted from Betty Crocker's Picture Cookbook (1950), 267.

Caramelized Onions

1/4 cup butter
4 yellow onions, peeled and thinly sliced
2 teaspoons demerara sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt
pepper

In a small skillet or omelet pan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook 15 minutes, or until softened. Onion should not brown; turn down the heat if necessary.

Add sugar, salt and pepper and turn heat up to medium and sauté onions for about 1/2 an hour, or until very brown and very soft. Serve with roast lamb.

Serves 8

Adapted from "Caramelized Onions" in Martha Stewart Living, June 1995.

Baked Potatoes

1/2 lb russet potato per person

Scrub each potato and prick on all sides with the tines of a fork. Roast directly in the oven at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour 40 minutes. Serve with butter, sour cream, salt and pepper.

Boiled Carrots

1/4 lb carrots per person, peeled and trimmed

Boil carrots until fork-tender, then drain. Dress with melted butter or return carrots to pan to boil in 1/4 cup cream per person until cream is almost entirely absorbed by carrots. Season with salt and pepper.

Recipes from Mrs. Beeton:

"Roast Shoulder of Mutton" in Mrs. Beeton, The Book of Household Management (London: Ward, Lock, and Co., 1888), 349. From Google Books.

"Stewed Spanish Onions" in ibid., 578-579.

"Stewed Carrots" in ibid., 743-744.