Haggis, Tatties, and Neeps

Yesterday after church, one of our elder statesmen invited me to their home for dinner last night, announcing (after I accepted) that we would be having haggis.

Now, I have read enough to know that haggis is essentially minced sheep's innards boiled in a sheep's stomach but I have never experienced it. I'm not a particularly adventurous eater but I do enjoy these folks' company and trusted that they wouldn't serve me anything noxious.

There were several other guests, among them a couple with considerable haggis-eating experience (and, coincidentally, a couple whom I married a year or so ago just before she underwent her next set of chemo---"I want to wear my wedding dress before my hair falls out again" was her statement when she asked me to officiate). So the evening promised to be exceptional, whether or not I enjoyed the meal.

But haggis, served with tatties and neeps, turned out to be quite tasty, a sort of lamb-flavored meat loaf served in a wedge with nice lumpy mashed potatoes and mild, sweet mashed rutabaga. For dessert we had meringues and berry compote plus a slice of a pie-like sweet whose name I can't recall.

I'm told that Robbie Burns Day, in January, is the normal time for serving this traditional Scots meal. But perhaps too much fanfare for such an unusual meal has the effect of turning off potential gourmands, as it does for potential lutefisk eaters around Christmas. I haven't eaten lutefisk either, despite my Scandinavian heritage, though lefse is quite palatable. Maybe if I try it at a different time of the year....