Tuesday 14 February 2012

Nothing says I love you, like a neep.


Love is...haggis neeps and tatties, kindly reproduced with permission from Abbey Lou
Now, rather than moan on about the price of flowers on this day of lovers, or witter on about giving compost for valentines day, I thought I rather talk about neeps. This is nothing to do with Mr Flowers disappearance, nor the fact that I'll be eating a 'dinner for one' tonight. As I'm effectively 'home alone' on this day of love, my feeling for that great noble vegetable, 'the neep' cannot be subdued. Neep=swedish turnip or rutabaga to those of you in the know. Linnew has previously written at length, often in great debate with Kininvie and other fine bloggers like Janet, about these fine vegetables, as have those folk at the guardian.
My love of neeps, is not unknown, I've even made cakes with them, a kind of experiment, gone almost right. I have to say however, my favourite way to serve them is mashed.  I'm a sucker for a root vegetable smothered in butter and beaten to a pulp. I'm not alone, I've found a few fans too, Not Delia regales about them also. In that ilk, I took up the gauntlet to find some authentic, really good, top notch neep seeds for my fine pal LinneW over in America. I hunted the noble swede, like the great plant detective I hope one day to be.
Being keen not to short change her and make sure I sourced only the finest neep seeds for her And so, my covert 'operation neep' began in the darkest hours of the Orkney winter. My mission began, I hunted neeps everywhere I could, even when they were cunningly disguised as 'Swedes'.
I should really thank Linnew as this gave me a sense of purpose. A reason to brave the gale force winds and dark days, by getting out and quietly finding out about neeps. When to sow them, how to tend them and of course to find the ultimate 'neep', that which can hold the chalis of greatness for the species, so I might hold my head high and send Linne her seeds. Being a real root vegetable specialist, I knew only the finest seeds would do for her. My mission continued into the depths of night........
 
Of course, like any good mission, this involved alot of covert evening operations, mainly drinking tea or malt whisky. No point in blethering (talking) about neeps with a dry throat. There is probably some health and safety law against it in Scotland I'm sure. So for the sake of LinneW, I had to spend those dark, wind filled days, talking root vegetables with many a fine chap (and chapess) and drinking a peedie dram here and there. Purely for the cause you understand. The ultimate neep seed our goal.

And, before I began my mission, how was I to know that Orkney is professed to be the foremost place in the UK to grow these fine vegetables, by John Shirreff in his 'General view of the agriculture of the Orkney islands' [1814] as.....


And the winner? Up here in the frozen north the preferred variety is 'Airlie' but 'Ruta O'tofte' following a close second. A link here will also tell you that.....

'..The 2 key varieties of Swede that we market in the UK are market leaders Kenmore and Airlie – both swedes are bred in Scotland by the SAC.'

I hope LinneW will enjoy her seeds, (thoroughly researched by dram and candle light), when they wing their way towards her, and her patience will be rewarded......by my love of neeps.


Happy valentines day to you all, my your life be full of love, laughter, and neeps, should you enjoy them too.

9 comments:

  1. I'm with you on the mash with loads of butter version. Tops!

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    1. Aside the noble potato - king of all vegetables, mashed neep is my favourite. I agree Bridget, tops!

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  2. Great blog! As you can see I am too a great lover of the Neep! A farming friend of mine handed out giant neeps at a rugby match one year and gave us her recipe for Curried neep soup, has to be one of my favorites, quick and easy and even better if left to stand for a day!

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    1. Abbie lovely to hear from you and thank you very much for the use of the top photo - I had a peek at your website - its amazing - curried neep soup - sounds amazing, I don't know if you know it by the http://allotment2kitchen.blogspot.com/ A2K blog you'd probably love. A lady down by your end of the country blogging about lovely vegetable food and how to make delightful treaty food from them!

      Any chance of a recipe for the famed giant neep curried soup?

      Thank you for popping by x

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  3. Hail to the neep, nippy raw and hard and full o muck, at ten years old we would pinch them oot o the fairmers field and kid oorseles on it wis a delicacy.

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    1. Fit like loon? Blagging neeps! Oh my I'm sure they tasted sweet! Fairmers likely woodnae miss a few scraggy neeps, they'd only feed them tae the ewes........hail the neep indeed!

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  4. Now you know i am totally in love with a good neep. I approve of your accolade of this fine root vegetable...Bob x

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  5. After all I said about neeps, I think they're best fed to the the sheep...but I will join you in a wee dram...

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  6. An tae think ah've sweerit tae carve a neep gin Linnie's clematis dinna grow...nae worries, they're 'a deid, the moose saw tae it

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