A Little German, A Little Scottish, And A Whole Lot of Breakfast

The title of this blog implies that a simple meal, with little or no forethought, could potentially have far reaching implications. Maybe it is as simple as solidifying a friendship, closing a business deal or perhaps leaving a lasting impression on your children, but those seemingly insignificant implications are well worth a little planning.

A perfect example of this is LMGI's newest request from Jaden of Steamy Kitchen, and I am honored to receive a challenge from one of my favorite bloggers! Jaden writes, "Here's a request:a family supper to introduce our little kids to their father's German-Scottish heritage.

no wait.

let me change that: a German-Scottish family supper that our family can create into a yearly tradition.

My MIL is German, FIL is Scottish. They have wonderful traditions and rituals that the family still partakes in regularly. I'd love to create a family tradition that revolved around a supper menu. Something that ties the kids back to their roots. "

Now this is a great request and a challenge. German and Scottish and it needs to become a tradition? No pressure there!

Happily, this menu seemed to plan itself. The minute I started to think of a family mealtime tradition, my mind immediately went to my family's own little tradition. You see, every New Year's Day morning, since before I can remember, my parents (who don't drink and therefore can fathom getting up and cooking on NYD) would wake up early and cook this enormous and beautiful German apple pancake. The recipe came from The Vegetarian Epicure by Anna Thomas.

This may seem like a small or silly tradition, but even now, with most of the kids out of the house (there are four of us), we all still come home (albeit hungover as hell) on NYD and share a German apple pancake with my parents.

So, Jaden, I hope you don't mind, but I've slightly modified your request to become a traditional brunch instead of dinner. I love the idea of coming home and sharing a breakfast with family at any age. It seems so intimate, something only a family could do.

Since, I happen to know from first hand experience that this German apple pancake ROCKS and it is coincidentally German, this has to be a part of the menu. Unfortunately, Thomas' exact recipe is not online, but the version I linked to below is the closest I could find to my parent's recipe.

With the German part of the menu taken care of, now we face the Scottish side. I'll admit, I'm not terribly familiar with Scottish food, but when I found this recipe I knew I had dish number two.

Scotch eggs basically consist of hard-boiled eggs that are peeled, encased in sausage meat and bread crumbs, and then deep-fried. I know people, I know - healthy they are not, but, hey, this meal is meant to be eaten once a year, not once a week.

And can I just say, those eggs are soooo good. I'm talking eyes-roll-back-in-your-head-as-you-moan-with-pleasure good.

As rich and decadent as this menu sounds already, I hate having a meal with only two dishes in it. So, depending on how big your appetite is, you can either take this last dish or leave it...

Since Jaden and her family live in South, I thought it only appropriate to add a bit of Southern to the meal. Yep, you guessed it - grits. A perfect temperament to the sweetly sugared pancake and salty eggs. Now, I'm not going to provide a recipe for grits, but I will say do yourself a favor and buy Logan Turnpike Mill stone-ground grits. They are unbelievable; you barely need butter.

So, in total, Jaden's German-Scottish meal that will hopefully become a family tradition is

German Apple Pancake

Scotch Eggs

Logan Turnpike Mill Grits

Jaden, I hope you will make this a NYD brunch tradition in your family. There is nothing better than a little sugar and a little grease to cure a hangover, and it is the perfect time to gather and celebrate family.

Cheers!