Wednesday, February 19, 2014

THE PA MELTING POT - Great Britain - Part 2-2 Scottish and Scotch-Irish (Ulster Scots)

FROM FOODGRAPHY ON TV.  THE SCOTCH AND SCOTCH-IRISH INVENTED BOURBON IN THE US.  ERGO, THEN THE MINT JULIP AT THE KENTUCKY DERBY!!

The Melting Pot:  A look at the evolution of food in southwestern Pa.  Part 2-2 Great Britain – Scottish and Scotch Irish
23 % of western Pennsylvania’s population is made up of Irish, Scotch-Irish and Scottish. 
Today I would like to talk about the two immigrant groups from the Scotland/Ireland area:  
(1) Scots/Scotsman/Scottish/Scottish (which refers to anyone whose heritage lies within the borders of Scotland which throughout history are a combination of Angles, Saxons, Norse, French, English, Britons, Gaelic, Celts etc.) and 
(2) Scotch-Irish/Scots-Irish/ Scot-Irish/Ulster Scots (which refers to the Ulster Scots, an ethnic group in Ulster, Ireland, who trace their roots to settlers from Scotland and northern England) The term “Scotch-Irish” was coined in the United States when they immigrated in the 18th century). The number of Americans of Scottish descent today is estimated to be 20 to 25 million (up to 8.3% of the total US population), and Scotch-Irish, 27 to 30 million (up to 10% of the total US population).
The (Highland) Scottish (Johnny Cash and Andrew Carnegie were Scottish) have been stereotyped as being thrifty, cautious, and “careful of detail”. They were Catholic/Episcopalian, members of clans, spoke Gaelic, wore kilts, played bagpipes and still claim the Loch Ness monster!! Scottish festivals are big and the Ligonier Highland Games in September draw 5000-10,000 attendees. Scotch Bottom (Hazelwood and Greenfield) in Pittsburgh was settled by the Scottish.

SCOTTISH FOODS:  

Cock-a-leekie soup (leeks, chicken stock and barley), Scotch broth (barley, lamb, mutton or beef, carrots, turnips, split peas, lentils, cabbage and leeks), and Finnan Haddie which is cold smoked haddock. Black, red and white pudding (sausages), boiled Mutton or Lamb, Haggis (soup made with sheep parts), beef, venison and grouse.  Rumbledethumps (a vegetable dish) is made with potatoes, cabbage and onion. Crowdie (cream cheese) and Dunlop (soft cheddar) are popular cheeses. 

The Scots also enjoy rich vegetable soups, seafood in many forms, beef, oatcakes (a tasty biscuit), and short-bread (a rich, cookie-like confection), Burnt cream (crème brulee), Cranachan (whipped cream, whiskey, heather honey and fresh raspberries with toasted oatmeal), ales, drambuie, ginger wine and Scotch whiskey.

The Scotch-Irish (John Wayne and Thomas Mellon were Scotch-Irish) before 1900 over 1,200,000 immigrated from Ulster and a large number settled in industrial areas such as Pennsylvania (specifically western Pennsylvania).  They spoke Celtic, were Presbyterian, landowners, skilled workers, hard-working, and patriotic. They were responsible for breaking away from Virginia to form West Virginia. The language of the early Scots-Irish settlers had the greatest influence on the speech of southwestern/western Pennsylvania and also contributed to “Pittsburghese.”  The Scotch-Irish dialect region spans from western Pennsylvania to Erie (north), west to Youngstown, south to Clarksburg and east to Harrisburg.

SCOTCH-IRISH FOODS (a mixture of Scotch and Irish Foods):  Corned Beef and Cabbage, Fish and Chips (hand cut fries) with Malt Vinegar, Green Peas (sometimes called mushy peas), Colcannon (Mashed Potatoes, Turnips and Carrots pan cooked with butter), Irish Soda Bread and Scottish Fruit Scones. Also they use Irish cheeses and butter.  Guinness Lamb Stew, steak and potato pie, smoked Mackerel, Boxty (Irish Potato Pancakes), Scots Irish Stew, Scotch-Irish Potato Salad, Oatmeal Brulee, Barley wine, Irish Treacle Pudding, Barmbrack (currant cake), Goody (dessert with bread, milk, sugar and spices), whisky, Irish coffee, Mead, Irish breakfast tea and  lemonade.

LINKS BELOW THE PHOTOS

SCOTTISH and SCOTCH-IRISH PHOTOS, FOOD PHOTOS AND RECIPE LINKS

Scotland and Scotch-Irish area

LINK to Scotch-Irish or Ulster Scots

 













Food Photos

  














Food Links















THE PA MELTING POT: SCOTCH-IRISH: Language Lesson ONE from the BBC

Read how some friends use these and some further expressions when they meet:
Julie:
Hi ye, Linda! Hoo's things?
Linda:
Mair nor middlin. Whit wye ur ye, Julie?
Julie:
Brave an guid.
Jack:
Ay, Bob. Guid to see ye! Hoo ur ye daein?
Bob:
Guid to see ye Jack! A’m gran. Ye'r lukkin pooerfu weel yersel.
Sam:
Whut aboot ye, Tammie? Ye keepin weel?
Tommy
:  A'm brave an guid, Sam. An yersel?
Sam:
Mair nor middlin. A cud be waur.

Want to see more:  Here is the link:

LINK TO SCOTH-IRISH OR ULSTER SCOTS LANGUAGE LESSON 1



Monday, February 3, 2014

The PA Melting Pot - Germany: - German Sects Part 2: Bavaria, Moravia, Holland and Switzerland

Photos and Recipes Links are below the column!!


Part 1 – German Sects 2:  Bavaria, Moravia, Holland and Switzerland

This is Part 2 of the German Series.  There are 50 million German descendants living in the US from all parts of Europe.  This column will speak about 4 countries due to their proximity to Germany that speak German or a German dialect.  There are pockets of German neighborhoods in Allegheny County (Reserve Township which claims 50% German), and in Pittsburgh (Spring Garden which claims 48%).  26% of Allegheny County’s population is German.  15% of Uniontown PA and 19% of Morgantown WVA residents are of German descent. 

Bavaria is a free state located in southeastern Germany. The Bavarians speak a Bavarian dialect and standard German. 

Common Foods of Bavaria:  Wurstsalat (sausage)

 salad), Kartoffelsaladt (marinated boiled potatoes

 and Leverspatzlesuppe (soup with pork liver  

dumplings, Weisswurst (veal and bacon),
 Schweinsbraten, (pork with gravy and  dumplings), Bratwurst mit Sauerkraut and 
Leberkäse (liver cheese) and is normally served  with bread or Kartoffelsalat and mustard. 

Desserts include Apfelkrapfen (pastry with apples) and Apfelstrudel (apple strudel). And, of course, Bavaria is famous for its three types of beer:  Weißbier (wheat beer), Helles (straw blond lager), and Dunkles (dark lager).

Moravia is a country in the eastern part of the Czech Republic and due to the proximity of Germany and its history the Moravian language formed its own dialect combining German and Czech. 

Common Foods of Moravia:  Roast goose with dumplings and sauerkraut, pork knee (Moravian and Czech), roasted pork (“Moravian sparrow”) with stewed cabbage and dumplings, various dishes with savoy cabbage (like baked rabbit meat), sweet noodles with poppy seeds, pies with sweet cottage cheese and plum jam, Halušky (soft cooked noodles or dumplings), pickled gherkins, and their beverages are pivo (beer), wine and apricot brandy (slivovitz).

Holland is where they speak Dutch (“low” German). This dialect evolved due to the proximity of Holland to Germany.  Dutch cuisine comes in three parts.  
Common Foods of Holland:
NORTHEASTERN:  Fish, game, Rookwurst (smoked sausage) served with hutspot (sauerkraut), pastries and cookies which are hard in nature and spiced with ginger such as Kruidkoek (spice cake), Fryske dumkes (cookies) and spekdikken (savory pancakes). They drink bitters and high proof liquors. 
WESTERN: Kaas (cheeses such as Edam and Gouda), rich butters, buttermilk, Schaal-en schelpdieren (seafood) and pastries and cookies with lots of sugar.  The traditional alcoholic beverages of this region are beer (strong pale lager), jenever (a high proof juniper-flavored spirit) and Advocaat (liqueur made from eggs, sugar and brandy).  
SOUTHERN:  This area’s haute (high) cuisine is influenced by French and German cuisine.  It is renowned for its many rich pastries, soups, stews and vegetable dishes.  Moorkop and Bossche Bol are typical sweet pastries. These Dutch drink beer and wine.

Switzerland is bordered on the North by Germany so that fact affects the language, culture and cuisine of northern Switzerland. 

Common foods of Switzerland: Zurcher  Geschnetzeltes (veal with mushrooms in a cream sauce),  Swiss cheeses (Emmantal, Gruyere, Vacherin, and Appenzeller), cheese dishes such as fondue and raclette (cheese melted over a fire, scraped onto bread or boiled potatoes and served with cornichons or baby pickles), Cervelet/cervelas (the national sausage), Rosti (potato dish Älplermagronen (Alpine herdsman's macaroni), Tirggel (Christmas biscuits), Zopf (bread), and tarts and quiches (tarts are made with different toppings, from sweet apple to onion).  Wine, beer, brandy and absinthe are popular. 


















  
HISTORIC MAP






























BAVARIA



MORAVIA

LINK to WIKI on Moravia

There is a strong link between Bohemia, Germany and Moravia.  Moravia with a large German population is known for its Czech Republic and German Food. 

LINK TO Czech-German cuisine


HOLLAND


SWITZERLAND

LINK to WIKI on Switzerland


Switzerland is the land of German, French and Italian cuisines.  See the Swiss-German section. 


LINK to German-Swiss Cuisine

LINK to Swiss Recipes


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Next column will be German Sects 3 

For blog posts and recipes visit www.ThePAMeltingPot.com.  Christine Willard, a native of western Pennsylvania, researches and blogs about the food unique to western Pennsylvania. She currently resides in North Carolina.