Last week the reconvened Scottish Parliament was presented with two of the oldest law books in the country. They were presented to the Parliament by an Inverness law firm MacLeod and MacCallum who purchased the books at auction in the 1970s. The two law books had been in the personal library of Chancellor Seafield, the last Chancellor of Scotland before the Union of the Parliaments in 1707. The law books contain statutes passed by The Three Estates banning football and golf in medieval times.

 

Just as well Scots chose to ignore such laws, indeed they played a major role in making football and golf popular world-wide. By coincidence this week sees the 250th anniversary of the establishing of the Fife town of St Andrews as the world centre of golf. On 14th May 1752 twenty-two noblemen and gentlemen, having devised a competition to be played over the Links of St Andrews, presented a Silver Club to the winner, who became Club Captain for a year. From this competition evolved The Society of St Andrews Golfers, who met regularly to take part in the 'healthfull exercise of golf'. In 1834 the Society received the patronage of King William IV and was renamed The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews. Golf remains widely popular in the land of its birth as the number of golf courses, the length and breadth of Scotland, testifies. 

 

The links and greens of St Andrews are famous world-wide and attract visitors from all four corners of the globe. But it is another type of green which inspires this week's recipe - cauliflower.Once again we are indebted to our friends in the Dumfriesshire Federation SWRI, whose Kilmahoe Institute supplied a recipe for Cauliflower Souffle Tart to the Federation's 70th Anniversary Cook-Book in 1992.

 

Cauliflower Souffle Tart

 

Ingredients : 6 oz short crust pastry; 1/2 small cauliflower broken into florets; 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder; 2 eggs (size 3) separated; 1 oz butter; 1 oz plain flour; 1/4 pint milk; 3 oz cheddar cheese, grated; 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

 

Preheat oven to 220 C/425 F/ Gas Mark 7. Use pastry to line 8 inch flan tin. Bake blind for ten minutes. Cook the cauliflower in boiling water for five minutes, until just tender. Drain well reserving stock. Arrange the cauliflower in the pastry case. Melt butter in a pan, stir in flour and mustard. Cook for one minute. Gradually stir in milk and 1/4 pint stock. Cook until smooth, stirring. Remove from heat and stir in egg yolks and cheese. Whisk the egg whites until stiff amd fold in. Spoon over cauliflower and sprinkle with cayenne pepper. Bake for thirty minutes until golden.