As you will have guessed from a website entitled "Flag in the Wind" we are rather keen on flying The Saltire and fully back calls to make St Andrews Day, 30th November, a Public Holiday. St Andrews Day should be a Public Holiday throughout Scotland, but apart from SNP controlled Angus Council, it is not. The recently reconvened Scottish Parliament, could if the Executive had the smeddum, indeed the Scottishness, declare 30th November as a Public Holiday. The Scottish Executive don't even have the Scottishness or smeddum to fly The Saltire over their offices in Leith ( see Flag issue 65 in Archives ). There are several stories ( myths ) of how St Andrew, brother of St Peter, became the Patron Saint of Scotland. The town of St Andrews became a place of great political importance, Scotland's ecclesiastical capital and its first seat of learning. This arose from the story that St Rule in the 4th century brought the relics of St Andrew to the Pictish settlement of Kinrymont ( Kilrymont ) or Cendrigmoniad which became known as St Andrews. It is claimed that he obtained the relics in Patras, where St Andrew had been crucified on a saltire, a diagonal cross, and was charged to deliver them to ' a region towards the west, situated in the utmost part of the world.' This turned out to be Scotland where Regulus came ashore after being shipwrecked at Kinrymont. Next week we will look at how the St Andrews Cross became the National Flag of Scotland. For St Andrews Day let us enjoy a great Scottish recipe for a plate of tasty Scotch Pancakes smothered in butter and jam!

 

Scotch Pancakes ( Drop Scones )

 

Ingredients : 8 oz plain flour; 1 tspn cream of tartar; 1 tspn bicarbonate of soda; 1 oz caster sugar; pinch of salt; 1 egg slightly beaten; 5 floz milk

 

Sift the dry ingredients and add egg and a little milk to a well in the centre. Blend the mixture evenly and gradually add the rest of the milk to form a batter. Heat the greased girdle or heavy frying pan slowly and test the temperature by dropping a teaspoonful of the batter onto the cooking surface. You should see air bubbles on the surface within a few seconds. Turn the pancake which will be brown, in oder to cook the other side. Cook the rest of the batter in batches ( regreasing if necessary between batches ) by dropping tablespoonsful of batter on to the girdle or pan Keep the pancakes warm in a tea-towel as you continue cooking. They are splendid spread with butter and jam.