Food from the heart, literally

Is there a special food from your region or heritage that you have a particular appreciation for?

This is my FiftyIn50 daily blogging prompt.

🛑 Content Warning:  I'd suggest that those offended by meat eating move away now.

Back to the question. I'm born and bred in Scotland, so I can only assume you will expect me to say Haggis.

For those not familiar with Haggis, I will spare all the detail but it's a traditional Scottish dish -- think very large sausage, as thick as an arm -- made from minced offal (internal organs) of a butchered animal, plus onions, oatmeal, various spices.

It sounds truly awful, but if you can get past the contents, it's actually an interesting and agreeable spicy meat dish.

Ok, now that I have offended vegetarians and vegans, who will now have left the blog, I can say it is also traditionally encased in a sheep's stomach lining.  I am really not selling this to you, am I?!  It's now more common for it to be encased in something more artificial (plastic!)

The French gastronomy encyclopedia, Larousse Gastronomique said: 

Although its description is not immediately appealing, haggis has an excellent nutty texture and delicious savoury flavour.

There's a few times of year we Scots traditionally eat it, but it's available all year round.  We do have it at home occasionally, but it's not on the regular rota of meals we all seem to get stuck on.

It is traditionally served with mashed neeps and tatties.  (Swedish turnips and potatoes), and a creamy sauce with a good dose of Whisky in it.

Haggis is quite versatile, and we have been known to use it when making a Lasagne -- and that's me alienated the Italians now. 

Many fine-dining establishments will have haggis bonbons on their menu as a starter.  Basically, small haggis balls, breadcrumbed, with some kind of dipping sauce

Recently I even had to take two Haggises (Haggi, Hags?!!) on a plane as a friend in Spain asked me to take some over for her!

So back to the blog prompt.  It's a nice dish (honest).  And contrary to many beliefs, we Scots do not run around wearing a Kilt every day and munching Haggis.