Mary Bilyeu | Contributor

Last year, my Robbie Burns Day post about Scottish Oatmeal Shortbread was selected as one of the "Best of the Blogs" for Jan. 25, 2011 by the prestigious Food News Journal — a huge thrill!  That's a hard act to follow, I have to admit.  But I think I may have done it today with this traditional dish — Neeps 'n' Tatties.

"Neeps" are turnips and "tatties" are potatoes. Boil 'em, mash 'em... good, simple, hearty fare for a bitter winter's day. To translate, so to speak, what Robert Burns — the national poet of Scotland, born on Jan. 25, 1759 — wrote in Up in the Early Morning, "Cold blows the wind from east to west."  Warmth and comfort are what we seek these days.

But why not dress up this basic dish with a bit of glam from Drambuie: "A secret elixir of herbs, spices and heather honey, crafted with aged Scotch whiskies"? Why make a boring gravy with broth if I could celebrate my heritage — one-quarter Scottish, and my maternal grandmother was proud to be descended from the Rob Roy MacGregors — with a more flavorful addition?  

The Drambuie's sweetness is a nice balance to the sharpness of the turnips; and potatoes, of course, are perfect with virtually any gravy.

Robbie Burns is usually honored on his birthday with Burns Suppers featuring the dreaded haggis — sheep innards (heart, liver, lungs) mixed with oats, onions and spices and then cooked in a sheep's stomach. Even if I could find all of the ingredients, I can assure you I have no interest in serving anything this authentic for the celebration!

But neeps 'n' tatties is not only fun to say, it's a delicious dish to eat since "I'm sure it's winter fairly."

Up in the Early Morning (1788)

Cauld blaws the wind frae east to west,
The drift is driving sairly;
Sae loud and shill's I hear the blast-
I'm sure it's winter fairly.

The birds sit chittering in the thorn,
A' day they fare but sparely;
And lang's the night frae e'en to morn-
I'm sure it's winter fairly.

Neeps 'n' Tatties with Drambuie Sauce

Potatoes:
1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup milk
pinches of kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Fill a medium saucepan with salted water and bring to a boil.  Add the potatoes; boil for 10-15 minutes, until tender.  Drain the potatoes and mash with the butter, milk, salt and pepper.  Place onto a serving dish.

Turnips:
1 pound turnips, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons milk
pinches of kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Fill a medium saucepan with salted water and bring to a boil.  Add the turnips; boil for 5 minutes, until tender.  Drain the turnips and mash with the butter, milk, salt and pepper; place onto a serving dish.

Sauce:
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
pinch of kosher salt
1/3 cup Drambuie
3/4 cup milk

In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat; whisk in the flour and salt, then cook for 1 minute.  Slowly add the Drambuie and the milk, whisking until smooth.  Cook for 5 minutes over low heat.

Serve the Drambuie sauce over the neeps 'n' tatties.

Serves 6-8 as a side dish.

Mary Bilyeu writes about her adventures in the kitchen - making dinner, celebrating holidays, entering cooking contests ... whatever strikes her fancy. She is also on a mission to find great deals for her Frugal Floozie Friday posts, seeking fabulous food at restaurants on the limited budget of only $5 per person. Feel free to email her with questions or comments or suggestions: yentamary@gmail.com.

You should also visit Mary's blog — Food Floozie — on which she enthuses and effuses over all things food-related.

The phrase "You Should Only Be Happy" (written in Hebrew on the stone pictured in this post) comes from Deuteronomy 16:15 and is a wish for all her readers - when you come to visit here, may you always be happy.