THE PULL OF THE HEBRIDES
Coinneach MacLeod shares recipes for nostalgic Scottish treats perfect for Easter
Scottish textiles are as essential to author Coinneach MacLeod (a.k.a. the Hebridean Baker) as golden syrup.
In the crofting township of Cromore, his mother was a Harris tweed weaver. The rhythmic clacking of her treadle loom, in chorus with many others in sheds around the village, “is one of the sounds of the Hebrides.”
Keen observers will spot cakes, cocktails and custards set on a woollen tweed backdrop in photos throughout MacLeod's new book, The Hebridean Baker: At Home (Sourcebooks, 2024). Colourful Scottish knitwear has become a hallmark of his social media videos and cookbooks.
While he enjoys continually coming up with new baking recipes, “What I do find stressful or intimidating is trying to find new Fair Isle sweaters. I spend most of my life looking for those,” says MacLeod, laughing.
Born and raised on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland's Outer Hebrides, MacLeod rose to fame as the Hebridean Baker on TikTok in 2020. He's since written three cookbooks in as many years. His second, The Hebridean Baker: My Scottish Island Kitchen (2023).
As he walked to Book Warehouse for a night of songs and stories, a stranger called out in Gaelic, his mother tongue.
“He unbelievably emigrated from my village, which only has 30 houses in it, to Vancouver Island over 40 years ago. When he heard I was coming to Vancouver, he travelled all the way from Vancouver Island. It meant the world to me, and that just set the tone for the whole tour.”
In Calgary, MacLeod's second stop, the good vibes continued. A man clad in a beautiful Fair Isle sweater, a distinctive type of stranded colourwork from the Shetland Islands, waited to speak with him after the event.
“He said, `Since I started buying your books, I kept seeing you in these Fair Isle jumpers. I couldn't find them anywhere, so I learned to knit them myself.' I love the fact that I've inspired folk to bake or come to the Hebrides. I never expected to inspire somebody to knit.”
Alongside recipes for classic Scottish bakes such as fern cake and toasted Selkirk bannock with marmalade syrup are savoury dishes, as well as festive specialties such as spiced carrot hot cross buns for Easter and a chapter devoted to Christmas in the Hebrides. MacLeod also shares stories of island culture, folklore and history — and a baking playlist, “Because music is a great way to be introduced to the Gaelic language.”
The Hebridean Baker “all started very humbly,” says MacLeod. He began sharing Scottish recipes and stories online when his Aunt Bellag, who is 95, gave him her recipe for duff (clootie dumpling). Since he shared that recipe, 28 million people have watched his videos.
“Never in my imagination at that point did I think that these stories and recipes were going to resonate across the world,” says MacLeod. “I'd get messages — particularly from North America and particularly Canada — of folks going, `Oh, my goodness, I haven't seen that recipe in such a long time.' Or, `I remember my grandmother telling me that story.' Or, `I love hearing a wee bit of Gaelic.'”
Though MacLeod's repertoire has grown over the years, the traditional Scottish recipes he learned from his mother and aunts are at its heart. He describes himself as “a bit of a cookbook nerd” and takes inspiration from old tomes, such as F. Marian McNeill's The Scots Kitchen (1929) and The Practice of Cookery (1829) by Prince Edward Islander Catherine Emily Callbeck Dalgairns (a.k.a. Mrs Dalgairns).
Note: MacLeod recommends purchasing a digital kitchen scale. Cup conversions for flour, sugar and butter are guidelines only. For best results, use a scale to measure in grams.