Take one furry hat, add a cute dog and mix well with some delicious baking
Islander’s recipe for international stardom
When Coinneach MacLeod posted his first video of baking clootie dumplings with his 93-year-old aunt online just over two years ago, the home baker from the Western Isles had no idea it would lead to him cooking with Hollywood actors and teaching thousands of Americans how to make scones. And that’s just in the past month.
MacLeod, who hails from the fishing village of Cromore on Lewis, became a social media sensation when millions of fans around the world fell in love with his posts on the video-sharing platform, TikTok. A multi-book deal swiftly followed, including a US tour and an invitation to headline the world’s biggest baking trade show, IBIE 2022 Baking Expo, last month.
Back on Scottish soil, MacLeod said his one regret from the trip was missing out on the chance to visit Line Of Duty star Martin Compston at his luxury mansion in Las Vegas, near where the prestigious trade event was held. The pair recently bonded when MacLeod found himself showing the actor how to make turmeric oat risotto outside a run-down croft on the Isle of Lewis for Compston’s Scottish Fling travel show.
“Martin was genuinely interested in Gaelic, our heritage and identity,” said MacLeod, 48, better known through his cookbooks and TikTok videos as The Hebridean Baker.
“We made a savoury risotto with oats and Stornoway black pudding outside over an open fire in the pouring rain because it was summertime on Lewis. He loved it and it was the first time he had ever tried black pudding. He told me his father used to get a black pudding supper from the chip shop every
Friday night and couldn’t believe he had never tried one himself.”
Sadly, Compston’s cooking ability left a little to be desired. “I gave him a spurtle to stir the ingredients in the pan and he had it the wrong way around. I didn’t think that was a good start,” MacLeod laughed. “He did admit that he never cracked an egg before his 30s. He might not be a good cook but he was definitely a good eater!”
During lockdown, MacLeod was making clootie dumplings with his 93-year-old aunt, Bellag, when he decided to film their baking session to share on social media as a way of preserving island traditions for future generations on Lewis.
“I was sitting by the stove with my aunt Bellag, who was making clootie dumplings, on her 70th wedding anniversary talking about wedding-day traditions on the island,” he recalled.
“I started making videos because I didn’t want people on Lewis to forget these stories, never thinking they would resonate outside the Hebrides. Now I’ve had just over 21 million views, so it’s gone a wee bit further than Lewis! It’s amazing that it’s resonated across the world. Every day since has been a crazy adventure.”
MacLeod’s short videos about making comforting recipes and island life, filmed in front of a wood-burning stove or across the rugged, sweeping landscapes of Lewis quickly earned him a global fanbase and led to a book deal with his first, The Hebridean Baker, becoming a bestseller last year.
Now he has released his second cookbook, My Scottish Island Kitchen, which celebrates traditional Scottish and Western Isles recipes with a side of island folklore, traditions and personal stories, such as his grandmother Anna’s life as a Herring Girl.
“It’s basically lots of wholesome things you want to eat in front of the fire to get you through a Hebridean winter,” explained MacLeod in an accent as comforting as his recipes that include slow cook beef cheek casserole, Cullen skink pie, whisky marmalade and baked oat Alaska.
“I’ve loved finding old Scottish recipes in cookbooks like The Scots Kitchen by F Marian MacNeill from 1929 and The Practice Of Cookery by Mrs Dalgairns from 1840 and giving them a modern twist.
“I’ve included traditional Lewis recipes like clootie dumplings, or duffs as we call them on the island, but with a chocolate twist inspired by a BBC Alba cooking segment I did for Hogmanay. There’s a local saying that the way to a Hebridean man or woman’s heart is to make them a duff and you’ll be married within a week.”
He added: “When I started creating content online, I realised people were interested in stories that went alongside the recipes. Writing these stories is probably one of my favourite things about the book, that I can talk about the traditions and history of the islands, and the people on the island.”
The book is peppered with another passion of MacLeod’s, also inspired by his heritage.
“People have messaged me to say they’ve started learning Gaelic because they’ve heard it on my videos or in the book,” he said. “It’s a big part of our identity and I love that it’s coming back into fashion with people learning it on Duolingo and wanting to know more about it.”
MacLeod speaks and sings in Gaelic with his partner Peter, a former presenter on children’s programme De A Nis and now a BBC Alba producer. The couple met four years ago at The Royal National Mod, where MacLeod was singing in the Silver Pendant competition and Peter was behind the camera. They regularly compete in the Mod’s duet category and won gold in 2018.
The son of a fisherman and a weaver, MacLeod splits his time between Lewis and Oban with Peter and his West Highland terrier, Seoras. The latter is a regular attraction in MacLeod’s cookbooks and videos, as is MacLeod’s trademark furry trapper hat.
“It was all about functionality in the beginning because my kitchen where I did my first videos was freezing. When people started sending me hats I realised that it was my brand, the furry hat. Luckily I like wearing furry hats, although wearing it in Las Vegas was a challenge!
“I film a lot of my TikTok videos in a small croft owned by Peter’s parents overlooking the Isle of Seil. It’s completely off-grid and people love that concept that we live there with no electricity and just the fire keeping us warm.”
Despite his success, there is still one accolade MacLeod is desperate to achieve. Last year, he was devastated to finish joint runner-up in the World Porridge Making Championships behind Golden Spurtle winner Miriam Groot, a vegan food blogger from the Netherlands.
“I love porridge and a spurtle is the one thing I could never be without in my kitchen,” he admitted. “I was heartbroken to come second in the World Porridge Making Championships. Sadly I can’t enter this year but I will be back to win that Golden Spurtle in the future, for sure.”