It's another love letter to the rugged islands of Scotland, among other things.
If you didn't already want to pack up and move to the Outer Hebrides, reading and looking at the cookbooks of Coinneach MacLeod will definitely make you want to relocate to those remote Scottish islands. MacLeod, known as The Hebridean Baker, just released his third cookbook, The Hebridean Baker at Home. And we're excited to carry this endearing and enticing book, as we were with his first two cookbooks.
In the artfully shot photos that adorn his books, MacLeod is often found wearing a kilt in his clan tartan, with a floppy-eared winter hat, and his trusty canine sidekick, Seras, his West Highland terrier. Images of scenic vistas from the Isle of Lewis, with ancient stone walls, rustic cottages and seaside villages are interspersed among the mouth-watering close-ups of MacLeod's culinary creations.
MacLeod became a successful cookbook author through his breakout popularity on Tik-Tok. His radiant charm, his adorable dog, and the breathtaking scenery all certainly add to the appeal of what MacLeod does. But it's his recipes and his writing about Hebridean traditions, folklore and regional history that give his books their depth.
It's not every cookbook author that will wade confidently into complex historical subjects like Viking forts or Iron Age ruins, or more recent and more thorny topics like the Highland Clearances. (His background in Old Icelandic studies gives him a steady footing in the history of the rugged North Atlantic.) But MacLeod does it all so smoothly, weaving in anecdotes about enduring village customs or about how best to eat a clootie dumpling, depending on how recently it's been baked.
MacLeod also demonstrates an endearing community-mindedness, plugging regional and local food producers at the front of his books and spelling out the rippling beneficial effects of supporting our neighbors and making food that is in season and grown nearby whenever possible.
His second book, My Island Kitchen, included plenty of comfort-food inspiration, like his Cullen Skink Tart, Stornoway Scotch Eggs, and a seriously hefty breakfast concoction called Muc Muc ("muc" is Gaelic for pig) that is kind of a turbo-charged pigs-in-a-blanket meets toad-in-the-hole. It's not for anyone looking for a light start to the day! But MacLeod is the Hebridean Baker after all, and so that book was filled with ample recipes for breads, scones, shortbreads, and more ambitious desserts (Mulled Pear and Pistachio Pavlova!) as well as some tantalizing cocktails. There are special sections devoted to Nordic baking, and Christmas recipes.
It's called The Hebridean Baker at Home, and his latest title is focused on the joys of cooking at home. "Join me where the rolling hills of the Hebrides meet the rolling pins of my kitchen!" he writes in the introduction. And that spirit defines this book. But, for Coinneach, cooking at home means gathering friends and loved ones and sharing stories, enjoying each other's company and learning new recipes, among other things.
Longtime friends contribute favorite recipes and travel tips to make the guidebooks jealous, with stories about visiting remote spots in the Outer Hebrides. The recipes range far and wide, with plenty of Coinneach's signature Scottish bakes, like Selkirk Bannock with Marmalade Syrup, Treacle Scones, Ecclefechan Tarts and a twist on Millionaire's Shortbread. In keeping with Coinneach's background in Norse Mythology, there are numerous recipes that tease out older patterns of migration, cultural dissemination and culinary drift. Treats that have their origins in Wales, Brittany, Denmark and elsewhere are presented as well. Interspersed with the food are reflections on song, island life, distilleries and folklore.
A good cookbook should make you want to cook, and this does that, without a doubt. It also might make you want to book flights to Scotland!