The Hebridean Baker is a difficult man to pin down. When he’s not baking clootie dumplings on his home island of Lewis, he’s hiking Portugal’s Douro Valley, touring the US signing his award-winning cookbooks or making an exclusive appearance on This Morning. But while Coinneach MacLeod’s work takes him all over the globe, his latest escapades have been closer to home.

Scottish Island Adventures is a new podcast from Caledonian MacBrayne that shines a warm, cosy light on island culture, cuisine and community. The listener follows MacLeod on an array of audio adventures, from kayaking in Arran to tasting Tobermory Fish Company’s famous smoked trout (allegedly so good it’s often mistaken for salmon). The crisp sounds of rushing waters and cool island breezes combined with MacLeod’s soothing storyteller’s voice (which his American fans adore) make for an ideal listen to lull us mainlanders to sleep. Joined by special guests including Kirsty Wark and Janice Forsyth, The Hebridean Baker celebrates Scottish islands from a true local perspective.

‘It was so interesting doing the podcast because it was your own islands, and you were trying to get the right perspective of where you’re from,’ MacLeod explains. ‘It was sort of easy on the Outer Hebrides because I know them so well. But then, of course we do the Inner Hebrides like Bute and Mull and Islay, so that’s when I needed people to say “oh you’ve got to go and visit this person or go and see this”. I’d never been to Arran before because for us, Arran is really far south,’ he laughs.

Hosting a podcast series is a new venture for MacLeod, who’s famous for short snippets and social-media videos. The leeway of creating lengthier audio episodes was a welcome change. ‘It’s always been my thing, be it for a minute or an hour, to make people feel that they can join me in a story. Meeting these fascinating people who are so passionate about what they do on the islands was just amazing.’

Our Hebridean Baker hopes that more than anything, his new podcast will drive visitors to Scotland’s islands who will take on his recommendations and meet the communities which make them so special. ‘I know what I love telling people when I come back from holiday,’ notes MacLeod. ‘It’s the people I met, the food I ate, the adventures I had. So I hope people can take the podcast and go “OK, I’m going to make that my wee island adventure”. That would be really nice.’

Episodes are available at thebiglight.com.