I’ve been swimming in the sea for four years now, so wanted to share my wild swimming journey in this blog. Here’s the story of how I got into wild swimming….
“You’ve got to try it” said Colin, his lips blue, his teeth chattering and his skin the colour of a lobster. We were standing on Portobello beach. I think it was January 2016, during the Christmas holidays. Colin had been swimming in the sea, rivers and lochs for three years by this point. The colder the water, the better.
I could see that he was getting something out of it, I just couldn’t understand what that something was. To me, someone who hates the cold, it looked like a miserable way to spend half an hour. I’d always loved swimming in the sea as a child, but that was in summer, in warm-ish water, not the depths of a Scottish winter when the water temperature was in single figures. As an adult, and a weak swimmer, I hadn’t done more than put my feet in the water – then snatch them out again seconds later – for years. No, make that decades.
Back in the water in Iona, August 2016
Fast forward to that summer, on holiday on the island of Iona. It was a beautiful sunny day, and we were down at the beach. “Put your feet in” said Colin. “Just see if you can do it for ten seconds”. I did. It wasn’t just cold, it was painful. I could feel the blood shooting from my core into my toes and my whole body rebelling against the icy shock of the freezing water, though it was probably about 13 degrees, which is toasty warm by most wild swimmers’ standards. I honestly couldn’t stand it. I felt a bit ashamed for being such a wimp – I used to swim in this sea when I was wee!
Over the next few days I tried to build up from ten seconds, to thirty, then fifty, then a minute. And on our last day, I decided I’d go for a swim. I didn’t have a swimsuit with me so squeezed myself into a too-small wetsuit we had in the house and went in. And it all came back to me, just why I’d loved swimming so much in the sea when I was little. It IS cold, though less so with the wetsuit. Freezing, at times. But that feeling passes after sixty seconds or so, and then it’s beautiful. The sea in Iona is the clearest I’ve ever swum in, and swimming in it is pure joy. I remembered just how free swimming in the sea makes you feel.
When we got back to Edinburgh, I decided I’d go along with Colin on Sunday mornings to swim with the Wild Ones at Portobello. By this time, I’d invested in a swimsuit, as I hadn’t enjoyed the feeling of wearing a wetsuit in the water – too buoyant, and too bulky. I told Colin I’d go with him until the end of summer. Each time we went in I got a little braver and stayed in for longer.
Swimming in Iona
And during that time, my amazing, patient, husband taught me to swim. Really swim, with my head under water and coming up for breaths, not the head above water jerky breast stroke I’d been doing until then. At first, it was a struggle to get used to the technique. I hadn’t understood before, watching others swim, that you exhale under water, rather than holding your breath, then come up to inhale.
The first time I managed to swim and come up for air five times I felt like a swimming champion. Then ten times, then twenty, then I stopped counting. I learned how to make my body straighter in the water, keep my face down looking at the bottom, reach out with my arms and scoop the water back till my hand was grazing the top of my thigh, and stop kicking my legs up and down so frenetically.
And all the while, the seasons were changing, and it was October, then November, then December, and I was still swimming. I loved the way swimming made me feel. I’d be nervous beforehand, afraid that THIS would be the time that I wouldn’t be able to do it, that I’d found my limit and that it would just be too cold. But I’d always get in, eventually, and I’d yelp and squeak and faff about before fully immersing myself, and I’d swim.
By December, I would only swim a few strokes in the 7 degree water, but the pride I felt at having swum in the sea in December carried me through the whole day. The exhilaration you feel after a swim in the sea – even a short one – is better than any drug. You feel like a hero. People look at you as if you’re mad, but you know better. The endorphins are rushing round your body as you dry yourself with a towel, your fingers frozen as you fumble to do up your bra and pull up your leggings. And it feels amazing.
Swimming in Loch Katrine in March
And in the sea itself, all your problems and worries really do just disappear. It’s the most mindful activity I can think of. There’s no space in your head to think about anything other than this moment, the feel of the cold water on your skin, the psyching yourself up to lower your chest in, then your shoulders, then your arms and hands. You leave your troubles on the shore, and when you come out again, they always seem to have gotten a little smaller.
Since then, I’ve swum in many places around Scotland, and the UK. Up in Durness on the north coast of Scotland was the coldest, swimming in under 5 degrees at the top of the world. The Serpentine Lido in London was the first time I’d swum without Colin, my coach and support blanket. That felt really brave. Off the coast of Wales this summer, the waves toppling me back over every time I tried to stand up, so I just swam through them. And this summer at Wardie Bay, our local beach, swimming out to the white buoy with Colin, a rite of passage for any Wardie swimmer and my personal goal for 2020.
When swimming in the sea at New Year, fancy dress is obligatory at Wardie Bay.
I love swimming in the open water. It makes me feel strong, and brave, and happy, and so connected to nature and when Colin and I swim together, so connected to each other. Sometimes there are mornings when you have to really talk yourself into it, the thought of getting out of your warm bed into the freezing sea seems like madness. But you never regret a swim. And you’ll never regret taking up swimming – I only wish I’d done it sooner.
If you’re interested in being coached by Colin, you can visit his coaching website here.
I’ve always been interested in mindfulness, but until I began studying it formally and reading about it in more detail, I often found myself not knowing ‘how’ to practice it when I had some time to myself. Here are five of my favourite mindfulness exercises, that are particularly good if you are new to mindfulness.
The body scan. This is a great exercise for beginners who are new to mindfulness.
Start by sitting in a comfortable position, and bring awareness to your breath, focusing on where your body meets the ground and where you’re sitting. Then starting at your head, shine a ‘spotlight’ of attention on each area of your body noticing the sensations in it. Move all the way down your body to your feet, focusing on each area of your body and noticing how it feels, gently guiding your mind back to the breath when your attention wanders.
It can be a good idea to do a guided body scan initially – I like this one.
Bringing mindfulness to your daily routine. For days when you’re too busy to sit down and go through a mindfulness meditation, bringing mindfulness to something you do every day is a great way of tuning in to your senses and being present in the moment. This could be cleaning your teeth, making your bed, maybe eating your breakfast. So you might want to pay attention to the way the toothpaste tube feels, the smell of the toothpaste as you squeeze it on to your toothbrush, the feel of the bristles in your mouth. The important thing is that you observe the steps of something you do automatically in a more mindful way.
A 4321 mindfulness exercise outdoors. This can be anywhere – out in the wild, or in your back garden. Find a comfortable place to sit, either on the ground or on a seat. Close your eyes, and connect with your breath.
Then notice four things that you see, taking time to observe them one at a time. From there, move on to three things that you can hear, focusing intently on the sound. Follow on from that by observing two things that you can feel – perhaps the breeze on your face, or the feel of the grass underneath your feet. Finally, notice one thing that you can smell or touch – maybe the flowers in your garden, the scent of the sea, or the bark of a tree you’re sitting near. Take time to observe all of these things fully is a great way to ground yourself, especially if you are feeling worried or anxious, and to stop negative thoughts spinning out of control.
Setting an intention for the day. Choose a positive intention that you are going to keep in your mind and work towards during the day.
Maybe you’ll decide that you’re going to spend today feeling gratitude for the things you’d ordinarily take for granted – a warm house, family who love you, food in your fridge, strong legs to get you out of bed in the morning, if these are things you are lucky enough to have in your life.
Maybe you’ll focus on self care with your intention, promising yourself you’ll eat well and that everything you put in your body will be nourishing, clean food.
You can write the intention down, or just hold it in your mind throughout the day. Make time to check in with yourself during the day and revisit your intention, calling it to the centre of your mind.
Mindful eating. How often do we shovel down our food, hardly tasting it and missing out on all of the enjoyment a good meal brings, loading up the next forkful as soon as we’ve put the food in our mouths?
Try slowing down when you’re eating instead. Take time to sit down with your plate in front of you and appreciate what you’re about to eat. Notice the different colours and textures of your food, the smell, and finally, the taste. Focus on chewing every mouthful and finishing it before getting your fork or spoon ready with the next one. Notice the texture and flavour as you breathe slowly and enjoy the meal in front of you.
Sea buckthorn berries grow in abundance at Gullane beach, where we often go swimming. I’d noticed the berries before, but hadn’t really paid them much mind. That was until our last visit, when I got chatting to a lovely lady who was snipping them into a basket. She told me that they contain many times the amount of vitamin C as your average orange and that she was going to make them into a tonic that could be taken daily.
I was intrigued and used Colin’s pen knife to cut a few sprigs for myself. When I got home, on the lady’s advice, I put them in the freezer for 24 hours to take away the astringency and then made them into a juice. You can also use the berries to make jams, powders, tonics and in baking.
Reading more about sea buckthorn, I learned that it has a number of health benefits. As well as being packed with vitamin C, it’s full of potassium, magnesium, calcium and iron. It’s also thought to be good for heart health, and for lowering blood pressure and cholesterol in some cases.
Here’s how I made the juice –
Add equal quantities of blueberries and sea buckthorn, which has been frozen and de-thorned, to your juicer.
Add the same amount of water as fruit to the juicer – so I used 1/2 cup blueberries, 1/2 cup sea buckthorn berries, and 1 cup water.
Edinburgh is most famous for its castle, festivals, tourism and tartanry, but many well travelled folk might be surprised to know that it’s also a superb destination for wild swimming.
Over here on the east coast of Scotland, we’re spoiled for choice. Most residents won’t have to travel too far (I’d say 30 mins on bike or in car) to get to a decent swimming location. For most of us, it’s even less.
There are two main areas: the coastal beaches at Wardie Bay and Portobello, and a series of reservoirs in the Pentland Hills, which overlook the capital from the south and south west.
There are other choices, too, and you’ll find mention of them below, but first we’ll point our goggles in the direction of Edinburgh’s most famous outdoor swimming venue, Portobello Beach.
Swimmers at Portobello. Sometimes they dress up to go for a swim.
Portobello Beach
Portobello has been Edinburgh’s go-to swimming destination for decades! There was once an outdoor pool here, but even since it was filled in and concreted over, people still dipped in the sea. But it was the formation of The Wild Ones Facebook group in 2011 that gave wild swimming in Edinburgh a fresh impetus.
This long stretch of sandy beach is broken up every 250 metres (roughly) by wooden groynes that stretch into the sea, and keep the sand in place. Most people start their swim outside Portobello Swim Centre, getting changed at the nearby wooden groyne.
Rather than swimming out, you tend to swim down the shore and back, the groynes proving a welcome way to measure distance.
Another fairly popular spot to get in is Joppa, which is a better spot when the beach gets really busy. Not so much of a problem during winter!
But it doesn’t really matter where you go as the area is perfect for swimming, having been awarded designated bathing water status, meaning its water quality is regularly monitored.
At low tide, you’ll have to walk very far out to be in deep water, and most people don’t. At high tide however, the beach does drop quite quickly so you’re likely to out of your depth even if you’re relatively close to the shore.
You will often see swimmers here at most times of days, and until Covid hit, Sunday mornings at 9.30am was the regular meeting time, although many people arrange swims through the Facebook group or privately.
Of course, travel further east and you’ll cross many other lovely beaches further along the coast. Fisherrow, Musselburgh, Longniddry, Gullane, Seacliff, Yellow Craigs, Tyninghame, Belhaven Beach. Most of them within an hour’s drive from Edinburgh, a few accessible by train, and all accessible by a lovely, albeit long, cycle.
Wardie Bay
Heading in the other direction, a few miles west along the coast from Portobello, past the historic borough of Leith and the picturesque Newhaven Harbour, you’ll get to Wardie Bay, a wee wild and urban beach that is massively different in character to the resort-likeness of Portobello.
Like Portobello, it’s all sand underfoot and is swimmable at all tides and most conditions. The shelf drops off moderately sharply at high tide, so you’ll be out of your depth fairly quickly. At low tide you can be walking for 100m out and still in your depth.
Due to its popularity, it also has its own dedicated Facebook group, the Wardie Bay Wild Ones and in recent times there has been a concerted effort by the local community and beach users to keep Wardie Bay clean and get it awarded designated bathing status.
Wardie Bay
You’ll often see swimmers down here, getting changed on either side of the beach, and along it on the grass. Not quite a machair, but we can pretend.
You’ve probably three options for a swim:
Out round the buoys that are dotted to the east of the breakwater wall – the nearest ones (a yellow and pale pink one are about 250-350 metres away at high tide). The further orange one is about 650-700 metres away. There’s a yellow buoy further out but you really need to watch if going out that far as you’re crossing into the line of traffic. Not recommended.
Another nice swim is along the shoreline to the tower that sticks out about 650 metres from the beach, apron halfway to Newhaven Harbour. Best go at mid or high tide, and if you go when there’s a flood tide (coming in) you’ll get an assist on the way back.
But for many people, criss-crossing the bay is enough and you’ll often see people going in for a dip and doing lengths of the bay from the breakwater wall to the rocks that reach out on the other side of the sand.
A few words of warning. While the tidal pull here is mild, it is noticeable. Bear that in mind if you’re swimming out round the buoys and coming back on an ebb tide (tide going out). It’s not something to be overly concerned about, but if it catches you by surprise that could cause a bit of anxiety in you or perhaps less experienced swimmers.
At high tide, with a big swell and crashing waves, it’s dangerous and even the strongest swimmers should think carefully about going in.
I always keep a good 50metres from the wall. It’s used by fisherman and I don’t want to go near their lines.
On hot calm weather a jet skier or two may approach. They’ve been warned that there’s swimmers in the water, but they still do it. Any sounds of the jet skier, I would recommend swimming towards the wall or getting out.
Most other boats will keep beyond the buoys but you do need to remain aware at all times while swimming, listening and looking out for yachts and fishing boats who very occasionally do come within the buoys.
Cramond Beach
Westwards along the shore from Wardie Bay is Cramond Beach.
Cramond Beach and Island
Folk do swim here, and I’ve enjoyed it a couple of times, but the general consensus is that the River Almond that flows into it is a bit manky and that it is maybe ill advised. The times I’ve gone in, I’ve entered by the beach by the stone fish down from the Cramond flag pole and walkway to Cramond Island.
I’d love to do a swim from Cramond Isle to the mainland sometime.
You can only really swim here at high tide, but do be mindful of the tidal current here. Another risk – and I’m not sure how serious it is – is that the bed towards Cramond Isle can be quite soft and sucky. I can’t for a moment imagine anyone getting stuck in it, but still, worth mentioning.
Pentland Reservoirs
Threipmuir is an easy one, and popular with beginners, families, experienced swimmers and triathleses. Big enough to get some distance in, it’s also very shallow in places so if you can stand the mu round your ankles then it’s fine to stand up in.
Access at the nearby car park, or the one at Harlaw or cycle, though you’ll have to negotiate a big ascent!
Although there’re hills around it, it’s wide open and flat and does get exposed to wind and get choppy, which is good fun!
Most people get changed near the bench at the top end or on a beach nearer the wall. Keep well clear of these. I don’t know the optimum distance to keep away from gates (50 metres minimum) but I don’t go past the spit of land that sticks out.
Torduff Reservoir lies to the south west of Edinburgh, just off the bypass. I’d say this is for experienced swimmers only. Deep, cold, and only two entry points at either end, it’s not one for swimmers who aren’t comfortable with swimming a few km in cold water. Park at the Bonaly Car Park (or cycle) and walk over. Get in on the slope on the other side of the towers.
These sluice gates are closed and only opened twice a year, but I still wouldn’t go near them, although people do jump off them.
Bonaly and Harlaw reservoirs tend to be busy with fishermen. I tend to avoid.
Gladhouse Reservoir
Further afield, Gladhouse Reservoir, south of Edinburgh and out past Dalkeith is a joy to swim in.
Gladhouse Reservoir. There’s even a swing where you can put your clothes.
Parking is a bit of a pain since a new fence was erected, but if you’re careful and canny you can usually find somewhere to park up, even on very busy days. Most people will access via the north-western edge where beautiful Scots pine overlook a few rocky or gravel beaches.
The two islands give good loops to swim around, and the whole circuit is rough 5k, an excellent training ground for those of you wanting to push the distance. But it’s a lovely place to go for a quiet (apart from high summer) dip!
Beware, while it gets very warm in the summer, it can get brutally cold in the winter. It’s where many swimmers go to crack the ice!
Fife
As well as the beaches along the Lothian Coast, you’re also not far away from the likes of the lifeguarded Silver Sands beach at Aberdour, Burntisland Beach, or the water centre at Lochore, all in Fife.
Water of Leith
And for the adventurous, there are some pools in the Water of Leith that are worth a wee explore! I know a couple of swimmers who’ve spent time discovering these spots and share their knowledge reluctantly … so you’ll just have to trust me on this one, or go find them yourself!
Places to Avoid!
Then there are a few places where I personally wouldn’t recommend swimming. People have in the past enquired about Duddingston Loch, the wee lochs on Arthur’s seat. These are ripe in bird droppings and I wouldn’t even think about it. Nor would I go near the aforementioned Almond River. I’ve seen excrement flow in here from the wee burn that comes out from the airport; a shocking and depressing indication of the contempt that larger organisations have for our coasts and waterways.
Spoilt for choice
We really are spolit for choice for places to wild swim in and around Edinburgh. As well as the city beaches and nearby reservoirs, we also have cracking swimming venues in East Lothian and Fife, and I haven’t even gotten on to West Lothian!
It’s one of the reasons why Edinburgh wild swimming has exploded in recent years, and why there are now several coaches in the area, including myself, supporting swimmers with their swimming, safety and confidence.
To read more on open water swimming, including what to wear and what to bring, see my Guide to Open Water Swimming.
This totally vegan coconut and vanilla face and body scrub has to be one of the nicest things I’ve ever put on my face. My skin felt so soft and smooth afterwards and it smells AMAZING – that’s because it actually is good enough to eat!
The good news is that it’s the easiest thing ever to make. You only need three ingredients, plus a container – I used an old body scrub container but you can use a small plastic tupperware if you don’t have any old packaging.
Ingredients
1 cup coconut oil, melted
2 cups coconut sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
Method
Melt the coconut oil in the microwave or over a low heat on the hob and combine with the sugar and vanilla.
Mix it up with a little warm water, apply to face and body, massage in and rinse off!
This chewy, flavour filled vegan pumpkin and turmeric flat bread is packed with goodness and makes a delicious lunch topped with the warm garlicky pesto, juicy tomatoes and seeds that taste just like popcorn!
For the bread
Ingredients
260g plain flour
150g pumpkin puree (take the insides of a pumpkin, discard the seeds and blend to a puree in a blender)
3 tbsp plant milk
1 tsp onion powder
1 tbsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp nutrional yeast
1 tbsp melted vegan butter
Method
Put the ingredients together in a bowl and combine till they form a dough. Knead the dough for five to ten minutes then let it rest for half an hour.
Then divide into small balls, rolling each one into an oval or rectangular shape of around 3-4mm thickness.
Bake in the oven at 175 degrees for 20-25 minutes. It’s a little harder to tell if this bread is baked as it’s already a golden colour, so from around 15 minutes check in on it till it seems ready. It will be a little puffed and lightly browned.
For the pesto
Make this ahead of the bread and topping, or while the bread and topping are in the oven.
Ingredients
100g kale
85g walnuts
75ml olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tsp salt
Method
Put the ingredients together in a blender and blend till smooth.
For the topping
While the pumpkin bread is baking, make the topping.
Ingredients
100g kale
500g tomatoes
Pumpkin seeds from one pumpkin, rinsed in a sieve
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
Method
Toss the kale, tomatoes and seeds in the olive oil, salt and nutritional yeast and bake in a hot oven until crispy – for about 20 minutes.
Spread the pumpkin bread with the warm pesto then top with the kale, tomatoes and pumpkin seeds and enjoy!
We spent a wonderful weekend this September camping in Ardnamurchan in the western Scottish Highlands. I’ve lived in Scotland most of my life, and consider myself to be fairly well travelled in my own country – but had never visited the Ardnamurchan peninsula until last weekend. All I really knew about it was that there was a lighthouse there, a distillery where Colin has a cask of whisky, and that it was very remote.
We set off one Friday in September to spend two nights with family at the Ardnamurchan Campsite , situated just outside the pretty, remote village of Kilchoan
From Edinburgh, right on the other side of Scotland, it took us five hours to get to the campsite. Once you get off the motorway at Stirling, the journey is just a joy, with incredible scenery as you drive through the Trossachs and the lonely moors of Glencoe within the shadow of Buchaille Etive Mor. We stopped at the Green Welly Stop at Tyndrum, where you can go to the loo and buy some fresh food in the cafe or some gifts and outdoor clothes if you feel inclined! There’s also a great cafe across the road at the Real Food Cafe – my vegan chickpea curry with chips was delicious, and you can order in advance on their website and pick the food up in the car park. Or, ten minutes on there are some incredible places to stop at Glencoe if you fancy eating your takeaway in one of the most scenic and iconic places in Scotland!
We stopped again at Ardgour for the five minute car ferry journey to Corran on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula, then on to the single track winding road to the campsite. The views of mountains, lochs and beaches are breathtaking, but do pack a travel sickness pill for anyone who suffers from motion sickness as it’s a VERY winding road.
Playing pass the pigs by the camper van!
The site itself is pretty basic and no frills but has everything a camper could need. There’s a toilet and shower block – though I should warn you that if you don’t like creepy crawlies, it could be an issue as there are quite a few daddy long legs spiders who’ve made the block their home. They won’t touch you, but our kids weren’t fans. There’s also a washing up block with sinks and a washing machine.
Outside the blocks there’s a small communal area with seating and I think there’s one inside for use in non pandemic times too. There are sites for tents, motorhomes and vans with electric hook up, and the boundary of the site is a beautiful beach. There’s also free WiFi, and dogs are welcome. Campfires are allowed, and we spent evenings toasting marshmallows, listening to the sound of the sea and gazing at constellations in the clear dark sky – Jupiter and Saturn were visible, it was so clear! Waking up to the sound of the waves lapping at the shore nearby was pretty special, too.
You’re spoilt for choice with things to do in the area. On the Friday evening we headed to Ardnamurchan Lighthouse and the most westerly point of the UK mainland to see a spectacular sunset as we were buffeted by the winds coming in off the ocean. The lighthouse is the only lighthouse in the world designed in an “Egyptian’ style – it’s automatically operated now, but fully operational.
There are also a number of beautiful beaches – we spent an afternoon at Sanna Bay, which we had almost to ourselves. It’s a perfect expanse of white sand and clear blue sea, and we spent a few lovely hours kayaking, swimming, sunbathing and jumping off the sand dunes. Geologically, it’s a fascinating place to visit too, as it’s part of a concentric circle of volcanos, with plenty of wildlife to see as well.
Paddle boarding and kayaking at Sanna Bay
Another day we took the CalMac ferry from Kilchoan to Tobermory on nearby Mull. We were foot passengers, but you can also choose to take the car – though be warned that if the pandemic is still live if you take the car on the ferry, you won’t be allowed to leave your car for the 40 minute journey to enjoy the beautiful views from the top of the ferry across to the Small Isles. We spent a few hours in Tobermory doing a treasure trail that we’d downloaded in advance – a great way to see the town and learn about its history – while Colin visited the distillery.
Tobermory Bay
On our last day we climbed Ben Hiant, the highest point on the peninsula, and from where the sun rose each morning from the campsite. It’s not a particularly challenging hill at 528m, and the views at the top are breathtaking – across to the inner Hebridean islands and the mainland. It took us just under 3 hours to get to the top and back down.
Our view from Ben Hiant
You can book your pitch at the campsite here – they do get busy throughout the season, so make sure you book well in advance. Do go and explore this remote, unspoilt corner of Scotland – it’s been on our to visit list for years, and I only wish we hadn’t waited so long!
I ended up making this vegan breakfast bake with apple, coconut and maple syrup as I wanted to find some new recipes to make with the glut of apples in our back garden. This needs quite a lot of apples, but it’s a lovely breakfast or pudding and serves around four medium bowls. You can be healthy and eat it with some vegan yoghurt – coconut would be especially delicious with this – or be like me and eat it with some ice cream.
Ingredients
2lb apples – quarter then chop quarters into four slices. Peel if you prefer but you don’t need to.
4 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp apple juice
2 tbsp cornflour
2 tsp ground cinnamon
6 tbsp vegan butter, soft or melted
4 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp plant milk
2 oz plain flour
8 oz oats
2 tbsp raisins
4 tbsp pecan or walnuts
4 tbsp chopped coconut
Ice cream or yoghurt for serving
Method
Mix the apples in a bowl with the cinnamon, 4 tbsp maple syrup, apple juice and cornflour, making sure the apples are completely coated in the mixture.
Line a baking tin with this mixture.
Mix the butter, 4 tbsp maple syrup, plant milk, flour, oats, raisins, nuts and coconut together in a bowl and pour over the top. Bake at 175 degrees for around 45 minutes or till golden on top.
The lesser know little sister of the bagel, these vegan knishes are so delicious hot or cold – and there are hundreds of variations on them using various fillings – this one is another favourite. This version is pretty carb heavy so you might need a wee lie down after eating them! They’re delicious with sour cream – recipe here – and mustard butter, which is just 4tbsp butter mixed with 1 tsp wholegrain mustard.
Method
Dough
125 ml vegetable oil
1 tsp white wine vinegar
250 ml vegetable stock
300g plain flour plus extra for kneading.
1/2 tsp salt
Filling
750 g potatoes, boiled and mashed or riced
10 g dill
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
1tsp nutritional yeast
Make the dough by combining all the dough ingredients together to form a smooth ball. Cover in clingfilm and leave for an hour or so.
Roll the dough out into a thin rectangle. Combine the mashed potatoes, olive oil, salt and nutritional yeast and spread along the bottom third of the rectangle, then roll the pastry up and cut into 8 knishes of squat round shapes.
Bake in the oven till golden and serve with sour cream and mustard butter!
