Name: Herbed Potato Bannocks
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 425 grams self-raising flour; 1 tsp Shetland sea salt; 60 grams caster sugar; 50 grams butter; 245 grams mashed potatoes (room temperature); 1 handful mixed herbs (finely chopped); 175 ml full fat milk

Herbed Potato Bannocks

Published on August 2, 2016 • Last updated October 21, 2024 by Elizabeth

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Use leftover mashed potatoes in these light and moist herbed potato bannocks, which are ideal for summer picnics.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Table of Contents[Hide][Show]

Holidays abroad
Post-holiday blues
Canadian summers
Beach exploration
Picnic lunch
Waiting for the tide to come back in
Herbed Potato Bannocks
Other scone recipes you might like
Other picnic breads you might like

They say that familiarity breeds contempt.

I’ve called Shetland home for over 17 years. Shetland, in case you don’t know, is a little island archipelago in the North Sea midway between Iceland, Norway, and Scotland. It measures a mere 80 miles from tip to tip and about 35 miles wide. It really is a tiny rock in the great big sea.

I’m not feeling the Shetland love right now.

I know it’s just a phase and I think it’s part of my post-holiday comedown.

In June, my friend and I went on an epic bike-packing trip through Orkney and the highlands of Scotland. We cycled 400 miles through some of Scotland’s most picturesque country, including 80 miles of off-road trails down the Great Glen Way, ending with a climb of Britain’s highest mountain, Ben Nevis.

Holidays abroad

This was followed by a whirlwind family trip, our first proper press trip, on the Virgin Trains East Coast Line from Aberdeen to Hull where we caught the P&O Ferries Pride of Hull to the Netherlands, and hopped on another train to spend the weekend in Brussels, Belgium.

In mid-July I went solo camping in Bergen, Norway. Although it rained most of the time I was there (they’re having their worst summer for rain since 1929 I was told by a local), there was one gloriously sunny day where I went on the most fantastic hike through the surrounding mountains and lakes.

As far as outdoor adventuring goes, for me, it was utter heaven. SPF 50+ wasn’t sufficient for my delicate red-haired complexion and as I sit here and type my skin is peeling from the resulting sunburn.

Post-holiday blues

So now I am sitting here, sulking a bit, skin peeling, with what can only be described as a serious case of the harumpffs. I had so many ‘I love my life’ moments this summer. Now…. bah.

Oh, and I feel like I’ve been run over by a train. I didn’t do any strength exercises for entire month of July; traveling seriously disrupted my exercise routine. Yesterday I started the 30 Day Shred in the hopes that it would kick start my fitness regime, and oh my goodness gracious me the ouch. All of me. Ouch.

That and I’ve only seen proper sun a handful of days this summer. You know, that proper sun where the wind has died down, the sky is deep blue and you can actually feel the heat of the sun? I felt it one day in Norway. I felt it the day we left on our bike-packing trip and the following day in Orkney. That was June 13th & 14th, and then July 20th.

Three days of sun this summer – that’s it!!!

Canadian summers

I miss summer.

Proper summer. Canadian summer.

I miss fireflies and bats, the sound of peeper frogs in the ponds. June bugs and their relentless bashing against the screen window trying to get indoors. I miss thunderstorms and the relief from the humidity when the skies opened overhead. As a child, I’d stand outdoors in my bathing suit embracing the heavy, warm rain.

It’s flipping cold here. I can feel winter coming.

I need to stop whinging. This is the most beautiful island, despite its lack of proper summer. Shetland has almost 1700 miles of coastline. There are still many new and interesting places to explore even though I feel like I’ve seen it all and can’t figure out where to go next.

Last weekend I managed to convince the family to go on a picnic. Dear reader, I don’t know if you realize how much of a monumental effort it is to get my family to put down their devices and go out exploring. The moaning! The ‘aaawww do we have to?’s’ Saying that, given the amount of whinging from me you’ve just read from me I can see where they get it from. I’m struggling to get motivated to do anything right now.

Invariably though, they love it when we get there, and I do too despite my grumblings. I even had a good 15 seconds of the happy sun warmth when we arrived at our beach destination, a beach facing south, sheltered from the sharp north wind. The clouds broke for a moment and I felt that brief moment of sun warmth on my face.

Beach exploration

We explored up and down the beach, as you do. The tide was out and I found some tiny rock pools – one contained the most miniature crab in it. I felt for it – trapped inside a tiny micro-environment with only a small area to explore. Another contained a strawberry anemone with its fronds extended, although unless a snail, not paying attention to where it was…. er.. snailing… decided to crawl into its mouth there would be very little to eat in that tiny rock pool.

Both creatures would just have to sit and wait until the tide came back in for their freedom. A bit like I’m feeling right now (more self wallowing pity there, sorry).

The kids on the other hand entertained themselves with great glee. I’d been scouring the pebbly beach for small bits of driftwood for our garden fire pit when our youngest asked if he could have a couple sticks to play boat races with in the little stream. Madam created sand sculptures, oblivious that the wind had changed direction and was now blowing straight across the beach.

Picnic lunch

Our picnic lunch was served out of the wind inside the ruins of a small croft house on the beach. The day prior, I made a delicious summer soup with fresh peas, potatoes, and lovage herbs and some mini picnic herbed potato bannocks based on a Nova Scotia recipe I’ve made a few times. The original quantity of flour is nowhere near enough, so I’ve upped the flour, used milk instead of water (reducing the quantity) and added a generous handful of fresh herbs. I’ve made this recipe one whole round, which is lovely, but this time, I thought I’d make little mini bannocks perfect for a picnic.

We really enjoyed them, dipping them into the summery soup poured from a flask.

The secluded pebble beach we picnicked at used to be quite a busy area with the ruins of loads of croft houses surrounding it. For some reason, I think that the main ruin on the beach used to be an old village shop. I’ve been here quite a few times, but for some reason, this time, the graffiti spray-painted on the inner wall of the shop ruins attracted my attention.

I felt sad that there was only one set of initials in 2002. It made me realize that I must stop feeling sorry for myself and enjoy these precious moments with my family because life is fleeting.

Waiting for the tide to come back in

Do you have a favourite place in Shetland I might not yet have had the opportunity to explore? Some secret picnic spot? An isolated beach? A stunning clifftop walk? Any suggestions for where to go and explore on the next sunny day would be greatly appreciated. I need to remind myself why I love this place so much and why I choose to call it home.

Don’t worry, I know that my post-holiday slump will pass. I just hope I don’t set in motion the idea for something drastic – moving village or even moving back to Canada….. or Norway! It’ll be 10 years this October I’ve lived in this house; the longest I’ve ever stopped in one place. Familiarity is breeding contempt. I’ll just sit here and wait for the tide to come back in.

In the meantime though, here’s my herbed potato picnic bannock recipe, and here are a few tips on how to pack a picnic.

Recipe Difficulty Levels

Easy

Requires basic cooking skills and ingredients you most likely already have in your kitchen.

Moderate

Requires more experience, preparation and/or cooking time. You may have to source special ingredients.

Challenging

Recipes requiring more advanced skills and experience and maybe some special equipment.