One of my favourite childhood memories growing up in Scotland was Granda MacLeod's cooking, he made some really great stuff, shrimp avocado cocktails, jelly trifles, jams of all flavours and of course soups. Soup is a big thing in Scotland, especially in the colder months, I remember sitting in the kitchen with the smell of bay leaves in the air waiting for chunky hearty soups. This particular recipe he made with barley and an assortment of vegetables, as I am gluten intolerant I substituted split peas (red lentils will work as well) as they have a mild flavour allowing everything the bay leaves to really shine through.
