“I've always eaten bread guilt-free,” says Yvonne Connolly. She is delighted to be an ambassador for the National Bread Week #LoveYourLoaf campaign which aims to bring people back to the table on bread.
She is well aware of some of the myths that have turned people against the grain but she’s never fallen for it. “Bread has become something of a villain among food groups, totally unfairly, it’s seen as high calorie or fattening and it’s really not, there’s nothing to fear here, it’s low in fat, low in sugar, and contains protein, calcium, iron and fibre.”
Confusion is rife in the days of clean-eating but with what she’s learnt about nutrition over the past few years as a food guru since her RTÉ Masterchef days, Yvonne wouldn’t recommend cutting out any food group from a diet, least of all bread.
“Bread is so nutritious and convenient, not to mention delicious, I’ll always be a massive fan. The only thing I would ever dream of cutting out of my diet if I was trying to tone up a little is alcohol.”
Her love of the loaf dates back to her early days, and is something she has passed on to her kids. “I always enjoyed baking from childhood and baking with the kids is great fun, they love bread as much as I do. It’s so handy for them to put together their own bread-based snacks themselves.”
“Having done Masterchef six or seven years ago, I always say that I basically learned how to cook on TV, but that’s something I’m thankful for as it actually gave me the incentive to push myself, move away from what I’m comfortable with into more interesting and adventurous culinary avenues.”
Yvonne appeared on RTÉ’s Today show yesterday and whipped up an impressive
vegetable terrine that takes various ingredients layered with bread and chilled and moulded for a sliceable snack.
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Yvonne has been keen to delve into the perceived mysteries of bread-making with an intensive baking course, but found that, while fascinating, there is no great difficulty to the process.
She says: “I took a month-long course in bread making at Cook's Academy. I think people can be daunted by the idea of baking bread as it’s less about your own interpretation than with other dishes where you can experiment, throw in a bit of this or that and try it out - with bread you do have to stick to the recipe to an extent to get the result you want – but it’s really not a difficult thing to do well.”
With a little bit of versatility you can have so many variations, and her innovative recipes for National Bread Week even involve superfood de jour - kale - in a savoury bread pudding.
Yvonne says: “When I was at school I’d eat a ham sandwich every day and loved it, but I’m very glad now that there are plenty of new and different types of bread and ways to enjoy it.
“My current favourite is the terrine - I’m always one for using up all the stuff that’s in the fridge and our house is so busy, it’s great to have something that you can grab out the fridge at any time and snack on. It’s brilliant for the kids as I can slice it up out of the fridge and into their lunch boxes.”
There’s no excuse to be bored with bread: “There are so many great artisan breads you can buy now as well as the more traditional breads like soda or sliced pan, that there’s no need to ever get bored with it, whether you bake your own versions or not.”
Yvonne is genuinely evangelical in her role and who wouldn’t be, the stuff is delicious. She says: “It’s a real pleasure to be an ambassador for bread. It’s a big part of my life and my family’s life, and as I say, I’ve always enjoyed it guilt free. Everyone should.”
For more information on Yvonne’s recipe please see http://www.nationalbreadweek.ie/yvonne-connollys-layered-bread-vegetable-terrine/
For more information on National Bread Week’s go to www.nationalbreadweek.ie #LoveYourLoaf
