The Great British Bake Off usually features an assortment of bread, dairy and meat products slathered in more butter and cream than imaginable. But this year, the British cooking competition will feature a special vegan week to help promote healthier, more sustainable eating in what producers feel is a move in the right direction.
The show, which kicks off its ninth season on August 28, will bring 12 amateurs to the kitchen to see who can bake the best traditional meals and desserts. The contestants this year include a nuclear scientist, a banker, a product demonstrator, a prosthetic technician and a research scientist, just to name a few.
Previous seasons have featured a weekly theme, including cake, bread and biscuit weeks. This season, however, will include a vegan week and a Danish week, neither of which has never been done before.
“We wanted something different and something to represent what is happening in this country,” Paul Hollywood, one of the judges on the show, explained. A recent survey suggests upward of 3.5 million people in the U.K. are now vegan.
Hollywood and his new co-star Prue Leith added that they think fans will learn a lot about watching vegan week on the The Great British Bake Off. In fact, both judges admitted they learned many fascinating things during the vegan week that could very well change people’s lives. Although the show is introducing new weeks and challenges, the judging process will remain the same — the judges won’t accept a dish that is “okay for vegan, it’s got to taste good, period,” Hollywood said.
The Great British Bake Off was originally on the BBC before being bought by Channel 4, which has produced the show for the past two seasons. The goal of the series, according to Hollywood, is to encourage the audience to learn how to bake and enjoy the process of baking. Now, those at home will have an opportunity to learn how to bake delicious treats within vegan guidelines.
To that end, The Great British Bake Off presents a mixture of challenges, so that viewers don’t feel too overwhelmed when they try the recipes out in their own kitchens.
Via The Guardian
Images via VeganBaking.net
