Notes to the Editor

Wednesday, 13th June 2012

About the Zahra Media Group

The Zahra Media Group was founded in Dublin in 2003, by Gina Miltiadou and John Mullins, who had previously worked in media in the UK, South Africa and Australia. The company has two divisions, Consumer Publishing and Custom Publishing.

The award-winning Consumer Publishing division produces two successful Irish magazines: Easy Food and Easy Health & Living - both of which are the leading Irish titles in their areas. Easy Parenting will join the Easy family when it is launched in June 2011.

The Custom Publishing division works with clients to develop bespoke media and marketing products, including magazines, annual reports, sales brochures, e-zines, e-brochures and marketing collateral. Zahra Custom Publishing's current client list includes ESB, Bord na Mona, Aviva, Irish Cancer Society, The Rehab Group, United Drug and Arthritis Ireland. Zahra Publishing donates 10% of its profits to the Zahra Helps Foundation, an Irish charity that works in Vietnam and South Africa.

Cooks Academy

Cooks Academy was founded in May 2005 by Vanessa and Tim Greenwood. The unique mix of elegant and purposely fitted out premises together with a relaxed, fun and educational environment has ensured the school's success and excellent reputation to date. For the most part Cooks Academy's evening and weekend lessons cater for the enthusiastic home cook, covering such topics as Introduction to Cookery, Easy Entertaining, Pastries and Desserts, Seafood, Italian and a range of ethnic cuisines. Cooks academy also offers themed classes and wine tasting to corporate clients. Cooks Academy is also dedicated to running its Professional Certificate Course, a full time, month long course, training people to cook professionally for their careers or as a life skill.

The Company's acclaimed website http://www.cooksacademy.com provides all the information customers require about the full range of classes & courses on offer. The website allows customers to book and pay for classes online.

Judges Biographies

Kevin Dundon

Kevin Dundon is one of Ireland's best-known award-winning celebrity chefs, and Chef/Proprietor of Dunbrody Country House Hotel & Restaurant and its Cookery School, which is located in Irelands sunny southeast. Kevin is passionate about cooking with local, seasonal food that let the ingredients speak for themselves. He is regularly featured on RTE and has also appeared on television in Canada, the USA and England. Kevin is author of several top-selling cookbooks including Full on Irish: Contemporary Creative Cooking, Great Family Food and most recently Recipes that Work and has also developed an incredible food app called For the Love of Food. Although he is a true chef at large, his favourite role is Dad at home, where he is very hands-on in the kitchen; THE place he has told us where he finds much of his inspiration.

Catherine Leyden

Catherine Leyden of Odlums is one of Ireland's foremost homebaking experts. Over the years, her down to earth style has led to a huge following among Irish bakers. She has given hundreds of demos throughout the country in schools, agricultural shows and baking exhibitions.

Her weekly television baking slot on Ireland AM is watched by thousands, looking to copy her simple and tasty recipes.

Catherine Fulvio

TV Chef, Food Writer & Proprietor of Ballyknocken House & Cookery School. Growing up on a working Farmhouse, Bed & Breakfast in Wicklow while holding on to the apron strings of her mother, Catherine Fulvio (nee Byrne), was destined to dedicate her career to the food & hospitality industry.

Ballyknocken House is home to award-winning TV Chef, food writer and cookery tutor, Catherine Fulvio which is to this day a working farm offering four star Bed & Breakfast accommodation as well as an award-winning cookery school. Catherine is fast becoming a household name, having now completed two TV series and with her next series well underway along with her second Cookbook, she has made an impression on many Irish homes for providing quick and easy food suitable for wholesome family life and entertaining friends.

Having been raised on a traditional farmhouse Catherine appreciates the value of producing your own ingredients. The daughter of a committed foodie she has developed a business based on her passion with four star Ballyknocken Guesthouse and more recently the internationally acclaimed Ballyknocken Cookery School. It's no great surprise that Catherine's food philosophy is one of farm to fork; she puts huge emphasis on provenance using only the best of local, seasonal produce in her Guesthouse and Cookery School often using Ballyknockens own herbs, vegetables and fruit.

Catherine has become highly acclaimed for her hands-on, no fuss style of cooking using the freshest ingredients possible. Married to an Italian family and food are foremost in the Fulvio household. She is proud mother of two, 10 year old daughter & 8 year old son, and when Catherine is not busy in the Cookery School, researching her next book or writing recipes, menus and courses to delight her wide audience with she is at home dining with family and friends.

Gina Miltiadou

Gina Miltiadou is Managing Director of the Zahra Media Group which publish Easy Food, Easy Health and Easy Parenting magazines all Irelands number one magazines in their categories. Launched nine years ago, Easy Food is the original budget cooking magazine, providing quick and easy recipe ideas for budget conscious, time poor and nutritionally aware home cooks.

Gina, who grew up in a family of restaurateurs, describes herself as a self-taught Monday to Friday cook, who faces the same challenges as most other working moms around the world, i.e. not enough time, limited budget and the challenge of making sure that everyone in the family is getting enough nutrients. In her view, these women are the unsung heroes of our time. Gina has made frequent appearances on TV3s Ireland AM and is also the author of Eating to Win Irish Rugby Players Recipes Revealed which appeared on the Best Sellers List, as well as Easy Food Cookbook Gina's 120 Budget Favourites and Easy Food Kids Cookbook 120 Children's Recipes.

Why we started the Easy Food Home Cook Hero Awards

Easy Food magazine was started in 2003 and over the years we have developed a loyal following as Ireland's number one food magazine. Our readers have always loved talking to us and have sent us thousands of their tried and tested recipes over the years plus tales of the shortcuts and budget tricks they use to put food on the table every day.

It got us thinking that feeding people day-in-day out can be quite a laborious and thankless job and that these people are the real culinary heroes not celebrity chefs, as much as we love them! So we decided to launch a national cookery competition open to all ages to celebrate this and gather all of the wonderful family recipes around Ireland with the aim of archiving them into a cookbook each year.

Seeing ordinary people of all ages and from every corner of Ireland compete in a cook-off in front of celebrity chef judges is quite something, and it made us so proud to have created a forum where their talent could be celebrated. Long may it last!

Vanessa Greenwood

Vanessa Greenwood is the founder of Cooks Academy, a 4,500 sq foot cookery school located in Dublin City Centre. Her love of cooking inspired her to open the school and share her knowledge of food and its preparation with others. Her real passion is teaching, and her success has been founded on the ability to instil confidence, enthusiasm and a sense of fun in all her students, along with an in-depth knowledge of good food. Vanessa is a member of Euro-toques Ireland.

Vanessa is the author of the Cooks Academy Cook Book and has made many TV appearances, appearing as a guest chef on TVAM, RTE's Nationwide, The Health Squad, RTEs Today with Pat Kenny programme. She has performed many public cookery demonstrations at Taste of Dublin, Bloom Festival, Ideal Homes Show and at the RDS National Crafts and Design Fair. She has written for many publications including a regular column in the Health and Living supplement of the Irish Independent (2009 2010) and also wrote a weekly food column for Image Magazine (2005 2007).