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Bridgerton’s Nicola Coughlan says Maltese bread ‘is one of the best breads in the world’
Awh, shucks!

Jillian Mallia

If like us, you binged the Netflix hit series Bridgerton at the end of 2020, then Nicola Coughlan is definitely a familiar name. The Irish actress played the loveable (and intriguing *wink wink*) Penelope Featherington.

Nicola was invited on the ‘Off Menu’ food podcast with comedians Ed Gamble and James Acaster. During one of the segments, guests are asked to select their dream menu and Nicola picked none other than the Maltese bread as one of her components!

She was talking about her love of bread and all bread types when she sprung into a speech about Maltese bread of all things!

“Oh, I used to live in Malta, right? I did Erasmus for year, when I was at Uni. And they have this bread there, which you literally can’t get anywhere else I the world, and I think about it constantly. They make it in a stone oven like pizza, and it’s really flat and really crispy. It’s like a ciabatta but not springy on the inside. We used to go and buy it after a night out.” Spoken like a true local!

She continues saying that she and her friends would “walk down to the little bakery” after a night out on the town, which she described as a “little hole in the wall” and buy the traditional Maltese bread which she said is  “like a giant flat doughnut and then you’d take it home and they used to sometimes rub tomato and salt and olive oil on it.” She adorably calls the Maltese 'hobza' a 'hobzna,' which actually means ‘our bread.’

“It’s one of the best breads in the world. I love it so much,” she shares, adding that the Maltese are “very mysterious about their bread-making ways,” saying she’s been searching high and low online to find a recipe for it – but to no avail. She also mentioned it’s been years since her taste buds were tingling with glorious Maltese bread – maybe it’s time for another visit, Nicola?

20th July 2021


Jillian Mallia
Written by
Jillian Mallia
A book lover, writer and globetrotter who loves exploring new places and the local gems that the Maltese Islands have to offer. An avid foodie and arts fanatic, Jillian searches the island and beyond for the perfect settings to write about.

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