You don’t have to eat boring things
Reality star-turned-singer Megan Mckenna chats to KATIE WRIGHT as she launches her first cookbook aimed at people who suffer with food allergies
AFTER winning The X-factor: Celebrity at the end of 2019 and landing a deal with Simon Cowell’s record label, Megan Mckenna was on the brink of taking her singing career to the next level. But then the pandemic hit.
But the reality TV star – who found fame on shows like Ex On The Beach, Celebrity Big Brother and The Only Way Is Essex – wasn’t overly upset about having to put her music plans on hold?
“Everything happens in a weird way,” she says. “I’ve had time to do my writing and get all my material ready. It has held things back, but that’s fine – it held the whole world back, not just me.”
In fact, Megan, who went to a performing arts school and released her debut album Story Of Me in 2018, relished the chance to slow down for once.
Passionate about cooking, the 29-yearold got busy in the kitchen and shared cooking videos with her 2.4m Instagram followers, and found her gluten-free recipes struck a chord.
Diagnosed with coeliac disease – where your immune system attacks your own tissues when you eat gluten – and a wheat allergy in her teens, Megan knows the stigma that can come with a gluten-free diet.
“People think you’re fussy. ‘Oh, you’re just one of them, you’re just gluten-free.’ But actually, it can make me really, really ill,” says the London-born celeb.
“With wheat, I get hives, allergic reactions. With the coeliac, it’s more of a lifelong autoimmune disease. So if I keep eating gluten, in later life it can cause complications.”
There’s no cure, but Megan, who is in a relationship with business owner Josh Riley (“we’re very happy and he loves my cooking, which is always a bonus,” is all she’ll say on that matter), has learned to overcome the shame she used to feel about being different.
“When you’re at school, you just want to have school dinners, you don’t really want to stand out. I did feel a little bit like the odd one out.
“But my mum has always been the most incredible cook, and has been able to cook for me from scratch. This is what I wanted to put across: you don’t have to eat salad, eat boring things. You can eat pastries, you can eat cake.”
The title, Can You Make That Glutenfree?, is inspired by the question Megan is asked the most. In it, she shares the recipes she swears by, such as the fluffy, American-style pancakes that are her weekday breakfast go-to, the Sunday staple of beef and crispy roasties, and a host of colourful cakes and puds.
“The book isn’t just for allergy people,” she insists. “Some of the recipes are naturally gluten-free anyway. That’s just how I cook.”
Megan, known on reality TV for her fiery personality, showed off her skills on Celebrity Masterchef in 2021, making it to the final before being pipped to the post by Paralympian Kadeena Cox.
“Every person on the judging panel said they would never know it was gluten-free,” she recalls. “I know I can make the food taste amazing, that’s why I’m so confident with this book. I honestly think it’s going to change people’s lives.”
Music is her other big focus. After touring with Michael Ball and Alfie Boe in 2021, the singer is releasing more music soon, and hints at some “really exciting big things coming up”.
And with a big 3-0 in September, she’s excited about what the future holds. “I feel like my 30s are going to be the best time of my life. My 20s were a learning curve. I’ve done a lot – a lot – and I feel like I’ve moulded into who I am now.
“I’ve learnt from my mistakes, I’ve grown up, I’ve got my home.
So I think my 30s will be about living my dream.”