Once a foodie, always a foodie, and Meghan Markle is proving this is even the case with royalty. Kensington Palace has announced the Duchess of Sussex's latest philanthropic endeavour concerns a new cookbook called “Together: Our Community Cookbook.” The book, which was launched September 20, features around 50 recipes from women affected by the Grenfell Tower fire.
The idea for the cookbook came about after the American-born Markle started making regular private visits to a communal kitchen created by a group of women after their community was shattered in the fire, which caused 72 deaths. Needing a new place to cook when so many of their homes had been destroyed, they turned to the kitchen in Al Manaar Muslim Cultural Heritage Centre in West London, where they could prepare food for displaced family, neighbours and friends. Soon, more community women began to join them for support, and the Hubb (Love) Community Kitchen was born.
When Markle, 37, made her initial visit in January, she saw how the women were connecting and healing, and as the palace described, she became “inspired by how the project empowers women at a grassroots level." While she got to bond with the women, learn their stories and cook with them, she found out the kitchen could only be open two days a week due to a lack of capital.
The idea for a cookbook collaboration came about, and with all the proceeds going straight back to the Hubb Community Kitchen, it will hopefully be able to stay open up to seven days a week. The kitchen welcomes people from all walks of life and proves how cooking can bring people closer together.
Markle has also penned an emotional three-page foreword for the book, which includes recipes like Green Chili and Avocado Dip, Coconut Chicken Curry, Eggplant Masala, Persian Chicken with Barberry Rice and Caramelised Plum Upside-Down Cake. As well as recalling the moment she heard about the Grenfell fire when she was working in Canada, she shares details of her favourite meals that remind her of her childhood.
“I immediately felt connected to this community kitchen; it is a place for women to laugh, grieve, cry and cook together,” she writes. “Melding cultural identities under a shared roof, it creates a space to feel a sense of normalcy – in its simplest form, the universal need to connect, nurture and commune through food, through crisis or joy – something we can all relate to.”
She also writes: “Through this charitable endeavour, the proceeds will allow the kitchen to thrive and keep the global spirit of community alive. With the support of dynamic women from all walks of life, we have come together with a united vision to empower other women to share their stories through food.
This cookbook is a celebration of life, community and the impact of coming together.”
In her defunct lifestyle blog, The Tig, the former “Suits” star constantly admitted to loving food. She shared countless recipes for her favourite meals and often stated how food has the power to bring people together.
