Life Kitchen is a cookery school for people living with cancer. We are a not-for-profit organisation focused on helping people with cancer rediscover and revive their love of food. Unfortunately, because of COVID-19, we have had to postpone our classes as our students’ safety is of the utmost importance.

But we are not going to let that stop us teaching. We are going to bring Life Kitchen online – delivering masterclasses, recipes and live cook-a-longs, so that everyone can take part. But we need your help.

Our Story

During chemotherapy, radiation and other cancer treatment, a lot of patients lose or experience changes to their sense of taste. This can be a really difficult side effect that can make mealtimes isolating and unenjoyable. Often during treatment, food can seem unapproachable and a lot of people lose their appetite altogether.

Life Kitchen supporter Nigella Lawson refers to this as your taste buds ‘taking a bashing’.

Life Kitchen is run by co-founders Ryan Riley, author, cook and food stylist, and Kimberley Duke, recipe developer, trained chef and food stylist. Life Kitchen is backed by science, advised by Professor Barry Smith, the founder of the Centre for Study of the Senses. Professor Smith advises the Life Kitchen team on our recipes and ingredients so that people living with an altered sense of taste can get enjoyment out of food.

Both Ryan and Kim were inspired to launch Life Kitchen after losing parents to cancer. Throughout Ryan’s mum Krista’s two-year battle with cancer, Ryan saw how chemotherapy was affecting her ability to taste and enjoy food. After her death, he wanted to honour his mother’s memory in some way and use his cooking skills to help cancer patients find flavour and enjoyment in food again. And so, Life Kitchen was born.

In 2018 the Life Kitchen won the award for Best Ethical Food Project in the Observer Food Monthly Awards.

Why do we need your help?

We are a not-for-profit, and rely on support from our charity partners and from members of the public. We are following government guidance and our physical classes held across the country are on hold. However, we want to continue to teach people how to enjoy food again, and we know we can do this online.

We want to hire a camera crew and film online masterclasses at our Life Kitchen headquarters. Ryan and Kim will show you how to create the amazing Life Kitchen recipes in the comfort of your own home. We know that self-isolating can make people feel quite lonely, even more so if you are in treatment for cancer.

But we need help to make this happen.

We are trying to raise £15,000 to help pay for:

- Camera Crew + Sound Crew

- Online masterclasses

- Recipe content

- Digital editing

- Copy editing

- Social media promotion

Any contribution is incredibly helpful.

If you want to find out more about what we do, head over to our website www.lifekitchen.co.uk and sign up to our newsletter.

Thank you.

Ryan & Kim and the Life Kitchen team.

Instagram: @lifekitchencookery

Twitter: @LifeKitchen