In 2018, people across Stoke-on-Trent were invited to submit their favourite family recipes to the Stoke Family Cookbook – and the finished cookbook is now available for Stoke residents to pick up for free.
Including a mix of classic Staffordshire recipes like oatcakes and lobby, as well as lots of recipes from other cultures including baklava, chicken biryani and shashlik kebabs, the cookbook features a diverse range of voices from across the city. The cookbook was created as part of the Stoke Reads campaign, which is led by us and Stoke-on-Trent City Council, in partnership with the City Learning Trust.
Recipes were shared by members of the public and pupils from schools throughout Stoke-on-Trent. Schools with recipes featured in the cookbook include Trentham Academy, Glebe Academy, Excel Academy, Burnwood Community Primary School and Birches Head Academy. Local author Kate Leake shared her recipe for apple crumble, while Paul Salvatore, Senior Community Coach at Stoke City FC, sent in his recipe for pasta with broccoli, garlic and chilli.
The cookbook is split up into starters, mains and desserts, with each recipe author sharing why their family like the recipe.
- “Grandma makes it for me when I feel sad. It is my favourite family recipe and I hope to pass it on to my own children one day!” – Aimee Mulroy, Trentham Academy, Grandma’s fish pie
- “It is the first thing me and my dad made together.” Lyla Elizabeth Leneghan, Glebe Academy, banana and walnut muffins
- “Every time we go to Lithuania we always eat it, because it’s our tradition – but mostly because it’s delicious.” Patricija Švenčionytė, Burnwood Community Primary School, shashlik
Fazana Waheed, Literacy Lead at Glebe Academy, said: “In the current climate that we live in, where everyone leads a busy life, family time is so precious and what better way to spend time with loved ones than in the kitchen cooking our favourite family meals. The children at Glebe loved cooking and sharing their favourite family recipes and we are so proud of them. We will now be cooking the winning recipes in our school kitchen for all to share.”
Councillor Lilian Dodd, Lord Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent, said: “Stoke-on-Trent is famous for lots of iconic dishes and as a city we’re passionate about our food. It’s great to see that some classic Stoke recipes, like everyone’s favourite oatcakes and a traditional Staffordshire lobby, have made their way into the cookbook - as well as food from lots of different cultures. Food and cooking is a brilliant way of celebrating the rich and varied heritage of our city, as well as bringing families across Stoke-on-Trent together at the dinner table. I hope everyone will take time to talk about and try out some of the great dishes in this cookbook.”
Everyone featured in the cookbook has been sent a free copy, and members of the public can pick up a cookbook for free at City Central Library while stocks last. A digital version is also available to download and print from stokereads.org.uk .