Marcus Rashford has not been shy in the past when it comes to speaking up about his childhood in Wythenshawe, which often saw him and his mum relying on the local food bank even at Christmas time – and now it’s prompted him to create a £10 Christmas menu.
The Manchester United player, who received an MBE for his work battling food poverty in England, said that his family “relied on the local food bank for our Christmas dinner” and is making it his mission this year to ensure even those using food vouchers will be able to enjoy something special.
Enter two-Michelin star chef Tom Kerridge, who has created a special £10 menu for people in need this year – devising two healthy festive recipes that can feed six people across two days, on a sum that is relatively affordable for impoverished families.
In response, Tom has come up with two dishes: a tasty turkey roll with stuffing and traybake veggies, and a Boxing Day potato and carrot hash with fried eggs to use up any leftovers.
According to FareShare, 2.3 million children went to bed hungry in the UK in November 2021 – a heartbreaking statistic that has inspired Rashford and Kerridge to ‘step up’ their Full Time Meals campaign over the Christmas period.
“Christmas has a great ability to bring family together and I want as many children as possible to wake up on Christmas morning happy and without the stress of wondering where their next meal is coming from,” said Rashford to the BBC.
“I want families in communities like mine to look forward to creating something special in the kitchen together and making memories.”
Tom Kerridge added that Christmas ‘can be such a hard time for many families’, saying both he and Rashford wanted ‘to create something that might help bring a little bit of cheer to those who are finding it difficult’- for just £10.
“I want to see people cooking together over Christmas,” he added.
A spokesperson for FareShare told the BBC that parents in the UK were ‘being forced to choose between keeping their children warm or putting food on the table’ this year.
Read more: ‘Totally disgusted’ – Diners hit out at pub charging £1.50 extra for Yorkshire puddings AND gravy
“Christmas is meant to be a time of warmth, good food, and laughter, [but] for families facing food poverty this winter, the reality couldn’t be more different”.
Rashford and Kerridge have been working together since April 2021 on the Full Time Meals campaign and have so far created 52 delicious family recipes as part of its 12-month long programme.
All simple and easy to follow, with an emphasis on limited equipment and inclusion of store cupboard goods with a longer shelf life, each recipe features a QR code linking through to the Full Time Instagram page where users can access short-form tutorial videos hosted by Tom, Marcus and a selection of celebrity guests and families.
Feature image – Full Time Meals
