Inspired by an incredible cycling challenge to raise money for Birmingham’s Cure Leukeamia, new cookbook ‘Back in the Saddle’ is already gaining momentum after securing three nominations to represent the UK for top prizes at the Gourmand World Cookbook awards on 26th and 27th May 2018, as well as receiving support from the celebrity world, including none other than Jamie Oliver.
Back in the Saddle is a culinary journey documenting The 3 Tours Challenge, a 10,403km cycle ride across Europe undertaken by BaxterStorey’s executive chef, Hayden Groves and a team of amateur cyclists, including former Wolves and England footballer Geoff Thomas. The award nominations came as the globally significant Centre for Clinical Haematology (CCH) at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital reopened to treat blood cancer patients earlier this year. All funds raised by The 3 Tours Challenge and Back In The Saddle went towards Cure Leukaemia’s £1m Appeal to fully fund the £3.4m expansion of the CCH to double its capacity with the GBSLEP granting the additional £2.4m to complete the facility’s redevelopment.
For many budding cyclists, taking on just one of Europe’s three big tours – the Giro D’Italia, the Tour de France and La Vuelta a España – is a lifelong dream. For Hayden Groves and his team, one wasn’t enough and, last summer, they took on all three, cycling a whopping 10,403km to raise funds for Cure Leukaemia. Not content with the £250,000 the team raised from their challenge, Hayden created Back in the Saddle as a way for the challenge to live on and continue to raise money for the Midlands charity, with 100% of proceeds from the cookbook donated straight to Cure Leukaemia.
On January 8th the Centre for Clinical Haematology in Birmingham open its doors once more after a transformative expansion to give patients better access to lifesaving treatments. The Centre’s capacity for blood cancer patients, pioneering clinical trials and specialist research nurses to run the trials has doubled and increased capacity now means that many inpatient procedures can now be performed as outpatient care reducing pressure elsewhere in the hospital and allowing patients to return home afterwards.
James McLaughlin, CEO of Cure Leukaemia, said the following: “We’re hugely grateful to Hayden and BaxterStorey for producing this fantastic cookbook for Cure Leukaemia. Not only did Hayden put his body on the line to ride the Three Tours Challenge but he also found time to compile this brilliant cookbook to give people a culinary tour of the countries they cycled and capture the enormity of what the team achieved in the saddle. Thanks to the generosity of Hayden and BaxterStorey, 100% of sales will continue to go directly towards saving lives.”
Back in the Saddle is full of delicious recipes inspired by, and in celebration of, the foods that gave the cyclists the fuel to finish! Funded by hospitality services provider BaxterStorey, the book showcases 63 wonderful recipes (to pay homage to the 63 days it took to complete the challenge!), which can be attempted by cooks of all levels of expertise. With dishes such as Sardinian lemonade, mushroom arancini and Valencian-style paella, not to mention countless anecdotes of the team’s journey through the mountains, the book is jam-packed with excitement.
Limited to 3,500 copies, Back in the Saddle is available to buy online from www.3tourschallenge.com for £30 + (P&P).
