How many times have you eaten someone else’s food and wanted the recipe? Is there a fabulous cake recipe that has been in your family for years, that you are very proud of, and happy to share with others? Well, now you can do just that. The Isle of Man Adoption Service, as part of their latest fundraising activities, is asking visitors to the Isle of Man Food Festival to share and swap their favourite recipes and ultimately to ‘adopt’ them as their own. During the Food Festival (25th and 26th September 2010), upstairs in the Villa Arcade, the Adoption Service will have a dedicated stand for food enthusiasts to visit and become involved. Help from all visitors to the festival is vital to help make “Adopt a Recipe” a success. To become a part of this success everyone is being asked to bring a written copy of their favourite recipe to the stand, along with the story behind it (ie where it comes from; who first made it; why your family loves it ... and so on). These will then be displayed and available for other visitors to peruse and copy at their leisure so you can try them out at home. We will provide cards and pens for folk to copy recipes that they like the look of. The ultimate aim of “Adopt a Recipe” is that there will be sufficient recipes gathered that we will be able to take a selection, and collate them into a recipe book that will then be sold to raise money for the Isle of Man Adoption Service. Catriona Morris, Manager of the Isle of Man Adoption Service, is encouraging as many people as possible to become involved. “ When helping children join new families, we have learnt just how important food, and the stories related to food, is to children and adults in making new connections. Remember the food you have shared with someone special? The smells, the look, the taste which even now you remember. Making something to eat which you as a family have never tried before can be a great way of helping families and generations connect – all families, however they are made. We need a lot of recipes for this idea to succeed. I believe that in such a varied community as the Isle of Man is becoming, there are many hidden gems that people are proud of and would share with others.” She added, “ This is a brilliant way for people to help to raise funds for our charity whilst developing and expanding their own interest in food. Recipes for all things ‘foodie’ will be most welcome, from breads and chutneys to pies to puds, and I look forward to seeing our stand covered with delicious and mouth watering recipes for you to copy.” If you cannot attend the festival - you can email your family recipe (and the story behind it) to adoptarecipe@manx.net. We really look forward to receiving your recipes, both at the show and via email, and are excited to see what families enjoy eating together. The IOMAS Fundraising Committee. ENDS