The pregnant Duchess of Sussex today made an emotional return visit to a community kitchen which inspired her collaborative work on a Grenfell Tower charity cookbook.
Meghan arrived at the Hubb Community Kitchen, not far from the site of the deadly tower block blaze in West London, to see first hand the progress made since the Together cookbook went on sale in September.
The mother-to-be was greeted warmly by kitchen co-ordinator Zaheera Sufyaan – whom she gave a big hug – and Abdurahman Sayed, chief executive of the Al Manaar Muslim Cultural Centre in North Kensington.
Wearing a burgundy dress and coat by Club Monaco, Meghan, who had been making private visits to the kitchen since January, soon put on an apron, rolled up her sleeves and got stuck into helping prepare food.
The book – full title Together: Our Community Cookbook – took the number one spot on Amazon within hours of being unveiled two months ago and has since sold nearly 40,000 copies in the UK, raising £210,000.
Meghan hugs Zaheera Sufyaan, who is part of the Hubb Community Kitchen in West London as she visits the centre today
Meghan warmly hugs Ms Sufyaan, the kitchen coordinator and one of her collaborators on the book
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex poses for a group photo with members of the Hubb Community Kitchen in London this morning
The cookbook featured more than 50 recipes from women whose community was affected by the Grenfell Tower fire
Meghan, whose first baby with Prince Harry is due in the spring, holds her bump today as she talks to the chefs
Meghan speaks with chef Clare Smyth (right) as they visit the Hubb Community Kitchen in West London this morning
Wearing a burgundy dress and coat by Club Monaco, Meghan got involved in helping prepare the food this morning
Kitchen co-ordinator Ms Sufyaan waves to the cameras as she and Meghan enter the community kitchen in London today
Bumper sales of the cookbook, which features more than 50 recipes from women whose community was affected by the fire, have allowed a total makeover of the kitchen as well as longer opening hours.
Meghan, who suggested the idea of a fundraising cookbook when she first met the women, has previously described it as a ‘tremendous labour of love’.
The kitchen, redesigned with the women’s input to capture its spirit as a place for the community to come together over meals, now opens seven days a week, up from just two when it began last year.
Those involved have also been able to obtain food hygiene qualifications and been empowered to start their own projects for the benefit of the wider community.
Projects, supported by the social entrepreneur foundation UnLtd, include a group for women affected by domestic violence, a scheme to deliver freshly cooked meals for women on maternity wards, and a project to produce healthy treats for children.
The Duchess of Sussex wears a ring with a heart-shaped detail as she visits the Hubb Community Kitchen this morning
The Duchess of Sussex arrives at the Hubb Community Kitchen in North Kensington this morning
The women were preparing 200 meals in just one day, to be delivered to local groups, including elderly people’s homes
Together has sold more than 40,000 copies in the UK and raised £210,000 so far in the seven weeks since it went on sale
The new facilities provide a safe and professional space for the women to cook, gather and run activities in their community
Previously the kitchen was only able to open two days a week due to funding – but now this has gone up to seven days
Meghan helped prepare the food as she introduced chef Clare Smyth (far left), a friend of hers, to volunteers in the kitchen
The Duchess of Sussex has a drink as she visits the Hubb Community Kitchen in West Loidon this morning
The duchess smiled as she met the women as they prepared fresh meals for the community in the newly renovated kitchen
Together has appeared in the Sunday Times and New York Times Bestseller lists, selling tens of thousands of copies
Today, 200 meals being prepared in the kitchen were destined for local groups, including elderly people’s homes, homeless shelters and women’s refuges. The dishes include Egyptian lamb fattah, Persian chicken and barberry rice.
Meghan helped prepare a large dish of rainbow roasted vegetables as she introduced chef Clare Smyth, a friend of hers, to the volunteers in the kitchen.
Meghan drank ginger tea as she spoke to some of the women who have been motivated to go on and develop further projects including making healthy snacks for children, and preparing food for the homeless.
Smiling, she said: ‘I’m so proud of you. It’s really exciting.’
The people involved in the kitchen are ‘incredible’, said chef Clare Smyth, who visited the kitchen for the first time with Meghan.
The women have been empowered to start their own projects, which will help others in their community benefit
Meghan bids farewell to kitchen co-ordinator Ms Sufyaan following her visit to the kitchen in North Kensington today
The Duchess of Sussex and her friend, chef Clare Smyth (left), visit the Hubb Community Kitchen this morning
The Duchess of Sussex speaks to the women at the Hubb Community Kitchen as she finds out how funds are being used
Those involved have also been able to obtain food hygiene qualifications and been empowered to start their own projects
The dishes prepared by the kitchen today include Egyptian lamb fattah, Persian chicken and barberry rice
Meghan suggested the idea of a fundraising cookbook when she first met the women in North Kensington
Meghan has previously described the book – Together: Our Community Cookbook – as a ‘tremendous labour of love’
Meghan arrived at the kitchen to see first hand the progress made since the Together cookbook went on sale
The book went number one on Amazon within hours of being unveiled and has since sold nearly 40,000 copies in the UK
The Co Antrim-born chef, who now lives in London and has a restaurant near the community facility, said: ‘If everyone took care of their community like this there would be no issues in the world.’
Ms Smith said Meghan had spoken with passion about the kitchen. ‘She’s really into food, she’s a real foodie.’
The team set out to raise £250,000 to renovate the kitchen and open it seven days a week and expect to easily surpass that, especially with Christmas coming up.
Supported by The Royal Foundation and published by Penguin Random House companies, Together has raised enough funds for the kitchen to be completely redesigned and re-fitted, with the women’s input, to capture what has been described as their ‘joyful spirit’.
Over the summer last year, a group of women gathered in a communal kitchen at the Al Manaar community centre, where they could prepare fresh food for their families, friends and neighbours affected by the disaster.
The kitchen has been redesigned with the women’s input to capture its spirit as a place for the community to come together
The kitchen has become a place where people come together over meals and now opens seven days a week, up from just two
Meghan soon put on an apron, rolled up her sleeves and got stuck into helping prepare food this morning
Meghan speaks to the chefs as she visits the community kitchen today to see how funds raised are making a difference
Meghan, wearing a coat and dress by Club Monaco, was greeted by Abdurahman Sayed, from the Al Manaar Mosque
Together has sold more than 40,000 copies in the UK and raised £210,000 so far in the seven weeks since it went on sale
The Duchess arrives at the Hubb Community Kitchen today to see how the funds raised by the book are making a difference
The team set out to raise £250,000 to renovate the kitchen and open it seven days a week and expect to easily surpass that
Meghan arrived at the Hubb Community Kitchen, not far from the site of the deadly tower block blaze in West London
As they cooked together and shared recipes, as a community they began to connect, heal and look forward. Word spread and more women joined in – and this was the start of the Hubb kitchen.
The new facilities provide a safe and professional space for the women to cook, gather and run activities within their community. Previously the kitchen was only able to open two days a week due to funding.
But the women are now able to use the kitchen seven days a week, and have been trained to gain food hygiene qualifications and empowered to start their own projects, which will help others in their community benefit.
The duchess, who has made regular private visits to the kitchen since January, met the women as they prepared fresh meals for the local community in the newly renovated kitchen.
The women were preparing 200 meals in just one day, to be delivered to local groups, including elderly people’s homes, homeless shelters and women’s refuges.
The Duchess wanted to see first hand the progress made since the Together cookbook went on sale in September
Wearing a burgundy dress and coat by Club Monaco, Meghan hugged Ms Sufyaan as she arrived at the kitchen today
The mother-to-be was greeted by Mr Sayed, chief executive of the Al Manaar Muslim Cultural Centre in North Kensington
The Duchess of Sussex returned to the kitchen which inspired her collaborative work on a Grenfell charity cookbook
Meghan heard how the women in the kitchen hope to use future proceeds to reach out to more people in their community
The Duchess of Sussex smiled brightly as she arrived at the Al Manaar Muslim cultural centre in North Kensington today
Projects supported by the social entrepreneur foundation UnLtd include a group for women affected by domestic violence
There are schemes to deliver freshly cooked meals for women on maternity wards, and to produce healthy treats for children
Kensington Palace said that since the book was published, the ‘inclusive ethos of Together has resonated all over the world’
Together: Our Community Cookbook reached number one on Amazon.co.uk book chart within hours of being announced
They are also now working on their own projects including a group for women affected by domestic violence, a scheme to deliver nutritious, freshly cooked meals for women on maternity wards, and a project to produce healthy treats for children.
Meghan, whose first baby with her husband, Prince Harry, is due in the spring, also heard about the women’s long-term vision for the kitchen, and how they hope to use future proceeds to reach out to more people in their community.
Kensington Palace said today that since the book was published in September, the ‘inclusive ethos of Together has resonated all over the world, and inspired people not just to buy the book, but to cook, eat and gather in their own communities’.
Together reached number one on Amazon.co.uk book chart within hours of being announced, and has appeared in the Sunday Times and New York Times Bestseller lists, selling tens of thousands of copies since its release.
Meghan worked with women from the kitchen on a community cookbook. A publicity photo from its release is pictured
Meghan poses for a picture previously with the Hubb Community Kitchen team for Together: Our Community Cookbook