A top Cumbrian chef is aiming to self-publish a cookbook – and Kickstarter could be the recipe for its success.
Ben Queen-Fryer, chef and co-owner of The Dog and Gun, based in Skelton, has launched a Kickstarter campaign in a bid to create a cookbook that celebrates his restaurant’s evolution.
The glass collector turned Michelin starred chef needs support to turn his dream into a reality and is asking for people to back the project.
So far, over £8,826 has been raised towards the team’s £16,000 goal – which they have to hit for the cookbook to go ahead.
Ben said: “We’re about nearly 60 per cent of the way there, and we’ve still got around nine days to go, so I’m feeling fairly confident we will get there.
“I’m so grateful for the people who have pledged and anyone who does pledge and Kickstarter offers rewards, so we’re not asking for charity as such.
“Everything people pledge we’re offering a reward for, so the most basic reward on there you can pre-order a copy of the book and get it as soon as it is printed.
“There’s also one on there where you can get a £100 voucher to spend back here and we have a soufflé masterclass on there in the higher tiers.“A lot of the people pledging are first time users of Kickstarter, so obviously there’s a lot of people supporting us that are connected to us. I know of a few customers who sat waiting for the Kickstarter to go live so they could pledge too.”
The highest tier reward Ben and his team are offering is a private six-course dinner party for up to 10 guests of your choosing who all get to take copies of the cookbook home.
If the project is successful – The Dog and Gun Cookbook will feature 70 recipes and will walk reader’s through his culinary evolution.
It is also set to be printed and designed locally by Reeds based in Penrith and award winning food photographer John Carey will be behind the cookbook’s food photography.
Ben added: “I have always wanted to have a cookbook but I wanted to make sure we had enough for a full cookbook and I think the swing has come in the last couple of years as we’ve now got enough dishes and content.
“People also quite often ask how we make things here and I’ve always collected cookbooks, so it just seemed that now was a good time to put our recipes into a book and pass them on so people can try them out at home
“I couldn’t find a reason to do the chapters in a specific way, but when I sat down and thought about it, I thought of doing it as a timeline almost, so it will go from when we first opened and will get more complex as you go.
“It feels like a nice way to show our progression, so you might see the same dish in there occasionally, but it changes as it goes along with how we’ve changed.”
Ben is aiming to have the cookbook ready by late November or early December just in time for Christmas this year.