St Albans woman’s charity recipe book in aid of Philippines relief

A marketing manager with a deep-rooted love for Asia put aside her daily duties to create a charity cookbook for the storm-stricken Philippines in just under a week.

Emma Halldearn, of St Albans, initially decided to make the recipe book to showcase her friends’ recipes but soon after Typhoon Haiyan it snowballed into an ambitious aid project.

Called Bake for Boracay, the book features over 20 recipes from her friends and family and even the Herts Advertiser’s resident food writer Becky Alexander, with everyone involved giving up their services for free to create it.

The 36 year old recently travelled to Asia and came back in July and fell in love with the continent: “Whenever everybody asked what the best place was, it was always the Philippines.

“A lot of the places you can go to in Asia seem really sad – you can feel a sadness there. Whereas in the Philippines they love music, they love to party, and they just love English people. They just seem really happy, so it’s such a shame that they of all people have to go through what you see on your TV.

“Boracay and the Aklan province, where I spent most of my time, has been terribly affected by Typhoon Haiyan. I heard a story from a friend whose house has been destroyed; locals are trying to rebuild their lives.

“Tacloban is the worst hit, and as I sit in my warm house drinking a nice glass of red wine I can’t bear what these people are going through.”

For a minimum of £5 the book can be purchased through Emma’s Justgiving page with all donations going to the Red Cross. For more information visit: http://www.justgiving.com/bakeforboracay