A Cornish grandfather who is best known for launching a highly successful chain of pasty shops and bakeries is featuring in a new national charity cookbook, sharing the traditional recipe of his families famous pasty.

Malcolm Barnecutt, 74, who lives at St Breock Residential Care Home in Wadebridge, has become one of the stars of a new charity cookbook, A Lifetime of Flavours: A Celebration of Food, Family and the Lives Behind Beloved Recipes. His celebrated Cornish pasty builds on the legacy of his grandfather who started making them 95 years ago, which has stood the test of time, and which Malcolm has mastered over his lifetime.

Curated by Sanctuary Care, a not-for-profit care provider with 109 homes across the UK, the cookbook features 42 treasured recipes from residents aged 70 to 105, and celebrates the joy of cooking, memory, and continuity in later life.

Malcolm began baking with his grandad at just ten years old and later took over the family bakery. He’s even cooked his famous pasty for Gordon Ramsay, Hugh Grant and Kiera Knightley. Filled with tender steak, onions, potato, turnip and herbs, his Cornish pasty is more than a recipe - it’s a slice of local heritage.

Now a resident at the Sanctuary care home, Malcolm still shares his culinary passion by teaching fellow residents and staff how to make and crimp the perfect pasty. A beautifully filmed video shows Malcolm recreating the dish with his son, bringing the story to life and capturing the warmth, pride and tradition behind it.

“I loved opening my bakery in Wadebridge and now I get to enjoy going into the kitchen and cooking this pasty for other St Breock residents,” said Malcolm.

At the heart of A Lifetime of Flavours is Sanctuary Care’s Enriching Lives Framework, an evidence-based approach to care that focuses on maintaining identity, purpose, and joy in later life. The cookbook specifically celebrates ‘continuity’, one of the six senses within the framework, by showing how residents can carry on lifelong passions and traditions, such as cooking, even after moving into a care home.

Mealtimes are a vital part of that continuity, offering structure, sensory stimulation, creativity, independence and connection. Good nutrition plays a key role too, helping residents stay active, alert and well-nourished.

“Moving into a care home isn’t about leaving your old life behind, but continuing the things that bring you joy,” said Louise Palmer, director of operations at Sanctuary Care. “Whether it’s recreating a childhood recipe or baking with friends, our chefs work closely with residents to make every mealtime meaningful, and A Lifetime of Flavours is a celebration of that love of food, family, and the lives behind it.”

The cookbook is free to download or can be ordered in limited print for a donation, with all proceeds going to Mental Health UK. It also includes a foreword from 2023 Bake Off winner Matty Edgell, who shares how food shaped his own family memories.

The book is available to order with a donation to Mental Health UK from www.sanctuary-care.co.uk/lifetime-flavours-celebrating-food-family-and-lives-behind-beloved-recipes