Legacy Kitchen: New cookbook helps Britain talk about life, loss and the legacy left behind

Having delivered seven obituaries in as many years, Matt partnered with Zurich to create Legacy Kitchen which celebrates the recipes, memories and traditions that help keep loved ones' memories alive.

It follows our new research*, which finds four in five (79%) people worry about how their loved ones will handle their death, and yet just 1 in 4 have taken comprehensive steps to set their financial affairs in order. Less than half of the adult population (48%) have a valid will, falling to one in three 35-to-54-year-olds (34%). In fact, just a third (32%) have a life insurance policy, and only 26% have made it clear how both their assets and sentimental items should be split.

This new research reveals food is one of the most powerful ways we remember lost loved ones, with two in five (37%) UK adults saying they have inherited a food-related keepsake, whether a recipe, a cookbook, a kitchen utensil or cooking pot.

Inspired by this connection, Legacy Kitchen is a collection of 20 treasured family recipes, contributed by people across the nation who have lost someone close to them. Curated by Matt Tebbutt and Zurich, each dish is an obituary to a life well lived, and an invitation to remember precious moments shared.

Matt Tebbutt, TV chef and presenter, comments: “Food can be a bridge between generations and a bandage for the soul. As someone who’s delivered seven obituaries on air, for colleagues, chefs, friends, I’m intimately aware of, and in awe of, the vital role food plays in our lives, and its ability to connect us with those we’ve lost.

“Food has brought me comfort in bereavement, but it can help much earlier too, as a reason to get together and have difficult conversations about our own mortality and the wishes we have for when we’re gone. I hope this cookbook inspires people not just to remember a lost loved one but maybe reflect on how their absence might affect the world too.”

Comfort food

Almost half (47%) of people who have lost a loved one say that food, whether cooking or eating, has in some way helped them through their grief. A further one in six (16%) say that if they could spend one more day with a lost loved one, they would choose to share a meal with them.

Indeed, with the kitchen often serving as the heart of the home, it is where legacy so often lives. One in six people (17%) have inherited a family recipe from a loved one, one in eight (13%) received a treasured kitchen utensil, and one in 10 (10%) were left a beloved cookbook. About one in five (21%) expect to pass down a kitchen keepsake of their own one day.

Lizzie Connick, 26, lost her mother to suicide when she was just 14: “Mum was an amazing parent to my siblings and me, and never let us see her struggles with depression. Losing her at such a young age was hard enough, but not being able to get her affairs in order made the grief so much harder for the whole family. We never managed to access her laptop, which held so many family photos and important documents. The thought of losing so many precious memories still hurts to this day.

“Amongst all this, we did get her amazing Boston Beans recipe, this is a meal we share to remember the good times, something she’d always make for the family when life threw us curveballs.”

Edd Wilson, 33, lost his wife Sophie to ovarian and womb cancer aged just 29: “Sophie showed extraordinary resilience, remaining positive and selfless despite multiple surgeries, failed fertility treatment, and a terminal diagnosis. When she died, the world lost its colour, so I chased anything that reminded me of her, the people, places, and the smell of the Thai curry that so often brought us together.

“Life was hard for a long time, and just when it felt like I was in reach of something like normality, I was hit with a second wave of grief caused by guilt for not thinking about her all the time. It took me a long time to feel ok talking about it, and it’s still so hard to do, but sharing this dish helps, and I hope it helps others to get together and remember their loved ones too.”

The weight of loss

Losing a loved one carries an emotional weight but often an administrative one too. From telling family and friends to cancelling subscriptions, house clearing to writing an obituary, nine in 10 people (92%) recently facing a bereavement shouldered at least one practical responsibility following the death. Among these, caring for dependents (92%) and keeping the family together (91%) were most often cited as being challenging.

These jobs are invariably tackled alongside, and often in the way of, grief and the emotions that come with it. 78% of bereaved people report that they struggled personally following a death, while 72% say they faced practical challenges as part of their family or friendship group.

In some cases, the turbulence resulting from a loss drove a wedge between family members, with one in five experiencing strained family relationships, and one in 10 never speaking to that family member again.

It’s notable that people who have lived through a challenging probate experience due to the absence of a will are significantly more likely to have their own end-of-life planning in order. Two in three (68%) of those in this cohort have a valid will, compared to just 48% of the wider population.

Louise Colley, Director of Retail Protection at Zurich UK, said: “For me personally, getting my grandma’s Be-Ro recipe book which was dotted with sauce stains and flour dust, was a symbol of her love that will carry through generations. When facing a bereavement these keepsakes are priceless, and those left behind are often grateful they have survived. It’s why we give our life insurance customers the ability to save cherished items in their digital ‘LifeVault’ alongside the important documents that help family and friends navigate the turbulent waters following a death.

“None of us wants to imagine the day we are no longer here, but the choices we make now can be one of the greatest gifts we leave behind: easing the burden on the people we love when they are grieving most. Planning for death is not cold, morbid or administrative - it is love made practical. It’s an act of empathy that outlives us, even though we may never see its impact. Yet with only one in three people comfortable talking about death, too many families are left guessing. My hope is that this book gives people the reason and the courage to start today. Have the conversation, write down what matters, protect the memories, and make sure those you love know your wishes.”

To explore the recipes in ‘Legacy Kitchen’, discover the stories behind them in a short film, and find out more about Zurich LifeVault, please visit:

• Legacy Kitchen: their recipes, our memories

Sources

*Research of 2,000 UK adults (weighted to be nationally representative) carried out by British Polling Council member Opinium between 24th and 28th July 2026. Respondents could choose to skip some questions; results have been weighted accordingly.