A business consultant turned budding chef has launched a crowdfunding campaign to help her publish a potato-themed book inspired by a recipe collection made by her mother nearly three decades ago.

Hilary Steel, who trains bosses and organises events like the Kent Independent Traders Awards, aims to raise £7,500 on creative funding website Kickstarter for her World of Potatoes cookbook.

The project has been inspired by her 81-year-old mother Jennifer Steel, who published the Great Potato Cookbook in 1989.

After she suffered a stroke in 2011, which left her paralysed down her right-hand side, she moved in with daughter Hilary, who found herself experimenting with recipes while cooking for her parents.

She is now investing £5,000 of her own money to put her ideas into print and has until Friday, July 22, to raise cash on Kickstarter to pay for her own book’s publication, ingredients and premises.

“I’m doing a lot of live streaming about potatoes and getting a lot of interest from abroad. If I don’t get this money I will find a way to do it...” - Hilary Steel

Mrs Steel, who aims to publish the book in November, said her mother thought the idea was crazy, but added: “I told her I blame the parents.”

She has cut 50% of her workload from her training and events business to focus on the project, which will use about 60 recipes from the original book, many of which have been adapted to suit what is available in the shops today.

She can be seen at Aylesford farmers’ market showing off her skills and will be cooking live at the Kent County Show this weekend.

“It’s become a lifestyle change,” said Mrs Steel, who lives in Allington, near Maidstone.

“I got to the stage with the other business where I didn’t want to do the corporate side. I wanted to be free of that and this fits where my heart is.”

Kickstarter is popular with entrepreneurs testing creative projects as the crowdfunding platform does not involve giving up any equity.

Mrs Steel said: “I’m doing a lot of live streaming about potatoes and getting a lot of interest from abroad. If I don’t get this money I will find a way to do it.”