Our Story

In April 2016, our co-founder Alan Mackenzie lost his wife, Alison, to cancer. During her illness, eating became increasingly difficult. Like many patients, Alison was offered fortified nutritional drinks to support her recovery - but she found them unpalatable and, at times, they made her feel worse rather than better.

What stayed with Alan was not just the illness, but how limited the food options were for people who were already struggling.

After Alison’s death, her oncologist, Dr Jon Krell, encouraged Alan to find a new sense of purpose...something that could help others facing similar challenges. Together, they began asking a simple but important question:

What if nutritional food could feel like real food again?

From clinical experience, Dr Krell had seen how often patients wanted to eat, but couldn’t. Appetite loss, fatigue, treatment side effects and emotional overwhelm all played a role; and yet the body’s need for nutrition never disappeared.

The problem wasn’t a lack of supplements.

It was a lack of food people could actually enjoy.

To help bridge that gap, Alan and Dr Krell partnered with published chef Alan Rosenthal, bringing together medical insight and culinary expertise. Their shared aim was clear: to create food made with real, natural ingredients that could deliver essential nutrition without feeling clinical or forced.

Alison’s experience helped shape their first focus. During her illness, ice creams and ice lollies were some of the few foods she could tolerate. They were familiar, comforting, and easier to eat when everything else felt overwhelming. That insight led to the creation of Nutri-Ice - a fortified ice cream designed to gently support nutrition when eating is hard.

In January 2023, the team met Sally Newall, founder of Simply Ice Cream. With her expertise in crafting ice cream using a small number of high-quality, natural ingredients, Sally joined My Doctor’s Recipe later that year to further develop Nutri-Ice. Together, they created a recipe fortified with a unique vitamin and mineral blend known as DJK+, carefully designed to support nutritional needs.

The result was a product that balanced nutrition, flavour, and comfort. In summer 2023, Nutri-Ice launched in private hospitals across the UK.

Today, My Doctor’s Recipe continues to grow, guided by the same principles it was founded on: compassion, clinical insight, and respect for the emotional side of eating. Our journey has only just begun, with more thoughtfully developed products in the pipeline - all dedicated to making nutritional care more human.