Residents Take On Come Dine With Me Challenge
Residents at Scottish care homes have put their taste buds to the test in a ‘Come Dine with Me’ style event to offer their critique and help develop new seasonal menus.
Scottish care provider Meallmore has recruited residents from Airthrey care home in Falkirk and Kincaid House in Greenock to share their advice on what flavours, ingredients and textures they’d like to experience in their summer and autumn menus. The event has proved so successful; it’s now being rolled out at more care homes in Aberdeenshire and the Highlands.
Meallmore’s Regional Catering Manager, David Blackwood, worked with chefs at Airthrey Care Home and Kincaid House to cook up some tasty new recipes from Indian and Mexican cuisine to classic British desserts.
David said: “We held tasting sessions to invite our residents to try a number of recipes and score them on a scale of one to five. Great food is one life’s special pleasures so it’s important our residents are provided with fresh, quality meals that are as nutritious as they are enjoyable.
“Working alongside our residents is the best way to be sure our meals are tasty and something they look forward to eating. We tried new ingredients and flavours some of our residents might not be too familiar with. Spicy dishes including onion bhajis and Mexican bean soup were popular choices, scoring highly in our tasting sessions. We’re pleased with feedback from residents and staff and will continue to deliver tasting sessions at more Meallmore care homes.”
Aithrey Care Home resident, Jean Calder, who has recently celebrated her 102nd birthday, said it was a privilege to take part in the foodie event. She said: “I’m very impressed with our menu choices and feel there’s an excellent selection of food offer, which is very different from what I ate growing up! It was good fun helping devise the menu.”
