Chelmsford care home residents team up with local school to bring back favourite recipes

A care home in Chelmsford has teamed up with local school children and joined a nationwide campaign to save traditional recipes from being forgotten.  

A poll of 2,000 adults carried out by Care UK, which operates Manor Lodge on Manor Road, found almost two-thirds (65%) of the nation no longer use family recipes that have been handed down through the generations, however, 43% of people surveyed are keen to save them. 

In a bid to prevent family recipes passed down through the generations from being lost forever, Care UK has launched a free downloadable recipe book – Recipes to remember, which features recipes shared by care home residents across the UK. From food enjoyed during World War Two to quirky desserts from the 1970s, the book includes residents’ favourite foods, alongside recipes tailored to support older people by Care UK’s award-winning chefs. 

Keen to keep their recipes bubbling away in Chelmsford for many years to come, residents from Manor Lodge have rolled up their sleeves and donned their aprons, and teamed up with children from St Michael’s Primary School to show just how tasty their food favourites from the past are.  

Together, residents and children took part in a blind tasting session with a variety of classic dishes, including liver and bacon, cornbeef hash and Maids of Honour, a traditional English baked tart. Everyone shared stories of favourite – and least favourite! – foods as they took guesses at what they were eating. 

83-year-old resident, Sister Rosemary Peacock, said: “I enjoyed watching the reactions of the children and was surprised of how much they enjoyed the liver dish”.  

Maggie Ziemianska, Home Manager at Manor Lodge, said: “Spring is in the air – and so too are the smells of some incredibly tasty home-cooked recipes adored by residents and their families for generations.  

“Just like a photograph, a family recipe can be a way to revisit the past and reminisce on a cherished memory or loved ones. How something tastes or smells can be a powerful tool for triggering memories and positive feelings, especially for those living with dementia, which is why we’re delighted to be taking part in Care UK’s Recipes to remember campaign.

“From liver and bacon to cornbeef hash, it’s been wonderful seeing the residents revisit some of their favourite foods from across the decades with pupils from St Michael’s Primary School. Arctic rolls might be out of flavour but it’s clear from how well the resident’s recipes were enjoyed that there’s still a hunger for foods from the past today – so donut give up on them!”

To find out more about Care UK’s Recipes to remember initiative or to download your copy of the recipe book, please visit: careuk.com/recipes-to-remember

Manor Lodge is a modern care home which provides full-time residential, dementia nursing and short-term respite care. Designed to enable its residents to live enjoyable and fulfilling lives, the care home has its very own cinema and hair salon, and there is plenty of space both in and outdoors for relaxation and recreation.