Stratford-upon-Avon care home residents team up with grandchildren to bring back favourite recipes

A care home in Stratford-upon-Avon has teamed up with their grandchildren 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 Ambleside on Evesham 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 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 Stratford-upon-Avon for many years to come, residents from Ambleside have rolled up their sleeves and donned their aprons, to team up with their grandchildren to show just how tasty their food favourites from the past are.  

On the day, the residents and youngsters competed to bake the best spring nest cake, which were filled with mint Aero, popping candy, marshmallows and Maltesers. The Head Chef, Carl Fox, was then blindfolded and tasted the delicious entries, awarding first prize to residents Kathryn Shepherd and Margaret Kendry, and children Eva and Freddie Hemmings and Luna Jeffrey.

Margaret Kendry, aged 92, said: “I enjoyed mixing in the melted chocolate – it smelt delicious. It’s important to keep cooking old recipes so that children understand about history and what we used to do without technology. It was lovely to have the children here, they made me feel young again.

Charlotte Levin, Home Manager at Ambleside, 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.

“It’s been wonderful seeing the residents enjoy baking with their grandchildren. Everyone had a great time talking about their favourite foods – and taste testing the spring nest cakes was certainly the cherry on the cake!” 

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

Ambleside is a state-of-the-art care home which provides full-time residential, dementia and nursing care, as well as short-term respite care. Designed to enable its residents to live enjoyable and fulfilling lives, the care home has its very own cinema, café and hair salon, and there is plenty of space, both indoors and out, for relaxation and recreation.