Thame care home residents team up with local nursery to bring back favourite recipes

A care home in Thame has teamed up with local nursery 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 Cuttlebrook Hall on Stock 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 Thame for many years to come, residents from Cuttlebrook Hall have rolled up their sleeves and donned their aprons, and teamed up with children from Roots For Life Nursery to show just how tasty their food favorites from the past are.  

Together, residents and children enjoyed whipping up delicious Vanilla cupcakes while sharing their favourite foods and fond memories of family mealtimes.

The residents really enjoyed spending time with the nursery children, with one resident saying: “It was really love to bake with the children – it has been years since I baked with my own children.”

Alana Corr, Home Manager at Cuttlebrook Hall, said: “We’ve certainly been whipping up some treats here at Cuttlebrook Hall as we headed to the kitchen to revisit residents’ food favourites from decades gone by.

“Regardless of age, food plays an important part in all of our lives, and there’s something special about the way the senses have the ability to evoke happy memories and emotions – which is why keeping old family recipes bubbling away and sharing them with younger generations is so important.

“It was fantastic to welcome pupils from Roots for Life Nursery for an afternoon spent cooking! Everyone had a great time talking about their favourite foods – and seeing the youngsters enjoy the homemade cupcakes 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

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