As week one of almost-lockdown under our belts, it's become incredibly clear that this COVID-19 outbreak is pretty serious stuff. We've all been asked to stay home in order to help the NHS, volunteers have been sought from all over the country to help those in our communities who are shielding, and we are all concerned for our elderly relatives. That's why I thought I would write a blog post on meals to make for people who are either key workers, shielding or in self isolation; whether that's your parents, friends, neighbours, grandma, or those who are pregnant or have underlying health conditions.
I feel like this is somewhat of a dual blog post - I originally wrote this as meals to make for your new-mum friend, as I've reached an age where I feel like all my friends are settling down and having babies, and it's hard to know how to be helpful. I like to give the gift of food lately, to benefit mum really, as baby will be getting lots of lovely gifts. It usually goes down pretty well, but the principles around what to consider when cooking for your new-mum friends also apply to pretty much everyone else you might want to make meals for - including meals for people in COVID-19 self isolation - so I've given this post a bit of a repurpose (a bit of a theme in my blogs lately).
I feel like this is somewhat of a dual blog post - I originally wrote this as meals to make for your new-mum friend, as I've reached an age where I feel like all my friends are settling down and having babies, and it's hard to know how to be helpful. I like to give the gift of food lately, to benefit mum really, as baby will be getting lots of lovely gifts. It usually goes down pretty well, but the principles around what to consider when cooking for your new-mum friends also apply to pretty much everyone else you might want to make meals for - including meals for people in COVID-19 self isolation - so I've given this post a bit of a repurpose (a bit of a theme in my blogs lately).
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| Banana bread would make a great food gift for someone. |
This post does have to come with some health warnings though I'm afraid - a reminder that we should be socially distancing. We aren't supposed to be travelling unless it is essential and so unless you are delivering food to someone who is unable to leave the house, then I am not condoning any unessential travel in order for you to do this. By all means, drive to your grandparents or vulnerable family or friends who you need to help, and if you have key worker friends who live nearby, or on your street, then I'm sure they will really appreciate you leaving something delicious on their doorstep. Remember that when you deliver anything you should leave it on the doorstep, knock the door and then step back to at least 2 metres away and wait for them to answer the door, to make sure that they receive the parcel. Otherwise, please stay at home.
Ok so now that we have covered the safety stuff...
It can be difficult to know what to bring for someone who is in need, whether they are self isolating, shielding, in quarantine, or looking after a new baby for example. I struggled for a little while wondering how it is best to be helpful to my friend, and in the current lockdown you may be feeling a bit useless (I am) but it seems that the answer to this question is a lot simpler than you may initially think - food.
Everyone loves the Gift of Food
It makes sense right? Everyone loves food. There really is no better gift than of delicious treats and drinks on your birthday or Christmas, so why would any other occasion be any different? Food is even more appreciated in the current climate, and although going shopping for someone is very helpful indeed, they may also appreciate some ready-cooked meals. There's a human-touch to food, something that brings us all together, and it is needed more than ever during this testing time. People may not be able to meet for food, eat together or even cook together, but they can enjoy a meal prepared by a friend, family member or caring member of the community and know they are being thought about.
The supermarkets are now strange places, and people are turning more to cooking from scratch, using tins or even turning to baking their own bread if it appears to be in short supply. Not everyone can cook, or cook well, and so if they are stuck in the house or working super long shifts, then a ready-made homecooked meal will be incredible for them. If you know someone who has suffered from the virus then they are also likely to be rather weak and tired, either during or after their suffering. They'll be in quarantine and unlikely to be able to get an online shop delivered, and so they too would probably appreciate some meals that they won't have to worry about cooking.
My new-mum friend has barely been getting time to finish a hot cup of tea, and so it's very unlikely that she was getting time to cook either. She has a great husband at her side who works full time, and so at lunch she has to fend for herself. She doesn't have time to cook and obviously needs meals which are quick to prepare and easy to eat. When I thought about how she might feed herself, I wasn't convinced that she would be reaching for the most healthy options in the world. I mean, how could she? I'd be reaching for a pack of biscuits or something really convenient, like a microwave meal, and therefore may be packed with salt and added sugar. I imagine also applies to people who are stuck at home during the COVID-19 outbreak, and particularly if the isolation is making them feel pretty low on energy.
This post does have to come with some health warnings though I'm afraid - a reminder that we should be socially distancing. We aren't supposed to be travelling unless it is essential and so unless you are delivering food to someone who is unable to leave the house, then I am not condoning any unessential travel in order for you to do this. By all means, drive to your grandparents or vulnerable family or friends who you need to help, and if you have key worker friends who live nearby, or on your street, then I'm sure they will really appreciate you leaving something delicious on their doorstep. Remember that when you deliver anything you should leave it on the doorstep, knock the door and then step back to at least 2 metres away and wait for them to answer the door, to make sure that they receive the parcel. Otherwise, please stay at home.
Ok so now that we have covered the safety stuff...
It can be difficult to know what to bring for someone who is in need, whether they are self isolating, shielding, in quarantine, or looking after a new baby for example. I struggled for a little while wondering how it is best to be helpful to my friend, and in the current lockdown you may be feeling a bit useless (I am) but it seems that the answer to this question is a lot simpler than you may initially think - food.
Everyone loves the Gift of Food
It makes sense right? Everyone loves food. There really is no better gift than of delicious treats and drinks on your birthday or Christmas, so why would any other occasion be any different? Food is even more appreciated in the current climate, and although going shopping for someone is very helpful indeed, they may also appreciate some ready-cooked meals. There's a human-touch to food, something that brings us all together, and it is needed more than ever during this testing time. People may not be able to meet for food, eat together or even cook together, but they can enjoy a meal prepared by a friend, family member or caring member of the community and know they are being thought about.
The supermarkets are now strange places, and people are turning more to cooking from scratch, using tins or even turning to baking their own bread if it appears to be in short supply. Not everyone can cook, or cook well, and so if they are stuck in the house or working super long shifts, then a ready-made homecooked meal will be incredible for them. If you know someone who has suffered from the virus then they are also likely to be rather weak and tired, either during or after their suffering. They'll be in quarantine and unlikely to be able to get an online shop delivered, and so they too would probably appreciate some meals that they won't have to worry about cooking.
My new-mum friend has barely been getting time to finish a hot cup of tea, and so it's very unlikely that she was getting time to cook either. She has a great husband at her side who works full time, and so at lunch she has to fend for herself. She doesn't have time to cook and obviously needs meals which are quick to prepare and easy to eat. When I thought about how she might feed herself, I wasn't convinced that she would be reaching for the most healthy options in the world. I mean, how could she? I'd be reaching for a pack of biscuits or something really convenient, like a microwave meal, and therefore may be packed with salt and added sugar. I imagine also applies to people who are stuck at home during the COVID-19 outbreak, and particularly if the isolation is making them feel pretty low on energy.
My food parcel to all of these people would be both a mixture of homemade meals that I spent time making, and some items bought from the local supermarket.
Supermarket Treats
Let's start with the supermarket items that you might want to go and buy. Of course, these days there is nothing more appreciated than a packet of pasta or a 24 pack of toilet roll, this stuff is basically gold, but there are many other good options to buy for someone who is self-isolating.
For my friend, I went for a loaf of soreen fruit cake, microwaveable packets of brown rice (to go with my meal contributions) and of course some chocolates because we all need a treat right now after all. I also put a bottle of nice elderflower cordial because if all you have is water for a few weeks then you are going to get bored. Of course, this was pre-COVID-19 and so you may not be able to get hold of such a fancy cordial, so you may want to consider another type, or even some fruit juice.
Soreen is hailed as being a pretty healthy snack, and so this is something I'd consider putting in my isolation food gift, and did give to my new-mum friend as part of hers. It isn't as bad for you as cake but can feel like a treat - it can be sliced quickly and eaten alone or with butter and of course. it'll provide some much needed calories to anyone recovering from the coronavirus.
No-Stress Containers
In order to deliver my meals, I also bought some foil tray containers with the foil lids. This meant hat she didn't have to worry about returning the container to me - they can washed, reused or simply rinsed and recycled - completely stress free and easy. They're oven safe too so you can reheat the meal in the container and if you were super tired, you wouldn't even really need to put the hot meal it in another dish - just eat from the container and save on those dishes.
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| Hummus with pre-washed and chopped veg is a healthy and fuss-free snack. |
So what did I cook?
For my friend, I thought about what to cook quite a lot and decided that I had a few requirements for the meals. When I think about people in self-isolation or quarantine, I guess I would have similar or the same requirements.
I wanted them to:
1. be easily reheated in one dish,
2. be delicious,
3. be packed with nutrition,
4. be pretty simple for the person I was giving them to- in other words I didn't want it to be anything that requires too much assembly,
5. be comforting,
6. be freezeable and still be as good when reheated as when they were first made,
7. be free from high risk foods so they were pretty sure to be safe when reheated. This meant no rice, chicken or fish.
Hearty Meals
After I thought about all of this, I decided to go with a comforting sausage and butterbean stew, with plenty of paprika and Spanish flavours. It had peppers, onions, tomatoes, herby sausages, and butterbeans and can be served with bread, rice, on it's own, you name it. This is also why I bought the microwaveable rice - it can be made and served with the dish in no time, with minimal effort and she could just throw the packet away - no dishes made here.
I haven't yet added the recipe to the blog (coming soon) and so there is a pretty good looking recipe that you could try here. I just used normal sausages (so you could leave the chorizo sausages out if you don't have them) and I also didn't use wine, so you can leave this out if you don't want to use it. Add any beans you like - I use mixed beans and maybe some chickpeas too. You could also add spinach or kale as this slightly simpler recipe has done.
I also made a really hearty vegetable packed lentil cottage pie. It was big enough for 4 portions with carrots, peas, leeks, lentils, beans and tomatoes - it's full of all kinds of goodness and flavoured with fresh thyme and stock with buttery mustard mash. I would have loved to have kept a portion but I have plenty of free time to make more - she needed it more than me. There is nothing extra needed here either - it is a complete meal which can be eaten from the foil carton if needs be (I'm not judging), perfect for the busy or quarantined. Mary Berry has a similar recipe for a lentil cottage pie too, but feel free to add any extra veg or beans as you fancy - I love adapting a recipe to my own tastes.
Finally, I made a batch of welsh cakes (find the recipe here). These are so easy to grab, they don't necessarily need heating up, they're easy to hold and eat as you go, or while you hold baby. My friend also really enjoyed them when I made them at work so I'm sure she will enjoy these too. They'd be ideal for a recovering person to just grab. You could also make some banana bread or something sweet.
All of these meals and treats could be popped into the freezer and taken out later in the week too. All can be reheated easily in their container and will all provide those needed vitamins and minerals. They should be easy to ping in the microwave for a person who has no time, such as key workers and particularly NHS staff, as I mentioned in my previous post on 7 tips to save money and food.
Can't Cook, Won't Cook
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| My 3 Ingredient breakfast bars. |
I tried to provide both full meals and snacks that can be grabbed easily, and I have so many other ideas for things you could prepare and take to anyone in need. You could make curries, stews, bolognaise, chilli, all kinds of pies, soups and a whole lot more. Snacks could include hummus and carrots/vegetables that you've already washed and chopped, and are completely fuss free. You could make my banana and peanut butter bars, or take fruit (fresh or dried, although dried is less likely to go off if forgotten about or if fresh is hard to get hold of) or a whole load of other things that you might think about. I guess my tip is to think about a time when you've been sick or in need, and what you would have really appreciated at that time. If you haven't been in need like that, then think about what you might feel like If you were this person - what would you find useful and helpful?
You don't have to be the best cook to be able to help someone, you don't even have to like cooking or lift a wooden spoon at all. My step-mum had a great suggestion of treating a new parents to a meal for 2 deal from M&S or Tesco if you can get hold of one. You could also do this for anyone who is in need. You don't have to spend hours cooking if you don't have time, aren't into it or even not very good at it, but they'll still have a delicious, well deserved and gratefully received meal, and night off from cooking or loads of dishes.
In fact, I live quite a distance from any of my family and in particular, my grandmother lives around a 5 hour drive from Reading. She is over 70 and therefore classed as vulnerable, and doesn't have any family nearby, other than her husband who she lives with, but they should both be isolating at the moment. I obviously can't cook anything and send it to her as it would take too long to get there, and they cannot get food deliveries a the moment which means that they are exposed when they need to get essentials. So I have decided to send the gift of food through Pasta Evangelists who have designed a Pasta Care Package. The care package provides three meals - meat, vegetarian or mixed - for £25, and £5 of this is donated to AgeUK.
If this COVID-19 outbreak has taught us anything, it is that we all need to pull together. Already we have seen a huge number of people sign up to be NHS volunteers, and the human kindness is coming to light more and more every day. We can all help, whether that be the elderly person next door, our grandparents, pregnant friends, families or even our key workers.
Social Distancing
Remember, that despite everything you should only help those who need it and you should be socially distant while you do it. You should only help the vulnerable or those you can help without doing any unnecessary travel. You should adhere to all government guidelines and socially distance at all times. When you deliver anything to anyone who needs help, leave the goods on the doorstep, knock the door and then step back a minimum of 2m away from the door to allow them to collect it.
Also remember, that the best thing that you can do to help if you do not know anyone who needs help is to stay at home. If you are able to work from home and do not need to leave the house to help anyone then stay at home and follow the government advice at all times.
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