By Kevin Turner, Southern Field Sales Manager for 3G Food Service & Seafood Solutions

The Christmas season provides care home caterers with the perfect opportunity to make life extra special for residents by serving treats and festive-themed food. There are some delicious, high quality products available to make this time of year memorable, ranging from traditional mince pies to mini Yorkshire puddings filled with turkey and cranberry sauce!

It’s also worth noting that celebratory festive food does not just have to be restricted to  the day itself. Christmas offers the ideal opportunity for care homes to hold fun events for the residents and their families, including carol singing events, special family days and parties. Food can be at the centre of these celebrations to spread some festive cheer!

Care home caterers are often working to tight budgets and have to be extremely organised when it comes to menu planning. Careful preparation and consultation with a good food service supplier will help the busy Christmas period run smoothly and cost effectively, without changing buying patterns too drastically. Frozen food is often ideal when working to tight budgets, as it allows for easy portion control, reduced food wastage and planning ahead of time.

In my opinion, the best way to plan for Christmas is to break the menu down into four sections: Starter, Main Course, Dessert and Buffet …

Starter
It’s best to keep starters light at Christmas, because the main meal can be large and filling. Soups are a great choice for care homes, because they are available in traditional, popular flavours, are easy to eat and comforting. They can also be served throughout the Christmas and New Year period as a hearty, warming lunch option with croutons or crusty bread. Delicious, high quality varieties include Vine Ripened Tomato & Basil Soup, Best Ever Chicken Soup and Farmhouse Vegetable Soup. The residents are certain to have different dietary requirements too, and some soups are suitable for vegetarians and coeliacs.

Prawn cocktail is a traditional favourite that is sure to be popular with all guests, as are fish cakes and smoked salmon. Whilst Christmas is often a time for indulgence, it’s important to remember that nutrition is an important factor when catering for care homes – all residents must have a balanced diet full of vitamins and nutrients. Fish and seafood is a great healthy choice to include on festive menus and can be served with a variety of seasonal vegetables.

Main course
Whilst special for residents, Christmas day is also a normal working day for care home staff. Residents still need to be helped out of bed, be given their medication and made comfortable. However, staffing levels can be less than usual at Christmas due to holidays etc. Operating with fewer staff can be difficult at the best of times – but becomes even more challenging when there’s a Christmas lunch to prepare and serve!

The best way to combat this problem is to invest in some high quality frozen food that is quick and easy to prepare and serve. There’s a variety of frozen Christmas food available, including Turkey roasts. From cooked turkey saddle to raw butterfly turkey breasts, there’s something to suit all applications. Don’t forget the cranberry sauce, sage & onion stuffing balls and the pigs in blankets too – these make the day extra special and set the meal apart from a run of the mill roast dinner.

Other Christmas essentials available in frozen format include Yorkshire puddings, roast and mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables such as cauliflower, carrots, button sprouts and swede – all of which are great accompaniments to turkey.

Desserts
Christmas pudding has to be the favourite dessert option on Christmas day. Available frozen, this dessert tastes great when served with brandy butter, rum sauce, cream or custard. Mince pies and Yule Logs are also an obvious choice too, and if there’s no time to hand make them - the frozen ones taste just as good!

For those residents too full to eat a large dessert or who fancy something refreshing, I also recommend buying in some flavoured ice cream such a chocolate, vanilla or raspberry ripple flavour, or a refreshing lemon sorbet.

Buffet
Care homes tend to offset a large Christmas dinner with a light buffet in the evening. Buffets offer care home caterers the ideal opportunity to satisfy all different taste buds and there are some delicious festive products available that will really excite residents.

These include bite-sized Mini Yorkshire Puddings filled with Beef & Horseradish, Mini Black Forests and Mini Treacle Tarts.

Kevin Turner

Full details of all products, orders and special offers can be obtained by calling the 3G Customer Service Centre on 0870 850 5213 or by visiting the company’s website at www.3gfoodservice.co.uk. Customers can also register online to regularly receive latest information, Product Guides and product updates.