WARMING WINTER MEALS FOR ELDERLY PEOPLE

With the colder months creeping in, warming, hearty winter meals will be too. We wanted to explore some classic meals and dishes that many love to indulge in and share some ideas for you ahead of the winter season.

 

SOUPS

Any hot soup is renowned for its warming benefits in the colder months. They provide lots of nutrition due to being packed full of vegetables and goodness so can you feel good about what is going into your body – from a healthy perspective and a body heat perspective. They are very simple, quick and easy to make, making them even more desirable at this time of year. Some classic soup flavours are:

  • Tomato and basil
  • Pea and ham
  • Minestrone
  • French onion
  • Any broth

BBC Food have many soup recipes with an easily navigated page for you to explore some new flavours this winter. Your ingredients will entirely depend on what vegetables you’ll need for the soup. Get the whole family involved or invite some friends over to enjoy a film while you sip your soup!

Soup recipes | BBC Food

 

BEEF STEW

Stews are great for lots of nutrition in one dish full of rich meat and various vegetables. Beef stews make a particularly perfect winter meal as they can serve several people at once and they’re lovely and warming. It also helps that they’re relatively easy to make! If you’re a red meat lover and enjoy copious amounts of vegetables, we found the perfect beef stew recipe for you (linked below). Jamie Oliver, a well-known chef, has a webpage for his recipe with this stew serving as many as 6 – perfect for if you have any family or friends visiting!

https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/beef/beef-stew/

 

SHEPHERD’S OR COTTAGE PIE

Most will know these classic pie dishes, especially if they like fresh meat and vegetables topped with a creamy mash. The main difference, if you do not know, is the meat used for the pies. The principle behind them is exactly the same, as with the recipe, but the meat has a great impact on the taste and may be determined by the occasion. For instance, a Shepherd’s Pie, which is cooked with ground lamb, is perfect on St. Patrick’s Day. Equally, it can be enjoyed through all autumnal and wintry months. We found a recipe online that is easy to follow and easily interchangeable between a Shepherd’s Pie (lamb) and a Cottage Pie (beef), making it versatile for everyone eating the dish. It’s a perfect winter warmer for you and your loved ones. There is a vegetarian option we found too so we have linked that below for you, you can still enjoy the filling meal with extra vegetables and alternatives!

For meat-lovers: https://www.thewholesomedish.com/the-best-classic-shepherds-pie/#recipe

For vegetarians: https://pinchofyum.com/vegetarian-shepherds-pie

 

CASSEROLES

Casseroles are a classic warming dish loved by many. They are relatively quick to make and they are packed full of goodness, often serving bigger groups if you have a decent casserole dish! Like with the soups we found on BBC Food with their easily navigated page, they have a section for casseroles too, both for carnivores and vegetarians or vegans. Here are some of our suggested ones to try:

Feel free to explore other options, maybe trying something spicy or unusual to stimulate your tastebuds this winter. The main link is below:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/casserole#featured-content

 

ROAST DINNERS

Any roast dinner, as you may know, is the perfect Sunday meal. It can be eaten as a lunch dish, but it is more popular for dinner, and it is a great winter warmer. The vegetables add a high level of nutrition and it is great at providing carnivores with some protein from the rich meat. Typical roast dinner meats are chicken, beef or pork. You can use various herbs and spices on your roast meat for a meal full of flavour for yourself and family or friends. Below is a link of a delicious roast beef dinner that is clearly timed and planned out for you so you don’t have to stress about how well the potatoes will cook or if you’ll run out of time for your Yorkshire puddings!

https://www.kitchensanctuary.com/roast-beef-dinner/

 

LASAGNE (VEGETARIAN OPTIONS AVAILABLE)

Lasagnes are perfect for their easy-to-make and warming benefits and can be made for meat lovers or vegetarians and vegans by swapping out alternatives easily. We have found a classic lasagne recipe by the wonderful Tom Kerridge online for you to try out, with the sauce being very versatile between a lasagne, a bolognese or even a chilli con carne – which are also all perfect in the wintry months ahead. This recipe is very filling and great for a larger group if necessary.

The link is here: https://tomkerridge.com/recipes/classic-lasagne/

Vegetarian alternative with BBC Food is here: Vegetable lasagne recipe – BBC Food

 

RATATOUILLE

Coming before the beautiful film about a rat chef in Paris, ratatouille makes an amazing wintry dish, despite originating from the Mediterranean. Ratatouille is perfect for providing you with some vegetable goodness, tasting of the South of France but feeling hearty and warming as you eat. The dish can be eaten as a main meal, or sometimes as a side dish with some meat such as lamb or chicken as the main course. Its quick and easy preparation makes it entirely feasible for a weeknight.

A link to the perfect ratatouille we found is here: Ratatouille Recipe | The Mediterranean Dish

 

CURRIES (MEAT OR VEGETARIAN)

Nothing is better than a delicious curry with steaming hot rice and sides to accompany. A curry for a winter meal would make a great addition to your weekly menu of lunches and dinners. They can come with meats like lamb or chicken or equally chickpeas and lots of lentils for a vegetarian alternative. Having a curry here and there can also stimulate your tastebuds by adding a new culture to your nutrition. We found

BBC Food have lots of curry recipes to explore. Links can be found below to main curry dishes and sides or starters and nibbles:

Easy curry recipes – BBC Food

Chicken curry recipes | A – BBC Food

Search recipes – BBC Food