Festive Feasting – how our Care Homes are Celebrating Christmas with Food

Christmas is a time for gathering with loved ones, sharing joy, and of course, enjoying a wonderful meal. This year, we’re making sure that every resident has something to celebrate with a variety of delicious Christmas Day menu options, designed to suit every taste and dietary preference.  We have also put together a delicious Boxing Day and New Year’s Day menu.

Christmas Day wouldn’t be the same without our traditional hand-carved roast turkey, served with all the classic trimmings. To start, residents can enjoy a delicious homemade roasted tomato soup, topped with pesto and grilled cheese croutons and for dessert, residents can enjoy a traditional Christmas pudding, served with rich brandy sauce.

Looking for something different? Try a Bloody Mary Prawn Crumpet!

If turkey’s not your thing, don’t worry! Our chefs and residents have come up with plenty of tasty alternatives to suit every taste and are offering a bespoke menu at each of our care homes based on resident preferences. At each Four Seasons and brighterkind home, residents and chefs have worked together to create a range of starter, main, and dessert options, including vegetarian choices, so there’s something for everyone—old favourites and new twists. Homes will choose the alternative options they wish to offer alongside the traditional Christmas fare.

Starter suggestions made by residents and chefs include Breaded Brie with Cranberry Compote, Goat’s Cheese, Pear and Walnut Tartine, Smoked Salmon Roulade, and more. For the main course, alternatives include Salmon en Croûte, Plaice Paupiette, and Plaice Veronique.

Do you know the difference between Plaice Paupiette and Plaice Veronique?

Our homes have come up with eighteen fish recipe options all carefully selected by our chefs and residents to ensure they not only taste great, but are also balanced and nutritious. Three of the fish dishes residents requested are: Plaice Paupiette (plaice rolled up), Plaice Veronique (plaice with a sauce and grapes), and Plaice Florentine (plaice with a creamy spinach sauce).  Did you know the difference between these plaice dishes?

Vegetarians don’t miss out either!

We’ve got fourteen tasty veggie Christmas Day options proposed by our homes, including Homemade Nut Roast, Mushroom and Lentil Wellington, Butternut & Pistachio Roast, Root Vegetable Tatin with Candied Walnuts and Blue Cheese, and Root Vegetable and Chickpea dishes. Vegans aren’t forgotten either. Our care homes cater for a variety of diets (including specialist diets), and any resident following a vegan diet will not be disappointed on these special days.

Specialist diets also catered for at Christmas

For those with swallowing difficulties, our chef teams are able to take any menu item and create a soft diet version suitable for the individual in accordance with the International Dysphagia Diet Standardization Initiative (IDDSI). IDDSI classifies foods and drinks into different levels to ensure food and drinks are at the correct level for the individual to prevent choking. This means the tastes and smells of Christmas can be safely enjoyed by everyone.

For those with a sweet tooth

For those with a sweet tooth, we’ve got some delicious dessert alternatives, such as Espresso Coffee and Almond Chocolate Cheesecake with Raspberry and Prosecco Sauce, Blackberry Meringue Pie, Butterscotch Pavlova, Spiced Latte Crème Brûlée, and Baileys & White Chocolate Cheesecake.

There’s something for everyone to enjoy this Christmas!

How are our care home Christmas Day menu options chosen?

Over the past few months, residents and chefs at each care home have discussed and deliberated on menu options they want as their alternative option to our traditional Christmas Day meal. This has resulted in a selection of over 30 starters, 19 main courses, 14 vegetarian main courses and 21 dessert options. Following discussion with residents ahead of the big day, Chefs will select an alternative starter, main and vegetarian option as well as an alternative dessert to the traditional Christmas pudding.

So whether you’re a fan of traditional favourites or looking to try something new, our festive feasting options ensure that everyone can indulge in a memorable Christmas Day meal.

Here’s our traditional menu, along with our Boxing Day and New Year’s Eve menus. If you would like to know what your home is offering on the menu for Christmas Day, please get in touch with the home.

Christmas Day Traditional Menu

Starter: Homemade Roasted Tomato Soup, garnished with Pesto and Croutons

Main: Classic Roast Turkey served with all the Trimmings

Dessert: Traditional Christmas Pudding served with Brandy Sauce

Boxing Day Menu

Starter: Homemade Red Lentil and Barley Soup, garnished with Crispy Haggis and Fresh Parsley OR Smooth Brussels Pate, served with Melba Toast and Sticky Fig Relish

Main: Beef, Ale and Root Vegetable Stew service with Horseradish Dumplings OR Smoked Haddock Fish Cakes topped with a Poached Egg and Mustard Sauce OR Butternut Squash, Watercress and Stilton Pancakes.

All served with au gratin and butter bean mashed potatoes, roasted cauliflower with almonds and cumin sweet peas with parmesan

Dessert: Traditional Sherry Trifle OR Baileys and Chocolate Yule Log

New Year’s Day Menu

Starter: Prawn and Crab Cocktail OR Fan of Melon with a Berry Coulis

Main: Ham Hock Sausage and Cider Raised Pie OR Pan Fried Hake finished with a Lemon and Herb Butter Sauce OR Roasted Vegetable Filo Pie

Dessert: Chocolate Self-Saucing Pudding with Clotted Cream Ice-cream OR Panna Cotta with Morello Cherry Compote

Each home has chosen their own ‘alternative’ options for Christmas Day.  Please pop in to see your Home Manager to find out more.

For more about our food and dining and how we try to make dining special, please visit our Food and Dining page.

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