MASTER YOUR KITCHEN COOKING INSPIRATION FOR ALL SENIORS
Your arteries may be grateful your nutrition changed when you became an adult, but your diet doesn’t necessarily improve as you age. According to the BBC, our nutrition declines with age due to a number of factors. This, combined with the fact that many seniors live alone or only with their spouse, makes cooking much more difficult.
schedule. This can provide structure and as much variety as you need.
Inspiration: Bake your favorite vegetables on a sheet pan to use throughout the week. From tacos to omelets, these veggies offer a nutritional boost to any meal! For the Social Cook Part of the reason why we lose our appetite as we age is because eating is a social activity, and when you live alone or mobility makes socializing more difficult, it’s easy to ignore your nutritional needs. However, you have options! Start a weekly lunch group, guaranteeing you’ll receive that social interaction. Our caregivers at Visiting Angels can help organize this, and we can also eat lunches with seniors who are interested.
If you have found trouble in the kitchen, check out these go-to tips to make meal preparation easier as you age.
For the Unsure Cook Select one day each week to create one or two meals that you will enjoy for the remainder of the week or freeze for later. Focus on make-ahead meals that include lean proteins, lots of vegetables, and limited amounts of starchy carbs. (These include pastas and white bread, but whole wheat pasta, quinoa, and barley are healthier alternatives.) A slow cooker is an easy tool for this, too!
Inspiration: A turkey and bean chili is lean, packed with protein, and ripe for adding your favorite veggies, like onions and carrots.
Inspiration: Teach your recipes to your family members. It’s a tasty social event they will love.
For the Bored Cook If you like variety in your meals, you can still meal prep. Instead of preparing entire meals, focus on ingredients. For instance, a batch of baked chicken breasts can top salads, pair well with vegetables, or serve as the meat for a great sandwich. If that’s still too mundane for your palate, opt for a meal
For more information about how our Visiting Angels team can help seniors live independently, please contact us today.
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Vegan Reuben Inspired by MyDarlingVegan.com
At Visiting Angels, we encourage our caregivers and families to examine the ways in which they can help seniors incorporate healthy and complete nutrition into their lives. Our caregivers will often meet with families and seniors to discuss a senior’s likes, dislikes, allergies, and concerns when it comes to nutrition. Together, we can come up with a plan that meets their needs, whether that’s organizing a regular lunch with friends or planning a meal schedule. Plus, our caregivers have even learned valuable, priceless recipes thanks to our seniors! It’s not uncommon that we learn from them, too. The truth is that my grandma’s diet could have been better. We could have found a meal plan that better supplied her with the nutrients she needed or had more meals with her. Regardless, I take comfort in knowing that her nutrition wasn’t abnormal. Just as with many other components of aging, we just had to learn how to adapt.
Indulge in this St. Patrick’s Day classic — vegan style!
Ingredients • 8 oz tempeh
3. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Cook tempeh in the oil for 5 minutes per side. 4. Between toasted bread, layer tempeh, sauerkraut, cheese (optional), and dressing. Enjoy immediately. • 1 tsp paprika • 1/2 tsp garlic powder • 2 tbsp olive oil • Bread of choice, toasted • 1/2 cup sauerkraut • Vegan swiss cheese (optional) • 1/4 cup Thousand Island dressing
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar • 1 tbsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp liquid smoke • 1 tsp onion powder
Directions 1. Cut tempeh into 4 thin slices. 2. In a shallow bowl, combine broth, vinegar, Worcestershire
sauce, liquid smoke, onion powder, paprika, and garlic powder. Marinate tempeh in mixture for 30 minutes.
Cindy Saunders, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
831-430-0616 | 3
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