Holiday Meals for Seniors

By Anna Hazard

Introduction

Here are a selection of healthy & nutritious recipes that are festively themed for the upcoming winter holidays. They are generally meant to be served heated, use fresh in-season ingredients, and have softer components that make them easier to eat for those who may have more trouble chewing or swallowing

Recipes

Warm Holiday Salads

• The focus here is on salads with warmed ingredients that are on the softer side for easier chewing & swallowing and that are fresh, in season, and have a festive holiday profile. Note that harder ingredients such as various nuts should be removed from the recipes for those seniors with swallowing or chewing difficulties. Other ingredients can be cooked longer for a softer texture or outright blended for more extreme cases of dysphagia. These salads have spicier tastes which are suitable for seniors with fading taste buds and use natural ingredients & healthier alternatives such as honey or maple syrup instead of refined sugar,  goat cheese or Greek yogurt instead of normal cheese, and extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil instead of more fattening vegetable oils.
• Christmas Leftovers Salad | Roasted Apple Salad with Spicy Maple-Cider Vinaigrette | Warm Winter Salad with Pumpkin, Goat Cheese, Cranberries and Avocado Dressing | Roast Beetroot & Brazil Nut Salad | Kale & Roasted Cauliflower Salad

Festive Soups & Stews

• To help keep away the wintry chill, here are an assortment of thick-bodied soups and stews meant to be served warm. They use flavor profiles associated with the winter holidays (such as peppermint, cider, and apple) or even make use of leftovers from the main celebratory dinner. Ingredients used include fresh in-season produce with the main focus are on soups with proper thick & smooth textures that will be easy to swallow for those with teeth, mouth, or other dysphagia problems.  More pureeing or blending may be required for those senior loved ones with more severe swallowing issues especially in the case of stews with solid ingredients.
• Boxing Day Soup | Dairy-free Cream of Asparagus | Christmas Carrot Soup | Cider Pork and Apple Stew | Peppermint Christmas Soup

Hot Holiday Entrees

• Here are a selection of entrees that use ground meats and ingredients that have been softened through their specific way of preparation or cooking thus making them easier to chew and swallow. The focus is on fresh & in-season ingredients such as sweet potatoes, turkey, winter squashes, cranberries, and lamb that are healthy  and have festive seasonal connotations. Natural ingredients such as maple syrup or honey are used over refined sugars with fruits, vegetables, and a range of spices being the main source of flavoring. Keep in mind that a senior's portion may require heavier spicing due to failing taste buds and that blending or pureeing may be required for those with more severe forms of dysphagia.
• Sweet Potato & Turkey Pizza | Persian Squash & Pistachio Roast | Striped Bass With Shallot Vinaigrette | Cranberry-Turkey Meatloaf | Lamb Meatballs with Lemon-Cumin Yogurt

Festive Side Dishes

• These recipes include side dishes with flavors and fresh ingredients that are well known for their prevalence during the winter holiday season including cinnamon, cranberry, sweet potato & other root vegetables, and Christmas style-stuffing. Healthy, fresh, and in-season produce (both fruits, vegetables, and spices) are a priority with heavier creams, butters, and processed ingredients to be avoided. The dishes tend to be sauces, mashes, puddings, and other types of foods that soft, moist, blended, or otherwise easier to chew and swallow than their chunkier alternatives. Further dicing, blending, and straining may still be required for those with more severe forms of dysphagia.
• Maple Cinnamon Cranberry Sauce | Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole | Oil-free Mashed Root Veggies | Healthy Sweet Corn Pudding | Paleo Christmas Stuffing

Festive Desserts

• These recipes include festively themed desserts that are meant to be served warmed or hot to help combat the wintry chill of the holiday season and that are also soft, smoothly blended, or otherwise easy to chew and swallow. Ingredients tend towards the all natural with a focus on foods such as fruits, nuts, and dark cacao that are good for you as well as tasting good. This includes avoiding heavy creams, switching out butter for the healthier extra virgin olive oil, and substituting honey, maple syrup, and spices for refined sugars. Keep in mind that the sense of taste tends to fade with age, so a senior's portion of dessert may require a larger ratio of spices.
• Warmed Berries with Honey and Fresh Cheese | Healthy Christmas Pudding Balls | Chocolate Mint Avocado Pudding | Healthy Christmas Trifle | Gingerbread Pudding Cake

Hot Holiday Drinks

• Hot Drinks are a staple of the cold wintry months with these particular recipes focusing on healthy & all natural ingredients that include festive holiday colors and flavors such as peppermint, gingerbread, and eggnog while avoiding refined sugars, dairy, and eggs. Drinks range from coffees, teas, punches, and smoothies with most being suitably thick-bodied and smoothly blended and thus suitable for those who may have trouble with chewing or swallowing. Extra thickeners & blending time can be added for those senior loved ones with more severe forms of dysphagia.
• Healthier Peppermint Mocha | Super Healthy Christmas Punch | Christmas Tea | Clean Eggnog Smoothies [1, 2] | Warm Gingerbread Smoothie