Cooking/recipe advice with disability

myonlysunshine

Tiddlywinks wrote: »

I have arthritis pretty much all over and have real problems with making my hands work sometimes. I also have reduced strength in my right shoulder (past injury and surgery).

Add in chronic fatigue and I can empathise.

Oh, and I'm idle as anything too - always have been .

My solutions?

1. Get some sturdy trays and use them on your lap.

I use these (commercial grade and non-slip):

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00366NX7C/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

You can then do some of the prep whilst sitting and watching TV - so can your husband - the night before .

2. Get a pie maker.

Use ready rolled pastry and leftovers to make a filling meal... for instance, leftover veg, meat etc can be layered with baked beans or mushy peas etc.

My favourite is leftover sausages and barbecue beans or Quorn pieces, mashed leftover potatoes and mushy peas... all inside the pie.

3. Use gadgets

I've got a Tri-Blade stick blender for mashing, pureeing etc.

I use a mixer for cakes/batter/dough and an attachment for grating.

The bread maker is great for making dough or bread - home made makes even a can of soup seem special.

I've got a microwave steamer for making rice - which is then just placing rice into the pot, add water and nuke!

4. Use short cuts

YouTube is full of demos for shortcuts to making bread, pizza etc.

For instance, a couple of days ago I made a pizza - the dough just needed mixing and resting... no kneading.

Potatoes can be nuked instead of boiled to save juggling heavy pans of water.

I use frozen veggies for bakes - one of my fave veggies is butternut squash but I have a hard time cutting into it... so I buy frozen pre-prepared, microwave it and then squish it into a mash.

Coucous - just put it in a bowl, add boiling water and stock, stir, cover and the steam in the bowl will do the rest. You can then use this instead of rice and mix in beetroot, asparagus, mushrooms or whatever.

Finally, just remember that one of the most nutritious meals is beans on toast... you can jazz it up with grated cheese, sausages or salami.

Jacket potatoes are also a great standby. Scrambled eggs on toast, using pitta breads as pizza bases.

Umm. that's it for now as a cuppa and a digestive biccie is calling my name - it's my age !

Thanks Tiddlywinks that's such great advice and a real help!! 😊👍🏻