by on February 20, 2011   •   26 Comments Link Love

Weekend Links: Cooking for Others Edition

Lately we’ve been talking about cooking for others, as in bringing a home cooked meal to a family in need. One doesn’t have to look very far to find folks struggling, be it a family in mourning or a couple of sleep deprived new parents.

Curious if this random act of kindness was still alive and well, I posted a Q & A recently,  Sympathy Meals: Do You Give & Receive Them? How thrilling it was to see the answers come in and read how so many of you have been blessed by either giving or receiving a meal.

Questions also arose in the Q&A, which I addressed in my next post on the subject: Cooking for Others: A Guide to Giving Sympathy Meals. I surprised myself with how much I had to say on the topic (plus included wisdom from readers that had written) and didn’t have space to include links for meal suggestions.

So, this extended edition of Weekend Links will feature recipes suitable for delivering to others. They are nourishing, travel well, freeze well, and are ready to heat and serve. Here’s hoping this round-up can be a source of inspiration and that more people will choose to reach out with a hot meal to someone in need.

[Read more…]

by on February 18, 2011   •   153 Comments Hospitality

Cooking for Others: A Guide to Giving Sympathy Meals

Our recent Q&A on sympathy meals received a tremendous response. Thank you to all who took the time to share your experiences with either giving or receiving meals. It was very, very interesting to read your comments and I took note of all the questions. I hope to answer them in this follow-up post.

We agreed that there are people in need all around us, and a small gesture like giving a meal can be a blessing both to giver and receiver. In fact, by the sounds of things, lives were very nearly saved just because a meal -or series of meals- was received during a time of need.

It was interesting that many more readers had given a meal than accepted one. Those who had been recipients spoke passionately about how touched they were and how helpful it was to be given a practical gift, in lieu of flowers. And there was another theme – the food that was brought is the best, or very near to the best, food that they had ever eaten. I’d have to agree with that one, too.

Plenty of questions also arose, all of them extremely pertinent. When is the best time to deliver a meal? What about allergies? Should a casserole be pre-baked or not? Hot or cold? Frozen or fresh?

This post will highlight the best tips, helpful suggestions, and friendly advice on bringing meals to others. Hopefully you will be encouraged to look around and reach out to people in your community through a hot meal.

[Read more…]