Food is Often The Perfect Expression of Love and Support

 by Bobbie Ames | Food & Entertainment Editor

It is extremely hard to know what to do for someone who is going through difficult times.  You can express your love and support with phone calls, emails and visits.  But, sometimes that’s not possible or doesn’t feel like enough.  The tradition of supplying food for friends and family going through tough times has become popular and for good reason…food is universal.  No matter how sad or how sick, or how bleak or devastating the situation, people still have to eat.

A few tips on supporting people with food –

1) When your loved ones are going through something difficult, you are feeling it too.  So, give yourself a break.  Don’t spend hours at the store and then in your kitchen cooking up a gourmet meal. There are plenty of high quality foods that can be ordered, delivered or purchased.

2) Is someone you love in the hospital for longer then three days?  Remember to take care of the caregivers.  For example, send snacks to the nurses’ station with a card that says, “Thank you for taking care of one of the people that I love the most (patient’s name, hospital room number).”

3) Is someone you care about spending a large part of their day taking care of someone else or visiting someone in the hospital?  Again, taking care of the caretaker (or the caretaker’s family) is very thoughtful. Drop off a cooler of groceries to the front door.  Fresh fruit, some ready-made salads, breakfast bakery items, and a few sweets along with a case of water or a couple of bottles of wine shows someone you care and might allow them to skip the task of grocery shopping a little while longer.

4) Is a friend or loved one recovering at home or just going through something tough? Try www.zingermans.com for a wide selection of top quality bakery baskets that can be delivered right to the door.

5) Grab some amazing take out comfort food from Deli News, on the corner of Campbell and Preston, to share with your family and friends who need it the most.  This is authentic NYC deli food found in a North Dallas ‘burb.  Matzo ball soup, roasted chicken and potato latkes are all good, healing comfort food done really well.

Go to: http://www.cateringnorthdallas.com or call 855.355.DELI (3354) to place an order.  If you need help deciding, ask owner, Zoric Adamovsky (pictured here) to help you custom-order a tray.

5) Is a mom or dad you know sick, away, or going through a trying time?  Send or drop off some delicious baked goods for their children.

6) If someone has been sick and is recovering, stay away from casseroles and creamy heavy pastas.  If you want to take them a meal, go with a simply done roasted chicken, freshly made broth soups, fresh fruit, and fresh vegetables.

7) Finally, when an individual or family is going through something difficult in their lives, they may not have the time or energy to answer texts or phone calls, and they may not know how to respond to the well meaning question,”What can I do to help?”  So, if it is in your heart to help them out, make the process easy for them.  DON’T call them to find out when they will be home to have something delivered.  Almost anything you order for delivery that is perishable can be left at the door for hours without being a problem. Just check the details on your purchase.  If you are delivering something yourself, leave it at the door in a cooler with ice packs.  If you are bringing food to the hospital for a patient and a patient’s loved ones, text them early in the day to say you are delivering dinner.  Don’t ask them what they want for dinner or where they would like you to get it from.  Just show up with dinner as promised, deliver the food, give out your hugs, and leave to let them eat (or not eat) as they wish.

Have some food for thought?  Contact Bobbie at Bobbie@goodlifefamilymag.com