Care Homes
Care home caterers must meet the diverse dietary needs of elderly residents, serving dishes suitable for those with medical conditions such as diabetes, food allergies and dysphagia. To maintain high standards of nutrition and hydration, careful menu planning and culinary creativity is needed.
Care home menus must balance nutritional needs with cost-efficiency, while ensuring meals are appealing and enjoyable.
Chefs focus on factors such as energy requirements, macronutrient balance, and micronutrient levels, incorporating a variety of nutrient-dense ingredients such as fruit, vegetables, wholegrains and healthy fats.
They prepare low-salt, low-sugar options for residents with specific conditions like diabetes or hypertension. Providing sufficient protein supports muscle strength, particularly for vulnerable residents, while calcium and vitamin D are prioritised to maintain bone health. Batch cooking allows large numbers of residents to be served efficiently.
By tailoring meal components, portion sizes and cooking techniques, chefs deliver flavourful, comforting meals that cater to individual dietary needs.
Our solutions:
Whirl products are the ideal choice for care homes. With up to 82% less saturated fat than butter, our range of liquid butter alternatives includes reduced-salt options and is fully vegan-friendly, making them suitable for a wide variety of dietary requirements.
Cost-effective and convenient, Whirl butter alternatives help care home kitchens deliver healthy meals without sacrificing flavour.
Our versatile plant-based Whirl products are perfect for baking, grilling, shallow frying, roasting, glazing, or as an ingredient in recipes. Unlike traditional butter, Whirl doesn’t spit or scorch at high temperatures, providing a smooth cooking experience while adding a subtle, buttery flavour to dishes. Additionally, Whirl doesn’t require refrigeration, making it an excellent solution for care home kitchens where fridge space is often at a premium.
Menu ideas:
Create delightful breakfast options with Whirl, from light and buttery Scrambled Egg Muffins to golden, toasted Breakfast Paninis.
At lunchtime, Whirl makes the perfect base for hearty soups like Super Green Soup or Minestrone Soup, and adds a rich glaze to ham for salads and sandwiches. Use Whirl in pastry to create flaky, buttery Onion and Beetroot Tarts, or brush it onto Margarita Pizza Toasties and Chicken BLT Toasties for extra flavour.
For dinner, Whirl enhances a variety of dishes, bringing richness to Chicken Curry, Mushroom, Pea, and Broccoli Risotto, and Fish Pie. It’s perfect for frying Haddock Jumbo Goujons or glazing Pork Tenderloin for a delicious finish.
Use it in Melt-in-the-Middle Chocolate Pudding, Jam & Coconut Sponge, or Rhubarb Crumble on your dessert menu, and add richness to Bread & Butter Pudding, Sticky Ginger Puds, and Baked Rice Pudding.
Afternoon tea treats also benefit from Whirl’s buttery flavour. Create Cherry Bakewell Flapjacks, buttery Shortbread, Victoria Sponge, Fairycakes, and Chocolate Marble Cake.
Check out our recipes and inspiration pages!
Make sure you see how easy it is to use Whirl by visiting our video demos page!
19% of care homes find it challenging to provide residents with a balanced diet across wide-ranging resident meals.
3 out of every 4 care homes say they worry about the level of food waste (and associated costs).
https://carehomes.apetito.co.uk/futureofcateringguide-1-0
Contact us
If you would like any further information about Whirl's liquid butter alternatives for pubs, restaurants and hotels, please contact the foodservice team using the form below:
