Balanced Nutrition

Most of us have heard the phrase you are what you eat, and it couldn’t be more true, which is why we pay close attention to the food we serve at Parents’ Foundation. While there are many foods that harm our wellbeing, there are also many foods that help & heal and those are the ones we like to focus on when planning our menus. The results? Our residents who eat in-house more often than going out have lost weight, improved their blood pressure, reduced their cholesterol, and lowered their blood sugar levels.

When preparing food, Chef Joanne always take each resident’s individual dietary needs into consideration and creates a customized meal plan for those who need one. She incorporates healthy grains, such as quinoa, into regular meals such as soups, stews & casseroles. Chef Joanne make low sodium stocks, broths & sauces from scratch in order to minimize the amounts of processed foods we serve. Coupled with light condiments, wheat bread products & more olive oil than butter, Parents’ Foundation delivers more nutrients to our residents each and every day.

Our menu is a 6-week rotating menu that changes seasonally, twice a year with the Fall/Winter menus used from October to March and the Spring/Summer menus in use from April through September. By maximizing the use of seasonal fruits and vegetables, variety is ensured, quality of produce improved, and costs managed.

Chef Joanne is a part of our care team and works with our Occupational Therapy program and REP staff to teach basic cooking classes to our residents. These 12-week sessions include lessons on basic cooking skills, nutrition, food & kitchen safety, and recipe instruction. Our goal is to prepare residents with independent cooking skills they can utilize on their own, make healthy eating fun, and celebrate the satisfaction of cooking a delicious dish. Get to know Chef Joanne a bit more
by reading her bio here.