A TASTE OF LUXURY AT WIRRAL CARE HOME
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A TASTE OF LUXURY AT WIRRAL CARE HOME
An interview with The Hazelwell Care Home Chef, Steve Devenport.
Steve Devenport is the head chef at The Hazelwell Care Home in Heswall in the Wirral, Merseyside.
The home, offers residential, nursing, palliative and respite care which is tailored to individual requirements in a state-of-the-art, comfortable home-from-home environment.
The Hazelwell Care Home opened in the summer of 2016 and was built to an exceptionally high standard of interior design and finish, with beautiful en-suite bedrooms for every resident.
Steve was hired before the home opened and has always been passionate about food. Having travelled extensively throughout his career, he has worked with a diverse range of talented chefs and helped to develop some exciting recipes. With more than five years of experience working in care homes, Steve relishes nothing more than creating delicious meals for residents with a variety of nutritional needs.
The Hazelwell has a great reputation for the quality of its care and facilities – how did you come to work here? I was thrilled when I was approached to work at The Hazelwell Care Home as it is the epitome of luxury living in a beautiful setting, and everything here is designed for comfort. I saw that my food can add to that in a real way.
There must be lots of different tastes and requirements amongst residents – how do you approach creating the menu? One of my passions is trying every new ingredient I can get my hands on and so I aim to create a menu that has some seasonal foods in, and then add my own twist. I also carefully consider the nutritional balance of the meals including any dietary requirements and do so with great enthusiasm.
Do you change the menu with the seasons? I feel it is really important to keep the food seasonal. Some foods are fresher at certain times of year and also tastes change with the season. In Autumn and Winter, we want warming, hearty foods, like rich soups and hot foods, and in summer we need lighter, fresher food.
I also like to mark occasions with food, not just Christmas lunch, but birthdays, celebrations, Easter, and even Bonfire Night. Changing our menu keeps us in touch with the season, and food plays an important role in evoking memories of certain times, which of course is key to many of our residents at The Hazelwell.
Are there any particular favourites you always see a big demand for? There are certain meals that always prove popular such as our roasts on a Sunday which is such a well-worn British tradition. It’ s a social time of gathering around the table and chatting with friends and family. The food is part of that ritual and it’ s important it’ s as delicious as it can be for residents.
What do you enjoy most about your work? I love to make food for people that will make them happy. I really enjoy being part of the The Hazelwell team, bringing my experience, knowledge, passion and huge desire to this fantastic care home with amazingly caring staff and incredible facilities.
To find out more about The Hazelwell, call 0151 342 9654 or visit www. thehazelwell. com wirrallife. com 23