by Barbara Booras
With St. Patrick’s Day on March 17th, I thought a classic Irish recipe would be perfect to share in this month’s newsletter. Whether it’s a Guinness on draft, soda bread or a warm plate of Corned Beef and Cabbage, everyone loves to celebrate this holiday with Ireland’s classic cuisine. Enjoy!
IRISH SODA BREAD
Ingredients:
4 cups all-purpose flour, plus
4 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 3/4 cups cold buttermilk, shaken
1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1 cup dried currants (dredged in flour)
Directions: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the butter and mix on low speed until the butter is mixed into the flour. With a fork, lightly beat the buttermilk, egg, and orange zest together in a measuring cup. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture. Combine the currants with 1 tablespoon of flour and mix into the dough. It will be very wet.
Dump the dough onto a well-floured board and knead it a few times into a round loaf. Place the loaf on the prepared sheet pan and lightly cut an X into the top of the bread with a serrated knife. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. When you tap the loaf, it will have a hollow sound.
Cool on a baking rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.
by Susan Burgess
With the departure of a much-loved staff member, and the approach of spring, we will be bringing back some much-missed activities and continuing many that are much-appreciated. We will also try some new ideas and hope that you will offer your suggestions as to what you would like to do:
Continuing programs include:
Play Reading
Poetry Group
Memoirs from Kitchen Table Wisdom
Creative Writing
Watercolor & Drawing
Some new ideas include:
Sing-Alongs, in Various Musical Genres
Choral Group
Manicures
Museum Trips
Gardening
Book Club
In Mid-March, we will welcome Becky Rogers as a part-time Activities Assistant. You will no doubt recognize her as a former dining room server, but her degree in English, and background in senior group activities and special events, will make her an asset to our Programs. Enjoy your spring!
by Barbara Booras
Fresh baked bread daily… Cakes, pies, and desserts made from scratch in our very own kitchen….. Sound too good to be true? With the addition of a new pastry chef, Cadbury Commons will reach a new level of sophistication. “Adding a pastry chef will raise the bar and set Cadbury Commons apart from the run-of- the-mill assisted living” says Executive Director John Moniz.
Starting in February, long time pastry chef, John George, is bringing his years of baking experience to Cadbury Commons! John has worked at local establishments such as Tremont 647 and Gargoyle’s on the Square. Now at the start of your dinner meal bread baskets will be filled with an assortment of John’s creations.
For Bruce’s farewell party, John George created a beautiful multi-layer cake filled with white chocolate ganache to share with the residents. His talent will truly shine with the start of the new menu. Delectable desserts will be featured, such as raspberry tiramisu, coffee cheesecake, pear and ginger cobbler and a flourless chocolate torte. Our newest member of the team is eager to share his expertise and talent with the Residents in our community.
by Marie Curcio, Director of Resident Support
Our Morningside Program is designed to offer daily events and happenings that engage everyone…our residents, staff and visitors in positive interactions that nourish the mind, body and spirit. fun helps eliminate stress and makes all of us feel good.
We work to build trust and relationships through learning about our residents’ life histories and engaging residents in interaction.It is important to emotional well being and helps promote relationship centered care. Things WITH the resident instead of doing everything FOR and TO the resident further builds residents’ self esteem. residents to develop a sense of purpose, accomplishment and a feeling of usefulness is not only critical to emotional well-being but also helps to reduce agitation and anxiety so often a part of the disease process.
Our program encourages involvement and “doing”. Being productive makes all us feel useful; that we are making a contribution and our Morningside residents’ needs are no different than our own in this regard. all feel better when we are involved in things we enjoy. Socializing with others further reduces the risk of isolation and boredom. “something to do” residents may communicate boredom in ways that are often labeled “problem behaviors”.
Program events are planned to be stimulating in multiple areas to avoid needless deterioration of resident abilities. build a program around everyday life with repetition, routine and rhythm. Residents are also given choices throughout the day. Programs include daily physical and cognitive work outs, opportunities for social, emotional, sensory and spiritual stimulation both within Morningside as well as our Cadbury community at large. also enjoy music, music and more music. Community outings have included such events as the BSO rehearsals, ARTZ programs at local museums, dining at local restaurants and coastal cruises to name but a few.
The art of programming is not necessarily WHAT is done so much as the actual DOING. The process is what is truly valuable, not the outcome. It is all about the “doing together” and having fun.
Who does the Programming? Everyone working in Morningside Program has the responsibility, obligation and opportunity to interact with each resident in way that meets resident needs, desires and choices. takes place anywhere and everywhere, every time the resident is awake and every time there is a resident encounter. Even the most basic of day to day living: dressing, dining, bathing present opportunities to engage our Residents meaningfully. Our Morningside Program supports opportunities to “live in and enjoy the moment” throughout the day building a positive emotional environment in which residents may thrive despite the challenges of their illness.
by Shawn Moran
As the seasons change from winter to spring, and the days become warmer, we all let our guard down to the dangers that still exist. We all must be aware of the possibilities of ice on the sidewalks, streets, etc. Here at Cadbury our number-one concern is the safety of our Residents, guests, and staff alike.
We have procedures in place to aide us in the protection of Residents and property. All staff members are required to attend in-house training of the proper way of using fire extinguishers as well as handling emergency procedures, up to and including the evacuation of the building, elevator entrapment, falls and the like.
Beginning on March 3rd, we will be having monthly safety meetings to be held in the Activities Center at 10:00 a.m. Those meetings will include at least one member from each department. All issues pertaining to safety will be discussed, and corrections made.
by Susan Burgess
Some Cadbury Residents have taken on the task of challenging their entrenched left brains with exercises that engage their right brains, or at least that seems to be happening on Friday mornings when they follow a workbook based on, and produced by, artist Betty Edwards, author of “Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain.” The workbook that is being used at Cadbury was produced by Edwards in 2002, to provide a step-by-step processing of the exercises in her original book, published some thirty years ago. Over those thirty years, perhaps thousands of artists have followed the instructions, and thousands of non-artists found they could tap into parts of themselves hitherto untapped. Given a few intrepid Residents who were willing to dive into the unknown, our Cadbury group has proceeded through the first section with amazing results and are ‘graduating’ to the next level.
Here are a few comments from them: “My right brain feels as though it’s had a workout” -R.S. “[It has been] very challenging, but stimulating, and for me, a very worthwhile experience.” -H.B. “It’s easier to draw things upside down than right side up!” -T.L. “When I look at a picture or sketch now, I’m trying to perceive how a 3-D perception has been flattened out; how others have done it.” -R.S.
A new course begins March 26th!
by Betsy Edwards
