BAKING Brought Me & Mum TOGETHER
To mark the Alzheimer’s Society’s Cupcake Day on Thursday, cookery writer Ghillie Basan talks about the many benefits of baking with people with dementia
isbeginningtoactuallylose hermind.
“I just dealt with it as it presented itself, until it became impossible to deal with.”
Despite the illness, Ghillie was determined not to lose the connection she had with her mother. From shopping trips to lunch dates, Ghillie spent as much time with her mother as possible.
Having cooked together for years, Ghillie wanted to keep this tradition alive. However, the hot pans and sharp knives were too much of a safety risk, so she had to improvise.
Instead, the two turned to baking, which became the easiest and safest way for them to bond while also making some sweet treats.
From bread to cupcakes, baking brought Ghillie and her mum closer together even while dementia threatened to tear them apart.
“The very fact that they’re with you and they can hear your voice and see something going on will bring smiles to their faces. You can involve the family – even if you’ve got a small child they can be part of it too.”
For her mum, it was being able to touch the ingredients and her daughter that gave her so much joy.
“Even just holding hands, touching hands, rubbing hands, tickling, all of that, they just
“You can make a mess and turn it into something funny and they’ll laugh”
love. So getting their hands into flour and butter is a great thing. You can make a mess and turn it into something funny and they’re probably going to have a laugh.”
As with many people living with dementia, Ghillie’s mum has lost her sense of smell. However her love of bright
the experience herself, Ghillie is keen to record a podcast on dealing with dementia from a food point of view, as well as coping with the day to day demands of this terrible disease.
She knows that, as much as dementia can tear families apart, it is multi-sensory activities such as baking that can enable them to prolong their connection.
TURN OVER FOR SOME TRULY SCRUMPTIOUS CUPCAKE RECIPES TO BAKE ON ALZHEIMER’S SOCIETY’S CUPCAKE DAY, JUNE 18.