Share a Meal and do your bit to combat Covid

COMMUNITY is key to dealing with Covid, the former head of NHS Alliance said, as he lent his support to a meal-sharing scheme.

Michael Dixon, the chairman of the Institute for Social Prescribing, said the “ethos” of community values need to be encouraged to help the health service.

He is supporting Share a Meal, a scheme The Sunday Express helped launch two weeks ago, and hopes to remind people to come together during this tough time.

Dr Dixon said: “The benefits of healthy eating and social interaction have a very strong evidence base and this wonderful initiative achieves both.

“The health service and even our planet will not survive unless we can restore this ethos of mutual responsibility and community spirit.

“I hope that this is taken up as wide and as far as possible.”

The Share a Meal initiative comes as research reveals record levels of acute loneliness following the pandemic.

New figures from the Office for National Statistics show eight per cent of adults described themselves as “always or often lonely” – representing 4.2 million people. Pre-pandemic surveys showed about five per cent of adults “always or often” lonely – or about 2.6 million people.

Share a Meal is asking participants to make a little more food just once or twice a week, offering helpings to a neighbour.

It is hoped that these small acts of kindness will multiply and grow, and the concept’s slogan is “Every street a village”.

The initiative’s website suggests straightforward and healthy one-opot recipes.

Celebrities such as Pru Leith and Greggg Wallace have contributed, while Hairy Bikers Si King and Dave Myers have offered their mushroommu bourguignon cobbler to Sharesh a Meal this week.

Thet pair said: “We love the idea of cooking for your neighbours. It’s a great way to connect with people, especially those living alone, and we hope you’ll enjoy making – and eating – this special veggie dish from our new Veggie Feasts cookbook.”

Many have already had meals made by their neighbours, including Caroline Mayall, whose friend Sarah Stacey, who helped launch Share a Meal, has been cooking for her three times a week.

She was diagnosed with kidney cancer, which has spread to her bones, and came out of hospital two months ago.

The 74-year-old from Devon, who was a counsellor for Mind, said: “It has been really wonderful to have that support with food at this time. I have found it really difficult. It feels like you are more connected to the community, and it is good for your mental health. It means so much.

“Definitely get involved if you think you can. It would be lovely to see the campaign take off, it makes such a difference to us.

“The community you live in is a part of the natural fabric of your life, and I can really feel how that has pulled tight around me.”

“We love the idea of cooking for your neighbours. It’s a great way to connect with people, especially those living alone, and we hope you’ll enjoy making – and eating – this special veggie dish from our new Veggie Feasts cookbook. It has a rich, almost meaty, flavour with a cobbler topping by popular demand. We’ve used blue cheese but if you’re not a fan, a veggie cheddar would be fine too.”

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp olive oil

12 button onions or shallots, peeled and left whole

300g carrots, cut into chunks

½ tsp sugar

25g butter

750g mushrooms

(mix of portobello, chestnut, button, cremini), thickly sliced sea salt and black pepper

1 large sprig of thyme

2 bay leaves a few sage leaves, finely chopped 200ml red wine

300ml mushroom or vegetable stock 1 tbsp mushroom ketchup

1 tsp Dijon mustard parsley, finely chopped, to serve

COBBLER TOPPING

200g self-raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1 tsp dried sage

50g blue cheese, crumbled 1 egg

75ml buttermilk

METHOD

First make the bourguignon. Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole dish and add the onions or shallots and the carrots. Fry over a high heat, stirring regularly, until they are dappled with dark-brown patches. Sprinkle over the sugar and continue to cook for another couple of minutes to help caramelise. Remove them from the dish and set aside.

Add the butter to the casserole dish. When it starts to foam, add the mushrooms and cook over a high heat until they have reduced down. Put the onions and carrots back in the dish and season generously with salt and pepper. Add the herbs, then pour in the red wine. Bring to the boil and leave to bubble until the wine has reduced by at least a third. Add the stock, mushroom ketchup and mustard and stir until completely combined.

Bring back to the boil, then turn down to a simmer and cover with a lid. Cook for half an hour, perhaps a little longer, until the vegetables are completely tender. Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/ gas 6.

Meanwhile, make the cobbler topping. Put the flour and baking powder into a bowl and add half a teaspoon of salt. Add the sage and the cheese, then mix in the egg and buttermilk to make a fairly sticky dough. Form the dough into 12 small balls and space out over the top of the bourguignon. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes, then transfer the dish to the oven, uncovered, for a further 10-15 minutes until the cobbler topping has puffed up and is lightly browned.

RECIPE: The Hairy Bikers along with other celebs have helped out