Michigan: Breakfast Delights at Brecon Village

Our lead cook, Rob Keniston, has been making some scrumptious breakfast delights on these cold winter mornings!   This recipe is one of our favorites!

  

SWEET POTATO PECAN PANCAKES

 

2 bags krusteaz pancake mix

1 #10 can yams/ sweet pot drained 

4 cups of pecans 

1/4 cup vanilla extract

And the directed amount of water from pancake mix  

 

Put drained sweet potato in mixer and blend  before adding pancake mix and water. Mix and then add nuts and vanilla. Preheat grill to 350-400°. Spray grill to prevent sticking with nonstick, use 4oz label to make pancakes. When golden flip and repeat. Top with whipped butter and a little bit of extra nuts and serve with warm maple syrup. 

                
Megg Geiger| Hospitality Manager| Morrison Community Living|

Brecon Village, Evangelical Homes

Michigan: Alzheimer's Research Fundraising at NorthPointe Woods

Last week here at NorthPointe Woods, we hosted an event for a local Alzheimer’s Research fundraising group, Miles for Memories. Chef Nicole put a lot of thought into this heavy Hors D'oeuvres menu. She wanted to focus on superfoods that supported a healthy brain! The menu consisted of wonderful items like Blueberry and Kale Slaw, Indian Roasted Nuts, Roasted Grape and Olive Crostini, Avocado Noodle Salad, Salmon Roll on a Quinoa Cake and Vegetable Stack with Hummus. We included information about how each menu item increased brain activity, memory and motor skills! It was a great event!

Katie VanderStraaten

Dining Services Director I NorthPointe Woods 

Illinois: Smith Crossing's engagement with diverse foods

This month, Smith Crossing’s Sous Chef, Monica Tooth, was featured in Orland Park’s local newspaper.  In the article, Monica talks about the importance of celebrating the holidays with traditional foods.  Our resident food ambassador also speaks about the variety of foods that we serve at Smith Crossing. Here is the link to the whole online version and this article is on page 15.

Michigan: Citrus Superfood at HCMCF

Citrus Superfood at HCMCF

This month our Superfood was Citrus. Our resident's enjoyed many fun facts about Citrus and enjoyed guessing at the trivia questions. Andra made a  fruit salad and Orange Julius drink that the resident's enjoyed. Many compliments were given and the resident's were happy to have learned so much information about Citrus. 

Gina Knoblock, RD, DDS
Huron County Medical Care Facility

Illinois: Monthly Nutrition 101 Workshop at Lieberman

Above is a photo of the sample plates that accompanied the monthly Nutrition 101 Workshop. This month we focused on Vitamin C rich foods at Lieberman Center for Health and Rehabilitation.  This class is offered monthly by Registered Dietitians Stephanie Hathaway & Mary Lanigan.

Jennifer Reiner MS, RD, LD | General Manager 

Weekly Wellness Tip from MyPlate: Be Ready!

Be ready for exercise anytime.

---

Keep comfortable clothes and a pair of tennis shoes in the car or at the office. Track your activity with SuperTracker to see if you meet your weekly target! 

Track your foods and your fitness More tips for increasing physical activity

Monday Motivation from Elly Kosteck, Illinois

Michigan: Flipping with a Citrus Twist

Residents and Team Members love the opportunity to have omelets made-to-order in our Blossom Café.  When our Chef called in sick on omelet bar day, our ADDS Angela Ilievski stepped up as a leader to keep the station going.  Angela kicked the station off with a twist to spark an interest – flipping omelets on one end while grapefruit was grilling on the other.  She did an excellent job attracting residents, family, and team members to the café for this session!  Sales increased, there were smiling faces, and satisfied pallets!  Angela demonstrated leadership to her team while keeping business alive!  Many complemented the omelets and the grilled grapefruit topped with yogurt allowed the opportunity to discuss with those in line why citrus is beneficial to your health.

Illinois: Villa St Benedict celebrates their super employees

This month, Villa St. Benedict hosted a superhero themed employee appreciation party filled with costumes, pizza, and awesome raffle prizes! It was a great time for employees from all departments to get together and be reminded why we all make a difference here at Villa St. Benedict. The culinary department was in charge of making candy filled superhero goodie bags, preparing salads, and dishing out some good pizza!

Illinois: Community Works Employee goes above and beyond

As one of our Central Baptist Village residents, Jan, was sharing with our staff how excited she was to become a new grandmother she mentioned that she was planning to take PACE transportation for a 15 mile trip that would last over 2 hours. Concerned about our resident's well being, our General Manager of Community Operations, Marlene Wolter, sought out permission to use one of the Central Baptist Village Buses to escort her instead.  She became a grandmother January 7th and we were nothing but honored to be apart of such a life changing moment with Jan!

Joanna Mocarska

Office Manager of Community Operations

Morrison Community Living |­ Central Baptist Village 

February Promotional Ideas

Monthly
American Heart Month
Bake for Family Fun Month
Barley Month
Grapefruit Month
African American History Month
National Bird Feeding Month
Hot Breakfast Month

Weekly
Burn Awareness Week: 7-12
Women's Heart Week: 1-7
Jello Week: 7-13
National Green Week: 9-15
National Pancake Week: 21-27

Daily
2 - Crepe Day
2 - Groundhog Day
4 - Medjool Date Day
5 - World Nutella Day
5 - Bubble Gum Day
5 - Wear Red Day
6 - Girl Scout Cookie Day
6 - Ice Cream for Breakfast Day
7 - Popcorn Day
7 - Super Bowl 50
8 - Chinese New Year
9 - Mardi Gras
9 - National Pizza Day
9 - Paczki Day
14 - Valentine's Day
15 - Gum Drop Day
15 - Presidents Day
16 - National Almond Day
19 - Chocolate Mint Day
21 - Daytona 500
22 - 87th Academy Awards Ceremony
22 - National Margarita Day
25 - National Chili Day
29 - Leap Day

Illinois: New Years at Westminster Place

We started the new year off right at Westminster Place!  Executive Chef Sam Netter and Sous Chef Kyle Bulfer wanted to begin the year with a simple but elegant menu offering for the residents.  Residents enjoyed the deconstructed bloody mary salad and asked to see it on the upcoming menu. 

Soup

Butternut Squash Bisque

butternut squash|maple-cinnamon cream|fried sage

Salad

Deconstructed Bloody Mary

bloody mary aspic|vodka granita|celery leaf|cherry

tomatoes|bacon|crab claw

House

baby greens|curly carrots|red onion|cucumber|cherry

tomatoes|herbed croutons

Entrée

Seared Atlantic Salmon

farro risotto|roasted butternut squash|bernaise sauce

Roasted Cornish Game Hen

parmesan gratin|lemon-thyme broccolini|blackberry gastrique

Dessert

Black Forest Cheesecake

cherry|dark chocolate ganache

Kyle Bulfer

Sous Chef

Westminster Place

Michigan: Bone Up on Calcium

Have you ever made yogurt from scratch?  Many of our residents at Brecon Village have and we wanted to bring back great memories while opening a discussion of non-conventional ways to get your daily dose of calcium.  Chef Janet demonstrated the process of making yogurt from scratch while Christina Weber discussed benefits of yogurt, explained the benefits of Greek yogurt, discussed non-dairy sources of calcium. The residents engaged in conversations sharing memories of scratch yogurt making with their mothers. We then provided the residents with a taste test of regular vs Greek yogurt and a make your own yogurt bar, with house-made granola, pumpkin seeds, and honey.

Chef Janet Nichols and Christina Weber MS, RD. EHM - Brecon Village

Michigan: Dessert fun with Cherry Pepsi

Cherry Pepsi Cake: Yellow Cake Mix, Cherry Pie Filling and Cherry Pepsi. Follow the cake mix as directed but use Cherry Pepsi instead of water bake then serve.

Cherry Pepsi Cobbler: Cherry Pie Filling, Chocolate Cake Mix and Cherry Pepsi. Spread the cherry pie filling on the bottom of a pan, sprinkle the chocolate cake mix on top then pour the Cherry Pepsi on top. Bake then serve.

Both very simple recipes and both were a nice surprise to the Sisters on a gloomy Saturday.

Cathy Campbell | Campus Director of Dining Services

Weekly Wellness Tip from MyPlate: Find your eating style!

 Find your healthy eating style!

---

Find your healthy eating style and maintain it for a lifetime. Start by eating a variety of healthy foods from the 5 MyPlate food groups.

Learn about #MyPlateMyWins Check out our new tipsheet

Indiana: Teamwork at Franklin United Methodist Community

We were recently informed that the water lines to our facility were going to have to be replaced which meant that dining services would have to go without water for eight hours and then be on a boil alert for another twenty four hours. As a result two days worth of menus had to be altered. Our entire operation was turned upside down but with a lot of planning and a great staff we were able to get our residents fed for those six meals efficiently. This picture shows some of our staff that came in a hour earlier than normally scheduled to create a sandwich assembly line for that days lunch.

Bruce Armour  | Assistant Director Dining Services| Morrison Community Living

Monday Motivation from Elly Kosteck, Illinois

Michigan: Open House at Brecon Village

We hosted our Annual Open House at Brecon Village.  Once again, Chef Janet Nichols pulled out all the stops to create a beautiful menu for the strolling dinner. she put together delicious treats such as Cherry Bourbon meatballs, Root gratin, Cranberry stuffed baked brie, plus a smorgasbord of artfully designed cheese trays and antipasto. But the high light of the event was the two different buffets. One was a hearty macaroni and cheese bar with the choice of crisp bacon, steamed broccoli, toasted bread crumbs and a variety of different cheeses as toppings. The next, was a Gourmet grain bar. Wheat berries, Quinoa and lentils were presented with the option to top with pomegranate arils, green onion,  and a variety of nuts and vinaigrettes.   The event also included a carving station with slow cooked honey ham and apricot relish.

A gelato station and hot chocolate bar were also special treats set up for our guests with festive chocolate dipped marshmallows.  

Not to forget the sweet treats, I lent a hand in creating desserts for the evening.  I made Tiramisu tarts, Dark Chocolate pots de crème, lemon cream spoons with sugared blueberries, peppermint red velvet cake and a selection of cookies; including rum balls, sugar cookies and snicker doodles.       

The holiday spirit was definitely palpable with both guests and staff having a great time! 

       
Megg Geiger| Hospitality Manager| Morrison Community Living|

Brecon Village, Evangelical Homes

Illinois: Culinary Choir at Central Baptist Village

At Central Baptist Village the holidays are celebrated throughout all of December. We kick off the holidays with an annual Christmas Brunch early December for all residents and their families. We feature a buffet style lunch with different action stations and dessert table for attendees to enjoy! Then every Friday in December, we hold different Christmas Socials in various parts of our community. Because we have residents with different levels of care, we make sure our celebrations are more accessible by coming to them, making it easier for families and staff to spend some extra time with our residents for the holidays. It has now become a tradition that some of the managers and supervisors from the Culinary Department pull their talents together to form the "Culinary Choir" singing polish Christmas Carols for all whom attend the socials. It gives the Culinary girls, featured in the picture, a chance to bring some holiday cheer to all the residents they truly care for! 

Illinois: Christmas at The Moorings

This December at the Moorings we welcomed two new Sous Chefs to our MCL team, Eric Ofenloch and David Warner and wanted to go a different direction with our Holiday offerings. The Chefs served:

For Christmas Eve

-Pan roasted duck breast with Champagne-orange glaze, bacon roasted Brussels sprouts and potato latkes with sour cream 

-Slow braised garlic and sage pork lollipop with Winter root vegetables and sweet potato gratin

For Christmas Day

-Fresh pan seared U10 sea scallops with a saffron cream sauce, forbidden rice and broccolini

-Cabernet braised boneless beef short rib with rainbow carrots and smoked gouda mash

We had great feedback from our residents and it was a nice introduction to our new Chefs.

Christopher Moore

System Executive Chef-

Presbyterian Homes

Westminster Place

Michigan: Memory Support Center Open House

We had another at our Memory Support Center just a few days later.

And although the atmosphere was the same, Chef Janet made sure to shake things up and create an entirely new festive menu for this event! 

This strolling dinner started with a carving station that served a beautiful medium rare prime rib with either mustard or a horseradish cream.

As guests continued through the neighborhoods, they had the opportunity to indulge in Seasoned shrimp,Greek Orzo Salad, Wild Rice and Butternut squash salad, smoked salmon with crème fraiche along with very popular Macaroni and cheese bar and cheese and fruit platters.

An assortment of spritzers with offered with fresh berries as well as egg nog and hot cocoa.

Again, I created desserts which included Dark chocolate ganache cake with candied orange peel, Apple tarts and a variety of Christmas Cookies. 

 A choir performed and multiple holiday troubadours serenaded people with Christmas carols and songs. It was a magical evening and won't soon be forgotten.

Have a great week! 

                
Megg Geiger| Hospitality Manager| Morrison Community Living|

Brecon Village, Evangelical Homes

Illinois: Giving back at Weinberg Community

This is the season for giving.  Each December, my team and I give to a program called Pajamas at Bedtime.  We purchase pajamas for kids of all ages and donate them.  Also, we collect canned goods and donate to the Deerfield Food Pantry.  

I've attached a couple pictures to show our Hanukkah decorations for the residents as well as the team holding their pajama donations.

Alan Miller

Weinberg Community

Weekly Wellness Tip from MyPlate: Make small changes!

Make small changes!

---

Everything you eat and drink matters. Start by making small changes that you enjoy. A fan of fruit? Focus on whole fruits- fresh, frozen, dried, or canned in 100% juice.   

Find small changes that work for you. New resource: MyPlate, MyWins Tipsheet.

Michigan: Diversity Dinner at The Fountains at Franklin

For our monthly Diversity event, our team members were asked to bring a dish reflective of their heritage to our weekly Franklin Foodies Fan Club for a holiday luncheon.  The residents loved spending some time with our associates as well as sampling some culinary delights.  We had Iraqi, Hungarian and African American cultures represented, and all was delicious!

Cheryl Naftel, CDM| Director Dining Services | Morrison Community Living| The Fountains at Franklin

Monday Motivation from Elly Kosteck, Illinois

Michigan: Citrus Boosts Appetites and Spirits This Week!

Mark Taylor, a dining associate and former chef put on a stellar on-display for residents and associates at EHM – Saline today.  Mark is a former chef and lights up a room with his on-display cooking sessions.  This week’s session was featured in the atrium for our Long Term Residents and associates.  Mark seared salmon to order and topped with a fresh grapefruit salsa.  Mark was cooking up chef stories, filling the atrium with smiles and enjoyment, and participants truly enjoyed the session and flavors.  We also featured a citrus infused water with a Registered Dietitian providing information on benefits of citrus foods.         

The Dining Services Team at Evangelical Homes of Michigan – Saline

Illinois: Problem solving at its best at Central Baptist Village

Here at Central Baptist Village our minds never stop running when it comes to solving problems, especially with our work orders! Tony, featured in the picture, came up with an efficient and resourceful tool to help assistant in narrowing down an issue with a leaking window. He used resources in our shop to create his own selfie-stick to get a bigger picture (literally) of where the problem was arising outside a 3rd floor window! Kudos to our team's effort in keeping our residents happy!

Joanna Mocarska

Hospitality Manager of Community Operations

Morrison Community Living |­ Central Baptist Village 

Michigan: The Hospitality of The Italians at The Fountains at Bronson Place

To conclude this exciting and eventful year, it was fun to have a good old fashion Italian Dinner. The "Hospitality of the Italians" underscores what we do and live by at Morrison we deliver an enjoyable hospitable experience. Our themed dinner was cooked up with heart and soul, by Chef Paul and our honorary Cultural Ambassador for the month - Anthony. He is second generation Italian. He along with our entire kitchen staff were excited to serve up Caesar Salad and Marinated Mushrooms with Sautéed Zucchini, Beef Lasagna, Chicken San Remo with Alfredo Pasta as a side, Pesto Carrots, and Tiramisu to finish off this delicious meal! The meal was well received with the residents. They certainly enjoyed the ambiance of Italian music playing in the background as they dined on this authentic Italian cuisine. La bouna vita!

DavidAnsel | Assistant Director of Dining Services 

Michigan: New Year, New Goals at Christian Rest Home

We took our diversity moment department wide, having each associate create their own work resolutions and from the top three creating department goals. 

Caitlin Hastings | Chef of Dining Services ♦ Christian Rest Home

Illinois: Annual Holiday Board Dinner at Smith Village

The Dining Services prepared a special meal for the Annual Board of Trustees Dinner.  

From hand-rolled sushi, 2 carving stations, a shrimp fireplace and over 15 homemade desserts, the residents and members were treated to a special night celebrating the Holiday Season.

As a special take home gift from Dining Services, the team prepared 350 handmade hot chocolate bags made with handmade peppermint spoons dipped in chocolate.  The guests and residents enjoyed the special gift we were able to provide after the Board of Trustees Holiday Party.

Art Youkerd | Director | Morrison Community Living

Illinois: Free Hugs at Villa St Benedict

The culinary team at VSB went out of their way this year to make the residents feel the spirit of the holiday season. This time of year can be difficult for residents away from their families so we had our host, Demario Crosby, give away free hugs and "kisses" while greeting and seating residents for dinner. The residents loved the idea and one in particular was almost brought to tears saying, "I have not had a hug in a long time". The energy felt different that night and many mores smiles were seen in the dining room.

Katie Kunkel, MS, RDN, LDN | Director of Culinary Services | Morrison Community Living |­ Villa St. Benedict

Monday Motivation from Elly Kosteck, Illinois