Snacky bits to make for a bereaved friend

[Thatsajokeright]

A friend of mine was recently bereaved; a child died and quite suddenly.

It's a horrible time and I'd like to support them, somehow without being intrusive.

I except they don't have much appetite at the moment so I thought I could make snacky bits for them to freeze and/or graze on.

I've got as far as sausage rolls and maybe a bag of nuts and seeds?

What else could I do?

Cheese, sliced ham, pickled onions, French stick, bag of salad, little tomatoes - stuff to make ploughman’s or just grab out the fridge if she isn’t up to a meal.

Hummus, Philadelphia and Pate for savoury toast toppers.

That’s a really kind thing to do for your friend. She must be in agony. ❤️

Little cheese scones?

I would do proper meals. Comfort food that requires no extra work, so a pie or pasta or risotto.

Picky stuff is easy to buy.

Could you take over a bundle of frozen ready meals? I’m sure Waitrose etc would have some nicer ones and then she can take them out as and when she’s up to it to stick straight into the microwave.

It’s a lovely thing to do, I will keep your friend in my prayers.

Just fully cooked meals they/she can heat up I think would be preferable to 'snacky bits' that they could easily buy themselves. They may not have the energy or will to cook though - that's where you come in! (My DH died suddenly when my kids were small, having a few meals to just put in the oven or microwave so I didn't have to think or worry about that would have been great).

Snacky bits will go off if they are not eaten in a few days. If they have a freezer, meals are better. Either ones you have prepared yourself and put into freezer boxes, or supermarket/Cook ones. It’s a really thoughtful thing to do.

Poor poor woman.

she's lucky to have you as a friend looking out for her.

After a bereavement (not a child) I couldn't eat, certainly couldn't face 'a meal'

Bite size sandwich pieces were the thing that enabled me to start eating again. Fruit cut up to bite size pieces. Bite size anything was the key.

Bland, boring, easy to shove in your mouth food.

Any other practical stuff you could help with e.g. walking a dog?

Definitely heat up meals and picky bits. That's very kind of you.

I will say having lost one of my kids this year. Keep in touch with her well past the funeral. Don't let her go to ground and drop of the radar. Even if it looks like she's coping ok.

Maybe lasagna or similar?
If you buy a couple of glass dishes with plastic lids from ikea, they can just take lid off and in oven.

homemade soups. Chicken broth type is nice and had some vitamins in to help boost her if she’s not eating much. With some fresh rolls

What do they like to eat?

Sadly had a friend go through this two of years ago. They couldn’t eat meals for nearly a year. We used to take turns dropping soup, deli bits, home made bread. Just kept encouraging them to try have something everyday.

They avoided going to the shops as they found meeting children difficult. They are doing better now, starting to go out and about. Sorry for your friends loss, it really is so unnatural.

When my dad died I pretty much lived on these for at least a week. So easy to eat, can have them at any time and just a little something when you can't face food. The oatcakes are in individual packs of five or six in the box so they're always fresh.

Cheese Oatcakes | Nairn's (nairns.com)

Quiche. Salad bags. For freezer meals, you could batch cook their favourites in ready-made proportions for x number of people Or buy bags of veg mix, stuffed pancakes, things like that. Things that need dumping in a wok for a few minutes. There are meal replacement drinks like Complan too.

Soup! It's a comfort and a good way to keep getting good nutrition when someone can't face eating.