To panic about needing to serve a liquid Xmas dinner

[Ciderapplevinegar]

A relative is in the unfortunate position of not being able to swallow solid food. They are currently living on soup and meal replacement drinks. However, I am hosting Xmas this year and really want them to be able to take part. But I'm so stressed!
Has anyone got any ideas of how I can feed them? They've said they are more than happy to bring their own "food", but I know they'd love to be able to join in. Might have to just be a nice meal rather than a Xmas one - possibly custardy trifle? Extra saucy moulles? Any other thoughts?!

I think you have to ask them. Moules isn't something anyone I've seen on a liquid diet would manage.

Honestly, I think you'll be doing them and yourself a favour if you go with soup and custard.

The trifle sounds lovely, although your thoughtfulness and kindness will be the nicest part of it.

My DD is also unable to swallow but this is a longstanding thing and she is tube fed.

One thing I'd want to make sure of is whether your relative definitely would 'love to join in'. My DD would rather quietly get on with sorting her food and then sit at the table and join in with the social side of it, than have the host doing something specially for her.

You might already have had this conversation and be sure of her preference of course.

Christmas Day, away from home probably isn't the time for somebody with a severely impaired swallow reflex to experiment with texture. Careful you don't get so stressed and tie yourself in knots trying to fit them in that they attempt to tackle something that you made specially for them just to please you. Boxing Day aspiration pneumonia isn't very festive.
Check the texture of the soup they normally have and make that in a flavour they like.

Could you do a festive home made soup? And for pudding, mousse should be manageable. I ate loads of Angel Delight in a period when I couldn't eat solid food, but you could make a really nice, posh mousse.

If they can't eat solid food, there's no point offering moules or similar

You sound lovely but I would say a lot of people with food restrictions can find it anxiety inducing when people try to include them. If they are offering to bring their own meals maybe just let them.

I had a liquid diet over Xmas a few years ago and my mum did a turkey and sage soup for me. It was lovely!

Dessert i had custard with brandy sauce drizzled through.

A hearty turkey and veg soup (blitzed of course) might be an option, with custard or ice cream as afters. If you’re going to do it then given they’re living on soup/drinks you have to err on the side of caution and offer items with zero lumps or bits- moules for example would be very difficult for someone with a poor swallow to deal with, however much sauce you serve alongside it. It would be way worse for them and you if you went to the effort of making a special item for them and they couldn’t eat it.

Puree the food. If you have a blender you can simply puree the exact meal you cook for everyone. Ask whether they would eat this and whether they'd prefer everything pureed together as a soup, or separately to taste individual flavours and have more control. You may need to add vegetable stock or gravy to get the consistency required but can just use a stock cube and boiling water for stock.

Also if you're going for soup, unless you have a really good blender, I would recommend blitzing then sieving.

I would discuss this with your relative and if he wants to bring his own food then you should let him.

I agree with the pureeing of food (my mum is on a soft diet) you can also get thickeners which you can add to food so that you get the right consistency - your guest may have a tub already.

Keep things simple but season well.

But I agree with PP - do be led by your guest as many people get very stressed especially if they have swallowing / choking issues.

no solids usually means no solids and you even need to be careful about how thick the liquids are. There's a grading system so I would check if they're on one of these levels IDDSI Diet Levels & Information - St George's University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

I would have a conversation with them. They have grown accustomed to their diet and know what works well for them. To surprise them with new ideas, although well intentioned, might not work for them. That would just ruin the meal for them and make you and everyone else feel bad. It’s probably best if they bring food they know they will enjoy

What texture food are they on? "Not able to swallow solid food" has a huge range of IDDSI levels.

As for what to do - ask them. You could puree/fork mash (depends on what IDDSI descriptor they're on) the standard meal - just please, as someone who sees a lot of modified meals - don't just serve up everything blended into one lump of sludge if you do that - keep the food elements distinct so they have their own flavours and the person can choose how much they want of one element or not.

If you're feeling fancy you can get moulds that you can mould puree carrot for example into a carrot shape fairly cheaply. Wiltshire Farm Foods stuff for modified diets actually isn't bad either - they do manage to produce stuff to the right descriptor that resembles the actual meal.

Basically find out what IDDSI level they're on (it'll be something like Level 4 puree/Level 5 minced and moist) then you can look for specific ideas of that level meal.

One thing with soups - depending on why they're on a modified diet - they might be on one for poor oral control rather than pharyngeal swallow skills - in which case it would need to be a soup that's a consistent texture all the way through rather than a mixed texture one (so "Heinz tomato rather than posh Heinz Big Soup" as a care team summed it up to me recently when I was doing training) because the different pieces move at different speeds within the mouth.... kind of hard to explain but if you think about your cornflakes - the runny milk bits move faster than the crunchy cornflake bit so your tongue has to keep the whole lot contained until you're ready to swallow it.

If this makes no sense - I'm off work with the current variety of plague doing the rounds so my brain is currently out of office.

Check out dysphagia chef on Facebook - specialises in creating meals for those with swallowing difficulties - they have a range Ocras.ie - I think they only supply larger companies and it is Ireland based but might point you in right direction

I have worked with someone with MND who used to simply have what everyone else was eating blitzed together in a blender. Very little extra work and felt a bit more normal for them.

A bit off topic here - but do you actually hold milk in your mouth the whole time you chew your cereal?! I swallow most of the milk during the chewing, I don’t “keep it in place”

I would think they need to provide their own food since it will be their daily diet they’ll have access to it already.

So many nice winter soups you could do – roast parsnip and apple, chestnut, turkey and sage, French onion, celeriac.

Not sure why this is a panic stressed situation 2.5 months out.

the situation may have changed even slightly by then

it should be about what they want not what you want to do to feel shiny as a host.

Definitely talk to them. They might be really particular about it and your idea of joining in may not be theirs and that’s fair enough.

trio of soups to make it interesting?

One turkey (easy)
One leek and potato
One pea and other green veg

Pudding… chocolate mousse?

When my Mum had Lewys dementia, she gradually lost the ability to chew and we found the soft foods from Wiltshire Farm Foods went down well and tasted like they should!

Ask them what they would prefer and if you're going to be providing the food get very specific instructions from them about what they can eat.

So looking at the descriptors they are a level three - the swallow is fine (confirmed on video fluoroscopy) but there is severe oesophageal dysmotility so anything thick or solid gets stuck and has to be washed down repeatedly with lots of water to get it to move. Yes I think you're all right about the mussels, probably too tricky.

I'm confident they would like to be involved if possible, but will bring stuff if it's too much hassle. I'm just hoping I can come up with ideas that aren't totally impossible!