The residents and care team at Little Bramingham Farm, had a marvellous time celebrating this year’s National Chocolate Cake Day. “National Chocolate Cake Day is a day dedicated to chocolate lovers,” said Emma Lawrance, the Registered Manager at Little Bramingham Farm. “Whilst overindulging in chocolate and sugary foods are not part of a healthy, nutritious diet, a small treat in moderation now and then can help to support older people in many ways, such as reducing blood pressure and improving blood vessel function. As the saying goes, a little of what you fancy does you good’.
“Our residents thoroughly enjoy an afternoon tea, so to celebrate, our Chef, Jim Wright, baked a delicious cake for the residents. As an extra surprise, whilst the cake was baking, Aaron Kenny from TNS Catering held a Chocolate Making session where the residents got creative.” Aaron, who is an accomplished Chocolatier, has been an Operations Manager Designate at TNS Catering for over three years, but has a deep passion for all things chocolate. “My Chocolatier journey really began whilst I was in the military and on the Combined Services Culinary Arts Team,” said Aaron. “I fell in love with the technical side of working with chocolate, which eventually led me to launch my own business. It was an incredible experience growing from local farmers’ markets to a high-volume operation supplying hotels and shops going through hundreds of kilograms of chocolate every week.”
During the Chocolate Making session, the residents put their own talents to the test and created their very own individual diamond and star-shaped filled chocolates and chocolate slabs. “The residents asked lots of questions, which was fantastic as everyone was really engaged and enthusiastic. They were fully involved in making the chocolate elements and took to it amazingly well and probably did more than me,” added Aaron. The residents created their masterpieces with white, milk and dark chocolate. “For the session, I focused on the chocolate elements for the day,” continued Aaron. “I find high-quality dark chocolate the most rewarding. It has such a complex character and requires a bit more finesse to get exactly right and
is rich in antioxidants.”
“I like to have some fun facts to share with the residents whenever we do an activity which has an interesting back story,” continued Karen Charity, the Activities Coordinator at Little Bramingham Farm. “So before National Chocolate Cake Day, I read up on the history of chocolate and, interestingly, its story begins around 1000 BC in Latin America – and – the Chocolate Cake was created when a Doctor and Chocolate Maker partnered at an old mill where they ground up cocoa beans and poured the mixture into cake-shaped moulds.”
“The residents are keen history buffs,” added Emma. “One resident told us that the first dry cake mix was launched by the brand and fictional character used in advertising campaigns, Betty Croker, back in 1947 and that actress, Audrey Hepburn loved chocolate cake so much that she said “Let’s face it, a nice creamy chocolate cake does a lot for a lot of people; it does for me.” They really know their chocolate cakes from their chocolate truffles.”
“I had a brilliant time with the Little Bramingham Farm residents. It’s not often I get to step away from the operational side of things and get back to my Chocolatier roots. Seeing the residents enjoy themselves was brilliant. The Chocolate Making session was a definite 10 out of 10 for everyone. It’s always a pleasure to visit Little Bramingham Farm, but getting to share my passion for chocolate with the residents made this visit particularly special,” concluded Aaron.
Find out more about Little Bramingham Farm care home by calling 01582 582 433 or emailing [email protected].