Food for Friends in Need

Through the recipient or someone close to them, find out what kinds of foods they enjoy and get the lowdown on any dietary restrictions. A few other questions can be helpful as well:

• When would it be most helpful to have food (days and meals)?
• How many people will be eating?
• What have you been craving?
• What foods are off limits right now?
• What time is best for drop-off?
• What delivery method would be easiest? (Sometimes leaving it at the door in a cooler or with a caregiver/relative is better than having the recipient feel obligated to invite you inside.)

If cooking isn’t your thing or time is tight, send a restaurant or food delivery gift certificate. A gift card to a restaurant or a bag of snacks and grocery staples is very often just the thing to get your friend through a trying time. Households often need to replenish milk, bread, coffee, soft drinks, cereal, and paper goods.

If you’re ready to cook, stick to a recipe you’re comfortable making that most people enjoy. We have three tried and true favorites below that are sure to please a variety of tastes.

Use aluminum pans or inexpensive plastic food storage containers so there won’t be dishes to return. Include disposable serving ware—plates or bowls, napkins, cutlery—to cut down on cleanup time.

Or…take the meal in your best casserole pan or on a pretty plate. Attach a note that says you’ll stop by to pick it up. It’s an easy way to check back in and see how your friend is doing.

If possible, deliver your meal ready to serve or reheat, with instructions added on an attached tag or card. Or make two smaller portions: one for now and one that can be frozen and reheated later.

We used giftwrap to quickly and easily brighten up our disposable pans:

• Trace the lid on wrapping paper and attach with a little double-sided tape.
• Make a band with a strip of folded wrapping paper and tape around the container.
• Add a note with any reheating/freezing instructions and a bow.

If you do go in when you drop off food, don’t stay long. Visitors can cause stress at busy times. Just leave your goodies and let the caregivers do the rest.

Some situations call for more than one meal delivery from friends and loved ones.
Coordinating a group to bring meals for someone? Gather a list of church, school, organizations, and friends who might be interested in joining in, then send a link to a meal scheduling site via email or social media. (Some organizers even think to collect email addresses at a baby shower to make setting up meals for new parents even faster.) Here are four websites that take the fuss out organizing:

• Meal Train: All the basics you need for coordinating meals and set up a schedule for meals plus errands and other tasks.
• Take Them a Meal: Makes meal scheduling easy and allows participants to search by name.
• Give in Kind: Offers meal and help scheduling, as well a variety of other gifts.

Ever had a friend show up with dinner or a treat when you’re having a tough time? It’s just about the nicest feeling in the world. It’s not just the food—although that’s wonderful— it’s your friend’s presence, steadying you during changes, saying, “I’ve got you.” We all go through times when our community is like a safety net that catches us when we’re off balance.

There are lots of comforting and easy meals that you bring to a grieving friend or a family with a new baby. Here are a couple of our favorites.