Tips For Cooking with a Visual Impairment

Below are some kitchen tips provided by visually impaired people.

Keep things secure.
When putting a glass down, use one hand to feel the surface and the other to hold the glass until you are sure it’s in the right place. Then when picking it up, slide your hand along the surface until you find the glass – don’t reach for the top.

Use rubber matting to stop things sliding off trays.

Stay safe.
Reduce the amount of preparation and measuring you have to do by buying ready-chopped fruit, vegetables, cheese and meat, and sugar lumps rather than loose sugar.

Use an indicator on the rim of your cup that beeps when the water gets near the top.

Wear oven gloves that cover more of your arms to help prevent burns, and use a saucepan instead of a frying pan to stop hot liquids splashing or spitting at you.

If you need to replace your kettle, a One Cup water boiler is very good. It heats enough water for one cup at a time so is more economical and quicker too.

Think big, bright and bold
If you have some vision think bright – whether that’s cutlery, peelers, chopping boards, coasters, mugs or bowls. And remember: black plates show up food better.

Put a contrasting-colour plate under your bowl to catch any spills.

Use sticky labels in bright colours to label anything (and everything!) around the house. Write the first letter on the label in thick black pen – P for parsley, S for salt and so on.

Use your other senses
Put bumpons on the cooker, washing machine, microwave and dishwasher. They’re handy for marking the oven temperatures you use most often, and the on/off dial.

Look into talking tins, egg timers, measuring jugs, scales and even microwaves.

Feel your plates and cutlery when putting them away to make sure they are clean.

Simple Spring Rolls

Ingredients:

Blue Dragon or Taj spring roll wrappers, Filo pastry may be used if these cannot be sourced.

Bean Sprouts

Julienned carrots

Prawns

Method:

Place pastry in a diamond shape on baking paper and spray with oil of choice

Place the filling about an inch from the bottom and start to roll bringing the edges in (it will look like and envelope at this point)

Keep rolling until about an inch from the end, spray some oil to seal the end

Place on a baking tray spray with oil, preheat oven to 180c fan 200c

Gas mark 6 for about 10 mins turn over and bake for a further 5 mins

Serve with a dip of your choice

 

Easy Stir Fry

Heat oil in a wok stir in vegetables of your choice such as beansprouts, spring onion, julienned carrots, mushrooms, baby corn, broccoli, noodles for 5 – 10 mins., add diced cooked chicken/quorn heat thru,

Stir a ready made sauce of your choice simmer for a few minutes then serve

 

Minestrone soup

Ingredients:

Serves 4

1 large onion roughly chopped

1 stick of celery roughly chopped

5 cloves of garlic finely chopped

1 tsp thyme

Half a tsp oregano

2 bay leaves

3 and half tbsp. tomato puree

227g can chopped tomatoes

1.2 litres boiling veg stock

2 large carrots peeled and chopped

Half a 400g cannellini beans drained and rinsed

120g dried conchigliette or other small pasta shapes

80gms kale, large stalks removed and finely chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

 

Method:

Put the onion, celery, garlic, hers, tomato puree, chopped tomatoes, stock and half of the carrots in a large saucepan and bring to the boil cover and simmer for 20 mins. Discard the bay leaves and whizz until smooth using a stick blender.

Add the beans, pasta and remaining carrots and simmer for 5 mins stirring occasionally. Add the kale and cook for a further 10 mins or until pasta is cooked but still has a little bite.

Season to taste and serve

 

Leek and potato soup

Ingredients:

Serves 8

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 large onion

2 large leeks

2 large potatoes

Chicken stoke cube

Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Finely chop the onion sweat it of in the oil

Wash then roughly chop leeks add to the onions simmer for 5 mins

Cover with hot water and bring to the boil

Peel and cube the potatoes add to the pot add more water to cover and bring to the boil them simmer

Add chicken stock cube cook until potatoes are soft

Semi liquidise

Season to taste and serve

 

Soda Bread

Ingredients:

Serves 8

12oz plain wholemeal flour

4oz of plain flour

Level tsp bicarbonate of soda

Level tsp salt

300 mls buttermilk

 

Method:

Mix dry in ingredient together

Add buttermilk and mix with hands until a dough is formed

Form into a round about 3 inches in depth

Preheat oven to 180c fan oven 200c gas mark 6

Bake for 45 mins

Check bread is baked by tapping the bottom if it sound hollow the bread is ready if not return to the oven for a further 5mins

Place on a wire rack and cover with damp kitchen roll and allow to cool

Carrot and Walnut cake

Ingredients

Sponge

225gms unsalted butter

225g caster sugar

4 large eggs

2 heaped tsp coffee granules dissolved in 50ml water

225gms Self raising flour

75g walnuts chopped

 

Filling and topping

125gms unsalted butter

225gms icing sugar

3tsp coffee granules dissolved in 1sp of water

Walnuts to decorate top

 

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180c/gas4. Place the butter into a large mixing bowl and beat until light and smooth.  Add the sugar and cream together until light and fluffy
2. One at a time add each egg making sure to beat to completely incorporate each egg before adding the next egg. If the mixture looks like it’s about to curdle add 1 spoonful of flour.  Then add the dissolved coffee to the mixture and mix well.
3. Add the flour and chopped walnuts and gently fold in until fully combined.
4. Divide the mixture into 2 20cm/8 inch cake tins which should be greased/lined with parchment paper. Transfer to the oven to bake for 25-30mins.  Or, until skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean and the cake is golden brown.  Remove the cakes form the oven and leave to cool on a wire rack.
5. Whilst the cakes are cooling make the butter icing. Firstly beat the butter in a small bowl until pale an smooth, then gradually beat in the icing sugar.   Next and the coffee and mix well.
6. Split the butter icing mix in half and spread one half on the flat side of one sponge then place the second sponge on.

 

Carrot Cake

Ingredients

125gms soft brown sugar

125ml sunflower oil

2 large free range eggs

225gm plain flour

1 tsp ground cinnamon

½ a tsp ground ginger

½ a tsp baking soda

½ a tsp baking powder

1 clementine

200gms carrots

75gms walnuts

200gms cream cheese

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200c/gas 6 Line your cupcake trays with paper cases
2. Beat the sugar oil and eggs together. Fold in the flour, spices, and baking soda and powder. Grate in orange zest add a pinch of sea salt.
3. Add grated carrots and chopped walnuts then fold into batter
4. Divide the mixture between 12 to 16 cupcakes cases then bake for 20 mins. Or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
5. Cool the cakes on a wire cooling tray.

 

Microwave Scones

Ingredients

250gms plain flour

1tbsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

90gms butter

2tbsp caster sugar

1 egg

185ml Milk

Method

1. Sift baking powder flour and salt into a bowl
2. Rub in butter until mixture resembles breadcrumbs
3. Combine egg and milk (any flavouring may be added at this point). Add to crumble mixture with enough liquid to form a stiff dough
4. Roll out dough to 1cm thickness
5. Cut into rounds and arrange 6 scones at a time on a plate lines with double thickness absorbent paper.
6. Microwave for 2-3 minutes or until no longer doughy
7. Leave to stand for 1 min then remove to wire rack, repeat with remaining scones.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Low calorie cooking spray

2 onion, finely chopped

1 red pepper, de-seeded and finely chopped

30g root ginger, peeled and grated

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

Pinch of chilli powder

2 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp tikka curry powder

½ tsp turmeric

150g passata

1 tbsp tomato puree

700g skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces

100g fat free natural yoghurt

Salt and pepper

1tbsp chopped fresh coriander

Method

1. Spray a large non-stick frying pan with low calorie cooking spray and place over a medium heat. Add onion and pepper and cook for 10 minutes, adding a little water if needed.
2. Stir in the ginger and garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes, then add all the spices, passata, tomato puree and 500ml of boiling water. Bring to the boil over a high heat then turn the heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Add the chicken and simmer for 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. If the sauce is too thick add boiling water to achieve the desired consistency.
4. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the yoghurt. Season to tastes scatter over the coriander and serve with favourite rice (basmati, palu, plain white…)

 

Spiced Onions

1 large onion

1 tsp chilli powder

½ tsp salt

5tbsp tomato sauce

2 tbsp mango chutney

Mint

Riata

Yogurt

Cucumber

Mint Salt

Rhubarb Crumble

Ingredients

Serves 4

500g rhubarb

100g castor sugar

For the topping

100g plain flour

100g porridge oats

100g butter at room temperature

4 tblsp demerara sugar

1tsp ginger

Custard or cream to serve

 

Step 1

Set oven to 190c/gas mark 5

Cut the rhubarb into short lengths and place in a dish. Sprinkle over the sugar.

Step 2

Tip the topping ingredients into a bowl and use your fingers to work them well together until well mixed.

Step 3

Scatter the mixture over the rhubarb. Put the dish on a baking sheet (in case and juice leak out) and cook in the centre of the oven for about 45 minutes or until the crumble is lightly golden and the fruit softened. Serve hot with custard or cream.

If rhubarb is out of season tinned may be used instead.

 

Cottage Pie

Ingredients

Serves 4

500g lean minced beef

1 onion finely chopped

1 large carrot, peeled and chopped

1 tbsp tomato puree

1 tbsp Worcesetershire sauce

1 tsp mixed herbs

350 ml hot beef stock, made with a stock cube

1 tbsp plain flour

900 g floury potatoes, peeled and cut into small chunks

100ml semi-skimmed milk, warmed

25 g butter

 

Method

1. Fry the meat and vegetables: Heat a large pan add the minced beef and veg and fry, stirring occasionally to break up any lumps, for 5 mins or until lightly browned all over. Meanwhile stir the tomato puree and Worchestershire sauce and mixed herbs into the stock. Sprinkle the flour over the beef and veg.
2. Add the stock: stir the flavoured stock into the mince. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 5 mins season to taste.

Place into a pie dish and allow to cool before adding the topping.

3. Cook the potatoes: while the mince is simmering and cooling, cook the potatoes in boiling water for 10mins or until tender. Drain the potatoes, then mash with the warmed milk and butter.
4. Spread mashed potatoes over the mince and bake the cottage pie at 200c(180c fan oven) gas 6 for 20 mins or until topping is golden.