Since the very first lockdown back in March 2020 our fantastic Friday Friends have been baking puddings for some of the most vulnerable people in our community.
Dave and Barb have been delivering Dave's legendary puddings twice a week for almost a year now, ever since the first lockdown last March. Dave makes the cake and puddings, which Barb delivers as individually packaged portions - on Wednesdays to the Bevy for Meals on Wheels and directly to the Friday Friends members on, you guessed it, Fridays.
So far they have supplied over 850 portions for Friday Friends and 1,700 portions for Bevy Meals on Wheels! And they're still going strong.
The puddings are different each week and have included crumbles made of victoria plum, rhubarb, apple or mango, and sponge cakes such as jam, sultana, pineapple upside down, peach upside down, chocolate marble or lemon drizzle. Much of the fruit is grown by the Friday Friends themselves, or donated by local gardens like the Moulsecoomb Forest Garden - almost all of it is local.
Dave says "We try and vary it, we'll do a crumble one week then a sponge the next, and they all come in containers with custard."
The pictures show a mouth-watering lemon drizzle cake and Barb delivering this week's delicious coconut sponge & custard.
The Friday Friends
As most of you know, the Friday Friends lunch club has been taking place at The Bevy for the past few years. The club is a chance for isolated older people to get out of the house once a week for a delicious lunch, entertainment and a chat. In the days before covid hit, elderly people from the Moulsecoomb and Bevendean area were picked up by the Bevy bus to come along to the pub and enjoy a hearty home-made meal plus pudding, followed by bingo and a raffle.
Organised by Dave, Barb and Jonathan, the Friday Friends always livened up The Bevy on a Friday lunchtime and would always put on special events to mark the Queen's birthday and at Christmas. We can't wait to have them back as soon as this is all over and it's safe to do so. Sadly we have lost a few Friday Friends this year, but they will always be remembered with their own plaques in The Bevy pub garden.