month of Feb meals
I'm obviously a bit late for my Feb meal plans. But I did start the month on time. Feb will be a tricky month for me. This is recruitment season for my graduate program, so I get 2 meals out covered through that. I however have to make sure I have my own lunches covered and that I make something shareable for two pot lucks. I survived the first one, I haven't decided what I'm making for the second one.

I think I counted the need for 52 meals this month. I am going to try to change a few things this month. Tue/Thu I generally only have 45 minutes to get between classes (in different buildings) AND eat my lunch. Left overs have become harder to have time for. I also now need to eat my Wed lunch in class (which isn't a problem, but I want to make sure I have easy to eat meals).

The other change for the month is building in an expected second trip to the regular grocery store for sale items and any additional produce I need.

Here's Feb's plan:
-Orange peel chicken (3) with garlic snap peas
-chicken curry (3)
-chili - potluck
-roasted chicken legs w/sweet potato pancakes & carrots (4)
-7 layer dip and chips (2)
-grilled cheese and tomato soup (2)
-chicken with apple dijon sauce (3)
-mujadara (2)
-turkey wraps (4)
-whole chicken with salad and mac & cheese (3)
-chicken & asparagus w/mustard tarragon sauce (3)
-thai chicken mushroom basil stir fry (4)
-risotto w/sausage and apple (4)
-hot dogs and beans (3)
-salmon salad (2)
-raspberry basil chicken (4)
-ham wraps (4)

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Kitchen Essentials?
I'm moving out of my ex's place this sunday to an apartment with a much smaller kitchen. There is no way I can fit in all the kitchen stuff I have, so I'm trying to narrow down the stuff I'm bringing and stick to the bare essentials. So far I've got my Le Creuset dutch oven and a good quality kitchen knife on my list.   

Any advice on other kitchen must haves? 

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Weekly meal planning
Aprovechar is perhaps one of my favorite new-to-me blogs right now. I've loved everything I've read so far that she's written. And she writes about more than just food, but it's the food stuff that bought me to her blog.
I thought a few people here might find her post from the other day useful: Commit to Weekly Grocery Planning.
*For me* monthly meal planning is what works. But for many, the following week is enough to think about, forget about a month. So hopefully that post might be helpful to a few of you who like the idea of planning out meals, but think I'm crazy for doing it a month at a time.

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Jan meal plan
I have to say, I think planning my meals monthly is working out wonderful. I'm in the stores a lot less, I generally have on hand enough to make a few different meals and I'm also spending much less so far. The end of the month gets a bit rough, especially if I'm not in the mood for what I have left on my meal plan. I also need to do better about doing a fresh fruits and veggies run towards the end of the month. At this point you're probably starting to figure out that there are certain dishes that I love and make every month. I'm trying to incorporate at a new dish or two a month. Last month is was risotto with sausage and apple which was awesome and I'm excited to make again this month. I also tried a bastardized version of mujadara, which I'll also be making this month with some other changes to make it more to my tastes.

So here are my Jan meals, aiming for a total of 52 lunches and dinners:
-Stir Fry Garlic Chicken (Joy of Cooking) (4)
-"7" layer bean dip (2)
-Chicken divan with more veggies (4)
-chili (3)
-pizza, with salad (2)
-grilled cheese and tomato soup (2)
-risotto with sausage and apple (4) (Gluten Free Gourmet Cooks Comfort Food)
-Chicken with apple dijon sauce (3) (Gluten Free Celebrations by Carol Fenster), need a veggie here
-Chicken with curry dill sauce, need a veggie here (3)
-chicken curry (4)
-mujadara with salad (2)
-chicken soup with dumplings (3) (I'm promising myself that this month I'll actually get around to this one)
-Crustless corn and crab quiche (GFG Comfort) with salad (4)
-Raspberry basil chicken (4) (Fenster) with salad
-Turkey wraps (3)

I may need to add another dish, depends on how much I eat out this month. Maybe I'll pick up a whole chicken at Costco later.
I have enough frozen bread right now that I won't need to make any this month. I also splurged today at the coop and bought 3 bags of bagels. I'm tired of arguing with myself over breakfast.
Snacks as always with me will include popcorn, ice cream, apples, bananas, and snack bars. I always have yogurt too.

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once a month menu planning
Well, I learned quite a bit planning for Nov, and spent today planning for Dec, taking some of those lessons into account.
I learned that I need to include more easy quick to make meals for those days I'm just too grumpy to deal with a recipe and cooking in general. I need more bread. And planning more breakfasts and snacks would probably help too (especially if I don't want to resort to spending $6 on 5 gluten free bagels, even if they are tasty). I also need to do a better job at planning my side dishes for the meals that aren't one dish meals. I'm going to work on cooking fewer creamy foods, as Nov was over the top in my consumption of creamy foods (while they aren't inherently bad, this month was a case of not enough variety).

A few of these recipes are from "The Gluten Free Gourmet Cooks Comfort Food" (GFG below)

So for the month of Dec (including how many meals I think I'll get from each):
-whole chicken with saffron rice (GFG) and salad (4)
-Simple Dollar casserole (3)
-7 layer dip & chips (2)
-chicken & dumpling soup (3)
-chicken divan w/ pasta and salad (4)
-chili (3)
-pizza (2)
-chicken curry (4)
-pasta with meat/cheese sauce and salad (3)
-mujadara with salad (2)
-hot dogs, beans and salad (2)
-grilled cheese with creamy tomato soup (2)
-dill fish with spinach and sweet potato (2)
-curried chicken-rice with almonds (GFG) and salad (4)
-risotto with sausage and apple (GFG) (4)
-*beef stir fry (3)
-*garlic chicken (4)

-2 loaves of bread
-hummus & carrots
-creamy buckwheat for breakfast (GFG)
-rice chex treats
-home made dressing

*I still haven't found gluten free oyster sauce here. But I do have a few more places to look, namely the Asian markets, now that I know where they are. If I can't find GF oyster sauce, I'll either have to sub out these two recipes, or learn how to make a substitute myself.

As I've planned it, I don't need to buy any more chicken this month because I still have plenty left from last month. Add in some turkey I still have left that could be used in some of these recipes, and the only meat I'll be buying will be ground beef, sausage and whole chicken (which I have a super coupon for this week). This will be a salad heavy month because I really need more veggies and salads are a really easy way that I'll eat a lot of veggies, if I have good dressing.
I dare say I might even come in under budget!

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bean dip for one
I'm not sure why I've been hesitant to eat bean dip for so long, but I finally made some myself last week and feel in love with it. I used this as my base recipe.

To make mine for one serving, this is what I did:
We have small baking dishes, maybe 4 or so inches in diameter, I used one of those.
Put a small layer of refried beans in the bottom (I got Goya refried pinto beans, because they sounded the least threatening of the brands I saw in the store).
I put some chopped cooked chicken on top of that.
Microwaved until it was all warm (be careful or you'll end up with exploded beans all of your microwave) and then put on shredded colby jack cheese.
Then a thin layer of chopped jalepano (which I found wasn't spicy in the least bit with the seeds removed).
Onto that went a half a chopped tomato and half a chopped avocado.
Topped it all with sour cream (also, don't ask why I thought I didn't like sour cream, because I couldn't get enough of it this way).

Doing it this way was just enough for just me for dinner (of course with ample corn chips). Not sure why I'd never considered this before, but it will definitely be part of my monthly meal planning now.

I plan on trying to make it spicier next time.

Also, left over refried beans can be frozen, so while I didn't even come close to using a whole can, next month I won't have to buy any because I'll have more than enough in the freezer.

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once a month planning for one
I decided towards the very beginning of this month that I should start planning my meals monthly and doing my shopping accordingly. After all, I get paid once a month, why am I still going shopping weekly (or every three to four days for that matter)? My thought was that by planning for the month, and doing one to two big shopping trips for the month, I'd cut down on not knowing what to eat and cut down on the number of times I'm in the super market to begin with (thankfully, while I am an impulse buyer, I always eat what I buy, so I don't waste in that regard). Of course I still intend to get some things on a more than monthly basis (fresh fruit and milk being the big examples), also keeping in mind that I can't actually do all my shopping at one store helps. Next month I hope to spread my two major trips out better so I can have fresh fruit longer with fewer trips to the store. I'm also hoping with this better planning that it cuts down on how much I spend in general. This month is a bad month to gauge it because I'd already bought a ton of meat the end of Oct. So next months budget will be more accurate as I'll have to include meat in it.

This is this month's dinner (and lunch, since I generally eat left overs for lunch) menu:
-Dal (from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone)
-Chicken soup with sweet potatoes (an easy gluten free hearty soup)
-garlic chicken (if I can find gluten free oyster sauce, haven't so far) (Joy of Cooking)
-whole roasted chicken
-skillet casserole with chicken (from The Simple Dollar blog)
-clam chowder
-chicken breasts with mushroom sage sauce
-fish in foil (Joy of Cooking)
-chicken and dumpling soup (general recipe from someone in celiac
-layered bean dip without olives, and some left over roasted chicken instead
-chili
-chicken divan
-pork chops with apple dijon sauce (from one of Carol Fenster's books)

I've also got the makings for pizza, though it isn't on my menu.
I also have on the to-make list: rice chex treats, bread, and granola.

So far this seems to be working out well and I plan on doing it again next month. I did not take into account Thanksgiving nor the left overs that I'll have, so I'm sure that will help.
Next month I also need to do better at planning breakfast, as I'm out of quinoa and I'm not sure I want to be eating eggs ever day (not to mention that I don't really like eggs every day and I don't find them filling).

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tilapia in foil
Well, seeing as I'm still cooking for one, and am in a bit of a cooking slump, I figured I'd start posting things again. Maybe it will remind me that I have more in my repertoire than chicken curry.

Many people wonder why I as a single person have a Costco membership. The first answer is that I actually share it "with the person I live with" (aka, old housemate, with whom I no longer actually live, but Costco doesn't need to know that). The second answer is that it makes meat buying so much cheaper and easier for me. The other night I bought the smallest package of tilapia they had, the smallest package of pork loin chops, and the largest package of boneless skinless chicken thighs. The tilapia and pork chops are now all individually wrapped in wax paper and in marked freezer bags in the freezer. This makes pulling out one to two servings much easier. The chicken is divvied into 1 pound bags, since thats how much I usually want to chop up for a recipe.

This is "Fish Baked in Foil" recipe in "Joy of Cooking".

I took two tilapia fillets that were about a serving size each.
Placed them on their own large sheet of aluminum foil.
Put a few large pats of butter over them. Sprinkled it all with garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Folded up the foil and baked in a 500F oven for 10 minutes (the fillets were on the smaller side).

Was very easy and I'm sure I'll make it again.
I served it with corn and spinach.

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chicken "rolls"
Typing this out before I forget it, just in case it tastes good.

3 boneless/skinless chicken thighs pounded thin, poor skills style
Smear with ricotta
Sprinkle with salt, pepper, tarragon, and basil
Add a small handful of chopped mushrooms mixed with minced garlic
Attempt to roll up (but have it fail because they aren't thin enough)
Coat in beaten egg
Dredge in home made gluten free bread crumbs
Place in greased baking dish
Spray chicken "rolls" with baking spray
Bake at 350F for 40 minutes

Loosely based on tweedygal's suggestion in a cooking thread.

-Preemptive thoughts for next time: Parmesan and/or mozzarella in addition to the ricotta.

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Shopping for one
Hi all!

My first post here.

I'm glad to have found y'all! I'm a vegetarian, and cook for one, and my cooking life is an ongoing struggle between eating a variety of delicious food and not wanting to throw perfectly good food away because I indulged a desire for variety...

Today, I feel like I had a really successful trip to the market:
1 nectarine, Blueberries, Cantaloupe, Bananas
Tomatoes, Avocado, Cucumber, Green leaf lettuce
fresh from the oven whole wheat bread
soy bacon
Fried plantains (frozen, new to the store)
Broccoli
artichoke hearts
cottage cheese
cream cheese
chocolate pudding (got to have something sweet!)

I'm thinking a few days of veggie and soy bacon sandwiches (w/ the cream cheese, and carrots I already have), some days of fruit and cottage cheese, some meals of garlicky pasta with broccoli and artichokes and tomato (and pine nuts and parm, already have). Plus, there's soy chicken in the freezer and maybe one night out at the Indian restaurant. Plantains as a side or snack (also edamame in the freezer), and I have a package of soy turkey for sandwiches too

So, I feel like a bit of a dork for posting my grocery list, but I'm really curious how other folks deal with the desire for a variety of fresh food and not being wasteful. What do y'all do?

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The Washington Post food section today had an essay on the "joys" of cooking for one.

Along with it, two recipes: Ginger White Bean Salad and Green, Eggs, No Ham.

I found the best and perhaps simplest recipe of them all, though, while poking around a little more on the Post's recipe finder: The Avocado Smashwich.

A couple more. Meatless, because that's how I roll, but could be adapted for omnivores: Free-Form Lasagna and Fresh Herb Frittata.

Bon appetit!

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chocolate (almond) whipped cream with fresh raspberries
I asked about chocolate summer recipes a bit back in celiac. This was tonights concoction using what I already had in the house.

(hopefully written in a Joy of Cooking style so you know my process)

Put small-ish bowl in freezer for a while.
Add about 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream and mix for a minute or two.
Add 1 tbsp of confectioners sugar and 1 Tbsp cocoa.
Mix another 45 seconds.
Add about 3/4 teaspoon almond extract.
Mix another short bit.
Add another less than tablespoon of confections sugar and cocoa.
Avoid over mixing and turning the whole thing into chocolate butter (which I came a close to doing). The consistency will all of a sudden change and you'll know you need to stop probably 30 seconds before that :)

Wash and clean out raspberries bought from the farmers market on Sunday.
Combine and enjoy.

If I do this again, I'll either need to buy and use more almond extract, or maybe try mint extract. I'll also add the larger cocoa/confectioners sugar amount sooner.

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User pic
Possible user pic. Probably should have lightened the image, but I'm bored now...

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Breakfast
It's really hard to figure out a good breakfast for one, unless you're into boxed cereals (ick), Danish pastries or donuts (not if you're over 30!), or one of those horribly motivated early morning people who can actually think about food. I recently decided to go on an "oatmeal for breakfast" regime, but it soon became obvious that even making oatmeal every morning taxed my "I hate mornings" persona beyond endurance. And I can't stand those instant oatmeal pouches - just add water - because there's too much salt in them. So I've started making my version, and after a couple of months, it's still working out well. Here's what I do:

In a double boiler, combine:
1 1/2 cups raw rolled oats
1/3 cup (6 T) flax seed meal
1 quart (4C) water (maybe more)

Bring the water in the bottom of the double boiler to a gentle simmer, cover. Stir every 10 minutes or so. Add water if it's getting too thick for your taste - remember that it will thicken some more on sitting. When it's done (takes 20-30 minutes, depending on your oats), remove from heat and uncover; you can stir in 1/2 C raisins if you like. If you stir the raisins in at the beginning, they get soggy and mushy.

After it has cooled, pour/spoon into something and chill. I use a Pyrex loaf pan. Cover with plastic wrap to minimize a skin forming. I like the loaf pan because it's easy to slice it into 6 "slices" by pushing down a spatula. This gives me 6 breakfasts - remove a slice, place in bowl, microwave for 2 minutes. Add milk.

I like stiff oatmeal, so this sets up like a very firm loaf. If you like "soupier" cereal, add more water or less oatmeal. I also like smoother oatmeal, so I use quick (not instant) oats. You'll probably have to make some adjustments if you use regular oats.

Those amounts give about 160 calories per serving, if the tables I used were correct. The flax seed adds a lot of calories but is really healthy. (Increasing the proportion of flax seed gives gritty oatmeal - if you want more, maybe cook it for a few minutes before adding the oatmeal.) Nut meal would also be a nice addition - or just add nuts, if you like the texture. Obviously, you can leave out the raisins (BTW, golden raisins get lost here - use the regular ones), add cinnamon, etc.

I realize that this sounds horrible, but it actually works pretty well. I don't mind the monotony, since it eliminates the need for actual thought in the morning. And why do I make 6 servings?

Well, by Sunday, I've earned a Danish, don't you think? ;)

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Sauce ideas?
I am currently studying in Ireland. The semester is coming to an end, and I only have 12 more days of cooking dinner (I'll be in England for 4 days so that gives me a break). I have 3 bags of pasta (1 unopened) and half a bag of rice. I only have half a jar of spaghetti sauce left. Since I don't have many cooking days left, I don't want to go and spend money on groceries.

EDIT - I should mention I'll be having more than just pasta. I have frozen veggies, soup, and going to buy cans of tuna.

My question is this: what sauce recipes can I make from scratch so I can save money on groceries? This is what I have in the house:

Butter
Cajun seasoning
Chili powder
Paprika
Parsley
Sage
Black pepper
White pepper
Steakhouse pepper
Salt
Sea salt
Dill
Nutmeg
Cinnamon
Garlic salt
Cumin (maybe 1/2 teaspoon left)
Red wine vinegar
Vegetable oil
Olive oil (although it isn't mine, I can use a little bit)
Red wine vinegar (same as olive oil)
Soy sauce
Worchesire sauce
Beef powder (left over from ramen noodles)
Mixed herbs


I do the basics, such as garlic butter or butter with mixed herbs. Then I can use plain soy sauce for a few. Maybe butter with cajun seasoning. Any other suggestions you can think of from the list? Even if you have a recipe but I don't have all the ingredients, post it and I'll see if it's worth buying. TIA! <3

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Chicken Salsa Quesadillas
Because I cook for myself while at college, I make meals that feed only me (and perhaps leftovers sometimes). Here is a recipe I added to my blog. Please click the link for details.

Chicken Salsa Quesadillas

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icon search
We need an icon. I'm open to suggestions.

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tonights dinner - no name
1. Chop 1 shallot and saute in olive oil. Cook until close to translucent.
2. Add two chopped boneless skinless chicken thighs. Cook until pretty much done.
3. Chop one carrot (I did rounds tonight, though next time I think short sticks would be better as I'm bad at chopping thin rounds).
4. To pan add one package of Trader Joe's Bengal lentils.
5. Add carrots and 4+ tablespoons of coconut milk.
6. Cook another 5 min or so.
7. Serve over rice.

I did 4 tablespoons of coconut milk, next time I'll do more.
This is enough for two meals for me.

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Hello
I just found this community over the weekend and thought it was a pretty nifty idea, so I thought I'd post my one person meal tonight.

1. I just got a Christmas present in the mail from my dad. It was the cookware set that I asked for, so I felt a little obliged to break it in.
2. I had a few things that would have been approaching the end of their useful life in my fridge if I didn't use them relatively soon.
3. I was hungry.

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Generally, I cook for one, but for the holiday it went up to 2. I think this was the best planned holiday dinner I've ever done - much was done the day before, and the recipes scaled well - a half a dozen shrimp each. a dozen mussels for the soup. The dressing should have been halved, but I knew that any leftovers would go home with my son. The cheesecake was made in my cute little 5 1/2 inch springform pan, which holds 1/4 of a recipe for a 9" or 10" pan. Basically, the duck went in the oven when the kid got here, and we ate out way through the introductions while it cooked. There was time once the duck came out for him to do the cauliflower sauce and steam the cauliflower, while I got the pre-made dressing in the oven. We collaborated on the salad.

Thanksgiving 2006 menu
Crudites
Celery stalks with Boucheron (or chevre)
Celery stalks with Talatta tinned anchovies
Note: next time, bring cream cheese to room temp, layer anchovies on celery and cover with cream cheese

Appetizer
Cocktail of shrimp cooked in beer, with horseradish cocktail sauce
Craig Claiborne's Herb and Spice Cookbook

Soup
Mussels á la Mariniere
Craig Claiborne's Herb and Spice Cookbook

Main course
Duck, slow roasted with Fennel-olive confit http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/236323

Wild rice-sausage-chestnut dressing
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/236540

Organic Minaret Cauliflower with Freshly Grated Horseradish Sauce
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/236411

Salad
Romaine with heirloom tomatoes, English cucumbers, avocado,crumbled blue cheese and sherry vinegar and olive oil

Dessert
Spiced Pumpkin Cheesecake served with rum-flavored whipped cream
http://americastestkitchen.com/recipe.asp?recipeids=1864&iSeason=5

Afters
Nuts in the shell
Wasabi cashews (Double wasabi next time.)
http://www.globalgourmet.com/food/special/2004/hbparty/cashews.html
Coconut Triangles (haupia)
Sunset Magazine, Nov. 2006

Everything was excellent – all recipes are worth repeating. The cat got shrimp and duck - everyone was happy.

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