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JoyOfCooking is focused on expert advice to help you enjoy cooking. (You may choose to ask a question, via their website) of their UK culinary professionals: answers are posted .) Here's an excerpt from their "Cooking for One" page: Even making a large pot of pasta sauce and freezing some for another day can pay dividends when you want to eat in a hurry. Doing this also means that you don’t absolutely have to cook meals from scratch every night. It’s always important to label any frozen foods clearly so you can keep track of what was made when. Dried and tinned goods can also play an important role in the larder of the solitary cook as they will last much longer in the cupboard. With just a few basic items in stock, a potentially huge range of dishes can be tackled. Have you heard of Veggie Trader? According to their website, it's a "free resource for bringing good food and good people together." You post a listing describing the excess produce you have and what you'd like in return, and then you wait for a response... Check it out: veggietrader.com No time to hit your local farmers' market? Foodzie, an online marketplace, offers you an opportunity to discover and buy food from small artisan producers and growers. When you visit, you'll find categories that include: bakery, cheese, chocolate & candy, coffee, tea & beverages, meat & seafood, oil, vinegar & pantry, preserves, honey & syrups, snacks. Foodzie apparently plans to add video and other social networking features to help shoppers become acquainted with purveyors as they do at their local farmers markets. "Solo dining needn't be dull dining" — according to Kate Fraser of New Zealand's The Press — 8/28/08 Here's an excerpt: "I am confident not too many solo diners rush home of an evening to fix themselves roasted duck breast with pomegranate sauce, but another meal of baked beans straight from the can? How sad is that. Please, people, do your body, your taste buds, and your sense of gratification (all right, greed) a favour and make a proper meal." Kiwi or no, you may find Fraser's tips on cooking for one just the inspiration you need to spark at home eating.. Several terrific recipes will send you out the door to the nearest super market! Check it out: "Solo dining needn't be dull dining" Looking for restaurants featuring counter/bar dining? Click: eating at the bar Interested in restaurants featuring communal table dining? Click: eating with others Waste Management Tips Vaccum-sealed leftovers can extend freshness fivefold. Stores like Target and Sears carry topselling mechanisms like FoodSaver and Seal-a-Meal; prices start at around $50. A Days Ago digital counter will take the guesswork about the number of days leftovers have sat in your fridge. Affix it to a storage container and it will display the elapsed time. $10 per pair at The Container Store or Whole Foods Market or at www.howmanydaysago.com. AARP Magazine, January & February 2008 Looking for books on cooking for one? Visit: cooking4one Would you enjoy sharing recipes (for one or two) with other people? Check out Recipe Link.com's message board: Cooking for One Or Two Do manners "matter" when you're eating alone at home? Judith Martin, "Miss Manners," weighs in: Dear Miss Manners: How much can manners be disregarded when eating alone at home? Can the soup dish be tilted, can a dish be scraped, can the fingers be used under circumstances that would be deplored in public? [Sinkie.com — The International Association of People Who Dine Over the Kitchen Sink — to the rescue!] Does any of these things really matter? Gentle Reader: No, they don't matter when you eat at home alone. Go hog wild. Use your hands. Use your feet. Smear your food over your face. Etiquette has to do with behavior that affects other people, and when there is no one around to be affected, you are, so to speak, home free. The only reason Miss Manners can imagine for your using manners under those circumstances would be self-respect. If it impacts solo/single supermarket shopping, Carol Ann Johnson will be on it! Here are tidbits from several of her finds: "Baffled by Beef: Meatpackers hope to boost sales by educating clueless shoppers" — Columbus Dispatch — May 26, 2006. "Cargill Inc., the agribusiness and one of its units are starting a marketing campaign that features labels that help consumers figure out what to do with a particular piece of meat, online promotions and advice, and cuts that make sense for small households and single people." Sooner or later, EVERYONE — business and pleasure travelers, singles, those divorced or widowed, very-marrieds whose spouses are on the road, harried moms and dads, etc. — faces the challenge of eating out alone! THE How-to Booklet of Solo Dining Tips & Strategies: The Art and Satisfaction of Dining Alone — REVEALED! is now available for purchase in PDF format! Richard Decker, 51, cooks almost every night — sometimes for friends but often just for himself. His secret is his Food-Saver, a home vacuum-packaging system. He buys whole-beef tenderloins, which can be less expensive than individual steaks, and cuts them into fillets; vacuum-packs them; pops them in the freezer and uses them as the craving arises. "There is something liberating, in cooking for yourself. It's not like you've got to feed five other people and please them. It's a chance to figure out what you like and go beyond the old standards. It's a little way to take care of yourself." Kristin Bagnato, editor in chief of Cooking Smart. Tips for storing and using leftovers: * Separate bacon into 2-slice portions. Wrap each portion in plastic wrap, then store in a plastic bag in the freezer. Defrost in the refrigerator to use in a sandwich or . . . * Store leftover canned tomates in plastic containers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for months. Use atop pasta or in stews and soups. * Store the unused portion of an onion tightly wrapped in plastic in the refrigerator for up to three days. (They don't cause as much tearing when they're refrigerated.) * Store other vegetable pieces (like bell peppers) tightly wrapped in plastic in the refrigerator. Use on sandwiches or in salads. The Sacramento Bee published, "Table for One: Just because you're cooking solo doesn't mean you have to skimp on fresh food" In the body of the piece, Anita Kobuszewski, senior corporate dietitian for Albertsons, offered these shopping and meal-planning tips when cooking for one or two: "Buying smaller sizes can cost more when you figure the price per ounce, but if you buy the larger size, you won't save money if you end up throwing things away." "Try to find a neighbor or friend who will split bulk purchases with you. You will have fun shopping together and you'll both save some money." "Plan ahead to freeze unused portions to eat later. Or, if you must buy larger quantities, separate them into smaller portions and freeze them in single-serving sizes." "There is a lot of benefit to buying frozen entrées, especially if you don't enjoy cooking whole meals. Supplement your frozen entrée with a fresh salad or vegetables. It will still be less expensive and better for you than going to the drive-through." "Research shows that people tend to eat better when they have someone to eat with. Invite a friend over. Share a meal or make it a potluck." Return to Top If you have questions or comments about this Web page or site, e-mail: webmaster@SoloDining.com. © 2010 SoloDining.com Return to Top