Cooking for two. How do I?

Question

My two older children have all but left home now and Im finding it difficult to get the food portions right.
I always end up cooking far to much food for just me and my youngest son.
Do you have any recepies for just two?

Answer 1

Oven Fried Chicken

¼ t red pepper
1 cup cornflakes crushed
1 t paprika
½ t garlic powder
¼ t ground thyme
¼ cup buttermilk
2 chicken breasts halved

Combine 1st 5 ingredients in plastic bag. Skin breasts and brush both sides with buttermilk. Place chicken in bag of crumbs and shake to coat. Place chicken on broiler pan that has been sprayed with vegetable spray. Bake at 400° for 45 min. or until done.

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Stuffed Peppers

1 lb ground beef
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup chopped onion
1 t chili powder
1 can tomato soup
½ t dry mustard
½ can water
½ t blk. Pepper
2 T Worcestershire
½ t salt
2 cups cooked rice
6 lg. bell peppers
1 can tomato sauce
1 cup grated cheese, optional
1 t Accent

Lightly brown ground meat. Thoroughly drain and use paper towel to absorb excess grease. Add all ingredients together except cheese and tomato. Sauce and peppers: stuff peppers equally with mixture. Place peppers upright in baking dish. Spoon tomato sauce evenly over peppers. Bake 45 min. at 325°. If desired, grated cheese can be sprinkled over peppers during last 10 min. of cooking time.

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Stir Fried Vegetables and Chicken

1 whole chicken breast, skinned and boned
1 lb fresh broccoli, cleaned and trimmed
2 T vegetable oil or olive oil
1 med. Onion chunked
2 med. Sized red or green peppers chunked
½ lb fresh mushrooms quartered
¼ t red pepper
⅓ cup Kikkoman stir-fry sauce

Cut chicken into 1-inch squares. Cut broccoli into bite-size pieces. Peel stalks and cute into ¼ “ thick slices. Heat oil in hot wok or large skillet. Add onion and broccoli, stir-fry 1 min. Add 2 T water, cover and cook 2 min, stirring once. Add bell peppers and mushrooms, stir-fry 2 min. Stir in stir-fry sauce and red pepper. Cook and stir until chicken and vegetables are coated with sauce. Serve immediately. For four. Cauliflower, celery and carrots may also be used. Accompany with rice.

Answer 2

I have several suggestions: 1) plan out what you will eat for the next 7 days. 2) Pick out 4-6 recipies - a few where you really like the leftovers, and some where you can easily split the recipie in half, and perhaps one where you can make a big dish like lasanga or enchiladas and freeze the rest. 3) stock up on freezer bags and containers

Make a cheat sheet of measurements. Write down all of the measurements that you commonly use then to the right of each of those measurements, divide each by 2 and/or 3 so you will always have the "smaller" portion of each quick at hand. This has helped me tremendously on making just the right portion for me.

Another key is to split up your meat as soon as you get home from the grocery. I buy 1.5 lbs of lean ground beef and slit it in three as sonn as I get home. You may need to split it only in two, but the principile is still the same. The samne goes for chicken, bacon, sausage, etc. Cut the package size down to reasonable portions (4-6 oz per person) then freeze seperately.

As an example with lasanga bake an entire dish, then take what you need for dinner that night. Reserve an additional 1/3 cup of sauce for each freezer dish you plan to have. Portion out the same amount in freezer containers along with the additional sauce. Reheat 4-5 minutes or more depending on the amount being reheated.

They key for me, a single person is to have lots of extra freezer bags a small containers that can be put in the freezer because I always have half a can of something that i don't want to waste.

Answer 3

Frozen pre-cooked meats, frozen vegetables, chicken stock, and most importantly Freezer bags.

Not so much a recipe as a method:

I intentionally overcook meats - that not portioned out in that day's meal is put in a freezer bag (in approximate portions) for later use.
If some of my intended recipes call for a fresh cut of meat, I will freeze fresh in the given portions--but often pre-cooked is an acceptable substitute, and you don't create an additional pot to wash.
I also freeze stock in( ice cube tray/ muffin pan --after frozen placed in freezer bags) portions.
Bread freezes will also -- if sliced, just remove what you'll use for a given meal. Let thaw -- still tastes pretty fresh (of course you can toast also).

With the above, you've got the makings, or at least some of the makings for a quick soup, sandwich, gravy.
You can complement meal with fresh elements as desired.

Frozen vegetables I usually just keep in the original bag -- using a tie-string to immediately close bag and place back in freezer after I've taken what I needed for any given meal.

I use the above as building blocks.
They yield the makings of a quick, tasty, waste-free meal.

Answer 4

If you have a crispy edge and a frozen center, that means that you are turning your oven up to far and not waiting long enough. I'm sure as long as both pizzas are laying flat you can cook both. I would just cook them exactly as it says on the box, but turn the oven down 15 degrees and wait 10 minuets longer. Also do you cook them on a pan or straight on the rack. try putting a pan under it and it will help from the pizza getting to crispy on the bottom.

Answer 5

Cook for 4 as normal, then freeze 2 portions for another day when there is no time to cook

Answer 6

When it was just me and my oldest daughter we always had leftovers. Say you want spaghetti. Have it for dinner then freeze the rest in individual containers for later use. Next time you won't ave to make it. Just take it out of the freezer. All you have to do is make some garlic bread. Same goes for stews and soups. If you cook a roast, have roast one night then the next you can have beef BBQ's with some fries or chips.

Answer 7

Well reeally what you do is you cook the same amount as usual and put half in the freezer and use it next week. If the recipe you have is for 4 then divide it in 2. It really is easy

Answer 8

I've got more than just recipes! I've subscribed to Cooking for 2, a magazine I came across. It's just me and my daughter, so I don't like big portions with nights of leftovers. It's a bit fancier than what I had in mind, but you might find it a bit helpful and interesting.

Answer 9

Taste of Home has a cooking magazine specific on Cooking for 2. Check out their website. www.cookingfor2.com.

You could also just divide your favorite receipes in half so that you aren't making as much. I prefer to make extra for left-overs!!! Means I don't have to cook as often during the week! :-)

Answer 10

well just cook the same food as you normaly cook, but instead of 4carrots just do 2, & the same with all the other thing´s . Happy New Year