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RECIPES FOR ONE AND FOR FUN
CHICKEN STEW IN A PUMPKIN
Straight from Martha Stewart: small, 2 lb. pumpkins. Cut off top (not too wide) and discard seeds or keep for baking later. Swipe with melted butter and salt, pepper and nutmeg. Cover tightly with foil, cook in 375 oven for 15 min. Don't overcook.
Meanwhile make your favorite chicken stew or noodle soup. Also make a pate brisee (fancy name for pie crust) with thyme (or roll out croissant dough from refrig. section of Kroger's) Cut into shape to cover pumpkins.
Pour soup into pumpkins (this is pretty elementary) add tops, try to pinch top to look like a stem, bake in oven until brown. Don't overbake or the whole thing will collapse. You can eat the pumpkin too. It actually might be a good idea to serve in a spagetti dish/soup bowl just in case. Famously yummy on a cool, fall day.
Peach Cobbler for One
Cut up one or two peaches. Mix peaches in saucepan with 2 tblsp./little bit of sugar, one tsp/few drops of lemon juice and 1 tbls/one any sized spoonful of flour. Cook and stir frequently until it boils, boil 1 minute. While peaches are cooking, (i.e., in one minute) mix ½ cup of Bisquick with enough milk to make a mixture that looks like cooked oatmeal. Or, if you've never cooked oatmeal, like freshly mixed cement. Or, if you've never mixed cement, it's time you did. Pour peaches into ungreased baking cup, pour cement mixture on top, cook until cement mixture has turned lightly brown. EAT! ENJOY! Cover it with WHIPPED CREAM!
Herb and lemon goat cheese spread
4 tesp. lemon zest
4 tesp. fresh thyme chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
½ cup soft goat cheese
½ cup soft cream cheese
¼ cup olive oil
In small bowl combine zest, thyme and garlic. Put half in another small bowl with two cheeses and mex well. Thirty five seconds in the microwave does wonders. Put in serving dish. Add olive oil to the first half of zest combo and spoon over the spread. Great with crackers, Italian bread slices.
Cut recipe in half and make the whole thing in coffee cups.
You have to like garlic to like this!
breakfast casserole for one
baking bowl
coffee cup
scissors
small whisk
PAM
1 egg
milk
bread slices
dijon mustard (opt)
herbs
swiss cheese
onion
ham
grated Parmesan cheese
PAM the bowl.
remove crusts from bread, spread with mustard and put in bottom of bowl.
Cut up swiss cheese for layer on bread. Ditto the ham and onion.
Add another cover of bread.
Whisk together in coffee cup one egg and enough milk to almost fill cup.
Add herbs and pour over stuff in bowl.
cover and refrigerate at least an hour.
When ready to bake, cover with breadcrumbs tossed with melted butter and Parmesan cheese. Bake until set....20? 30? minutes.
For a crowd, multiply and use 4-6 eggs.
Dinner for One with One Pan, One Potato, One Steak and One Tomato
Line your pan of choice (cake pan, pie plate, cookie sheet) with aluminum foil. Fold edges up if you don't want to wash anything.
In a bowl combine 2 tblsp. olive oil, 1 tsp of thyme leaves, pinch salt.
Thinly slice your one potato and swish slices in oil bowl. Arrange them in overlapping circle or whatever design you can conjure up with 5-10 slices of potato.
Slice the tomato, swish in oil mixture and place on top of the potatoes. They can make the center of a flower design, for example.
Swish the steak in same bowl, place on the same pan of choice. Drizzle left over oil mixture so it's all nicely greasy. Place in preheated oven (400 degrees). Cook until done, about 15-20 minutes. Yum, plenty of protein and fulfills the ol' meat, potato and vegetable requirement.
blue cheese dressing for one
In a coffee cup, plop about ¼ cup of mayo or as much as you will need for one salad. Add half as much sour cream, a pinch of parsley and chives, a dash of salt and pepper, one tsp. of lemon juice (use the same spoon for stirring), and one tsp. of tarragon or red wine vinegar. Add feta or blue cheese to taste.
Especially good on iceberg lettuce quarters sprinkled with chopped tomatoes.
Frying pan meal for one.
Brown some hamburg -- as much as you will want for one servimg. I used about 1/3 cup. Add onions, mushrooms, whatever. Dribble ketchup over, add a sprinkling of grated cheddar cheese and top with a handful of scrunched Doritos or the equivalent. Cover. Walk to the nearest mirror, inspect your teeth, come back, uncover, add more cheese. Bunch up the mess to clear part of the pan. Add a cooked vegetable (I used brown beans....canned asparagus would work) and cook just long enough to heat. Fix a salad. Eat.
APPLE PANCAKES
These are so good! I make them in the 2 cup container that comes with the cordless hand mixer. Put the extras in a plastic bag and freeze. They can be thawed in the microwave in 1-2 minutes. Makes a nice breakfast and includes FRUIT!
1 egg
1 cup flour
¼ cup sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
pinch salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. ginger
pinch nutmeg
1 cup plus 1 tbls. buttermilk
2 tbsl. melted butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and ½ of it sliced, other half grated
beat egg, add,flour, some sugar, powder, soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, milk, butter and vanilla. Stir until smooth. Add grated apple.
PAM the frying pan. Sprinkle apple slice with sugar. Put in pan, surround with batter. Turn when bubbles appear.
Delicious!
quick orange breakfast/lunch biscuit
Bisquick
sugar
one orange
milk
mix 1/3 cup sugar with zest from the orange in small bowl
mix one generous cup of Bisquick with 1/3 cup milk
roll out to a small rectangle, sprinkle with half of the sugar mixture, fold in thirds, roll out a little. Cut with round cutter, place on aluminum foil on cookie sheet, sprinkle tops with rest of sugar mixture, bake until done (10 minutes maybe)
Good the next morning, cut in half, toasted, buttered with blueberry jelly.
Beef Wellington for One Extravagant Spoiled person.
Shopping List;
1 filet mignon
small can of Pate de fois gras (usually in the canned meat and fish aisle)
mushrooms
Marsala or Madiera wine
onions
frozen puff pastry or refrigerator crescent rolls found in the dairy aisle (the kind you tear something and then bang it hard on the counter)
Procedure (doesn’t take long)
brown filet in olive oil or butter and set aside
in same pan in more butter, cook a little chopped onion and finely chopped mushrooms (maybe a half a cup...enough to cover the steak) Add parsley, thyme, salt and pepper to taste. Add the wine and a little flour. Cook until thick and reduced (5 minutes?)
Unroll dough, put enough rectangles together to hold the steak, spread with pate, place steak on pate, spread mushroom stuff on top of steak, cover with dough, brush with egg wash if you want, put in baking pan and cook at 400 or so for 20 minutes or until brown.
Blackberry Coffee Cake
Marilyn and I went blackberry picking in late August and those berries were SO GOOD! I froze some but then indulged and made half this recipe.
adapted from COOKING LIGHT
This recipe can easily be halved (to cut an egg in half, put a whole egg in a little cup, whip it to a frenzy and then pour half out) and baked in a smaller pan; a bread loaf pan will work.
Soften ¼ cup margarine
½ package (8 ounce) nonfat cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup flour
1 tsp. baking powder
pinch salt
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups fresh or frozen blackberries, blueberries, huckleberries
PAM
2 tblsp. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
Beat margarine and cream cheese. Add sugar egg. Beat well. Add flour, baking powder, salt, vanilla. Stir well. Fold in berries. Pour into 9” round prepared cake pan. Combine sugar and cinnamon. sprinkle over batter. Bake at 350 for 1 hour or until done.
SQUASH SOUP FOR ONE
Take a squash, butternut is good, looks like a miniature Schmoo (L’il Abner creature), peel, halve and seed and cut it into chunks. Chop up some onion, cook in butter in frying pan. Add a can of chicken stock, a little orange rind zest, a pinch of ginger and the squash. Cover and cook until squash is soft. Puree in blender and enjoy.
FRIED FROZEN SNICKERS BAR (this is one you would die for or maybe because of)
You will need one sheet of puff pastry, one 2 ounce Snickers bar frozen, oil for deep frying, one scoop of vanilla or coffee or whatever you want ice cream, hot fudge or caramel sauce.
Unfold the pastry and cut it into a 5 inch square. Unwrap the candy bar (duh) and place it diagonally on the square. Fold one of the points over the bar. Lightly wet the other points with water until gummy, fold up onto bar and press to seal, making sure not to leave gaps at the corners. Place in freezer for an hour.
In small saucepan heat around 2 inches of oil to 375 degrees. Carefully slide the bar in and fry until crisp and golden and floats. Remove with tongs, drain, put in serving dish, add ice cream sauce, sprinkle with powdered sugar if you haven’t had enough and dive in!
SNAILS (Thanks to Mary Johnson and Emily)
Take a piece of rye or wheat bread, cut off the crusts, cover with whipped cream cheese (and here comes the fun) roll up, cut into three pieces, dip each into melted butter, then into a mixture of cinnamon and sugar (1 tsp. cin to 3 tblsp. sugar or buy it readymade) put on baking sheet with alum. foil, bake in 350 degree oven until warm and fuzzy. Eat.
KNOX BLOCKS
Put contents of 4 envelopes of unflavored Gelatin (Knox if you want)3 packages (3 oz. each) flavored gelatin in a large bowl, add 4 cups of boiling water and stir. Pour into a large shallow baking pan (13 X 9) and chill until firm. Cut into squares or whatever.
variations: use only 3 cups of water, stir in 1 cup of light or heavy cream
use only 2 packages of flavored gelatin; stir in 1 17 ounce can of fruit cocktail undrained.
one potato cake
Spray a custard cup with PAM. Place in it salt and pepper, a little bit of brown or white sugar, half tsp. of balsamic vinegar and half tsp. of red wine vinegar. Also add a bit of rosemary and some chopped onion. Leave room for the potato!!
Take one new potato, peel and slice into matchsticks. Or use a mandoline (not the ukelele looking thing, but a slicer). Toss with beaten egg yolk and more rosemary. Put into custard cup, dot with butter and bake with whatever else you’re cooking. It’s good!
Lamb Chop Heaven
This recipe can require a lot of shopping and chopping (or snipping with scissors) and you get a better taste, there’s no doubt, but the dried herbs can be used and are a close match.
Combine in a small bowl;
handful of fine bread crumbs
¼ cup (or close to it) finely chopped pistacios
¼ cup of finely chopped fresh parsley (I use scissors)
lemon zest from ½ lemon
lemon juice from the same
pinch of salt
Combine in another cup or bowl
3 tblsp/1/4 cup/handful/some/ finely chopped fresh chives
same amount of chopped fresh mint (use scissors)
1 tblsp. Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove minced
Brown one large or two small lamb chops in Dutch oven or oven proof casserole or frying pan or whatever.
In same dish or another sprayed with PAM put chops, cover with mustard stuff, then top with bread crumb mixture. It’s okay if some falls into the pan. Bake at 400 degrees for around 30 minutes. Rice is good with this, swirled around in the drippings in the pan.
Yum.
Hollandaise Sauce for one
Whisk one egg yolk in a cup. Add a generous tablespoon of lemon juice. Melt a fourth of a cup of butter in a small pan. Pour a bit of the melted butter into the egg yolk, whisking all the time. then return it all to the pan and keep on low heat until thickened.
Multiply as needed for more. For Christmas Brunch I used 6 yolks, 9 tblsps. of lemon juice and a cup and a half of butter. Uh oh. Too much! Luckily I can keep the left over sauce in the frig for several days. It softens up in the microwave (15 seconds) and is so good on asparagus, eggs benedict, ham, steak, green beans and probably many other things.
one apple muffin
(and thanks for the idea, Mary and Emily!)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Peel and slice up one apple (I never core, I just slice the sides. It should just about fill a coffee cup. Nuke it for two minutes or until soft and sauced. (You will have enough apple for two muffins) In another cup beat one egg. Assemble cooking oil, cider, cinammon, sugar and Bisquick.
In a third cup, put 3 tablespoons (I use a soup spoon) of Bisquick, 3 teaspoons of cider, 2 teaspoons of apple sauce, 2 teaspoons of oil, 3 teaspoons of beaten egg, 1 teaspoon of sugar and a pinch of cinammon. Stir until pretty smooth. Spoon into a paper muffin cup in a muffin pan. Bake until done (duh) probably 10 to 15 minutes.
For you math wizards, double the recipe for 2 muffins, triple for 3, etc. etc. So line up your grandchildren, give them each a spoon and a cup, and off they’ll go! They will love the measuring and the mixing and the spooning, not to mention the eating.
POTATO CHIP COOKIES
So you have this age-old problem; what to do with the last quarter of the potato chip bag. The chips are all too small to dip and you can’t GIVE them away. Well, WAIT! Smash them to smithereens and then make these cookies. They’re FABULOUS!
½ cup butter
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup brown sugar
1 beaten egg
1 cup flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup crushed potato chips
preheat oven to 350
Cream butter and sugars. Add egg. Slowly mix in flour and baking soda. Stir in vanilla and chips. Drop by teaspoons onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake 9-12 minutes.
DRAMATIC SCENE FEATURING POTATO CHIP COOKIES, OLDER GRANDKID, YOUNGER GRANDKID AND GRANNY
Scene; Granny’s kitchen and just out of the oven cookies. Grandkids are munching cookies and drinking Fresca.
Granny: Who can guess what’s in these cookies?
Older Grandkid: Granola?
Younger Grandkid: Sugar?
OGK: Candy?
YGK: Tell! Tell!
OGK: NO! Don’t tell! Apples?
YGK: Tell! Tell!
G: (triumphantly and giving a hint) Po . . .
OGK: (dubiously) Poland?
YGK: Polar bear?
G: Po...tay...
OGK: Potato!
G: Potato Chip!
OGK and YGK: stunned silence.
yeast waffles
Ingredients; ¾ cup milk, 4 tblsp. butter, 1 cup flour, sugar, salt, dry yeast.
Heat ¾ cup milk and 4 tblsp. butter in mug in microwave until butter is melted.
whisk 1 cup flour, ½ tablsp. of sugar, pinch salt, 1 tsp. dry yeast in bowl
add milk/butter.
in a cup, whisk 1 egg and ½ tsp. vanilla. Add to bowl.
stir thoroughly. cover and refrigerate overnight.
In a.m., make waffles as usual. Very LIGHT!!
Double recipe if you want more than 2 or 3. They freeze well. Just pop them in your toaster.
Garlic Bread Soup
Wow! Was this tasty! I used commercially packaged garlic paste, available in the refrigerated fresh herb department.
olive oil
garlic paste
stale crusty/French/Italian bread broken into bite sized pieces
chicken stock
3 eggs (optional)
parlsey
heat oil, add paste, cook for a few minutes. Add bread and stir to coat. Stir in stock, salt, pepper.
Simmer. The bread will bloat. Decorate with parsley. Stir in beaten eggs. (I enjoyed this soup without the eggs.)
Orange-lime mousse
Double the amounts for serving for 4.
3 eggs
1/3 cup sugar
one orange and one lime or two
3 tblsp. butter
½ cup heavy cream
cinnamon
Prepare ice water bath in sink, in larger container, in bathtub if desperate. For the curd (not to be confused with curds and whey, the curds being the coagulated, soured part of milk), cook 2 egg yolks (discard whites or save for another day) plus one egg, sugar and juice from one orange and one lime or two in small saucepan, whisking constantly until thickened (just a few minutes). Remove from heat, add butter, set in ice water, whisk until cool. Press plastic wrap directly on surface and refrigerate until set, 30 to 45 minutes. Whip cream, sugar and add a tiny bit of vanilla (or use Cool whip) Fold into curd and voila! Mousse! Decorate with cinammon, bits of orange and lime zest or, if you have all the time in the world, thinly sliced orange and lime slices.
If it comes out a bit runny, it’s delicious on warm gingerbread, chocolate cake or the raspberry upside down cakes. Also good on ice cream. Okay...fattening and bad for you. Enjoy!
ONE BAKED APPLE
low calorie, no messy dishes, really good for you!
Core the apple, trying to keep from going through the bottom. Peel around the top about ½ inch (please, no measuring) and squeeze some lemon juice around and in. Fill center with brown sugar, a pinch of cinammon and a little lemon zest. Add a drop of vanilla extract. Put apple in dish and pour apple cider in to cover the bottom of the dish at least. Cook with whatever else you’re cooking until soft. You can take it out once in a while and baste the apple with the juice. If you want to be Martha Stewart (and who doesn’t?) when the apple is done, put the dish on the stove and heat the cider until almost caramalized (it will be thick) and pour over the apple. I haven’t done that yet because, frankly, that’s a LOT of trouble for one apple.
Spinach lasagna
This makes enough to fit in a bread loaf pan.
Cook 1 bag/10 ounces of spinach. Drain and chop.
Bechamel (white sauce)
3 tblsp. butter
chopped onion
chopped garlic
4 tbslp. flour
1 ¾ cup milk
nutmeg
salt and pepper
¼ cupParmesan cheese
4 ounces cottage cheese
1 egg
cooked lasagna noodles
1 ounce Parmesan
4 ounces Italian fontina or whatever you want (I used asiago)
Melt butter, cook onion and garlic but don’t brown, add flour, whisk in milk, add spices and cheese. It should be kinda thick. Set aside.
Blend cottage cheese, half the egg in blender or just stir a lot.
In bread pan, melt tablesp. butter. Cover bottom with bechamel. Layer noodles, now combine bechamel with spinach and add a layer. Parmesan, noodles, cottage cheese mixture, fontina, noodles, spinach, etc. until you get bored, tired, run out of stuff. End with spinach and cheese. Dot with butter, cover or not, cook until done.
Enough for me for two meals and one frozen. Enough for two big eaters, three kids, etc. etc.
Red-leaf lettuce Salad for One
The Dry Mix
2 tblsp. sesame seeds
1 small package of slivered almonds
1 package of chicken flavored Ramen noodles
In a 9 x 13 ungreased pan, bake the seeds and almonds in 350 oven for 6 to 8 minutes OR
Spread seeds and almonds on aluminum foil on a toaster oven pan and toast until brown. Watch them because they burn quickly. Only a couple of minutes.
In a small bowl break up the noodles and sprinkle the chicken packet in. Add the seeds and nuts. Mix well.
This mixture will keep a long time in a covered bowl, uncovered bowl, jar, can, whatever.
The Dressing
2 tblsp. sugar
2 tblsp. vinegar
½ cup oil
In a mug put equal amounts of sugar and vinegar. Microwave to dissolve sugar. Add oil. For one person, I use smaller amounts.
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