Cooking for one

moneyistooshorttomention

Absolutely PN:T.

I've found that even the most "hard core" meat-eaters can and will eat vegetarian food.

But a vegetarian can't/won't eat meat choices.

I've had that work canteen situation before now (in more than one job). Come the last employer like that I had turned vegetarian and boy....did I get fed-up with the solo choice of cheese salad, next day cheese salad, following day cheese salad and so on.

I first tried to get them to provide a reasonable choice and, when they refused, I told them I was deliberately not going to use their canteen. I had to take packed lunches - whilst everyone else got things cooked for them...

I guess that way of thinking is a very old-fashioned one from the pre-cars, pre-tv, pre-Internet era - ie where people were expected to "take what they were given" and some people havent "moved with the times" and adapted to the rest of us.

Nelski

Morning Ladies

On the bread debate I really struggle as demonstrated last night when I really wanted some crusty bread with my dinner but ended up with white sliced Don't eat anything like enough for a bread maker and don't want to increase my consumption either. I'm loving flat breads at the moment which are easy to make and do actually freeze OK. For white bread I buy Warburtons toastie which does last for days and does survive the freezer as well. Don't particularly like eating sloppy white bread full of preservatives but until I can be bothered to go out every day to buy nice fresh bread with the petrol costs on top too then its white sloppy bread for me.

Cooking proper today Fish Pie, veg and a Mahooosive pavola
Great food for digging in and helping yourself which is what I like to do.

What do I plan to do with the leftovers?.......Hopefully there wont be any but if there are everyone will leave will a party bag so that nothing goes back in the freezer. Nice plan lets see how it goes

PasturesNew

Nelski wrote: »

I really wanted some crusty bread with my dinner but ended up with white sliced

This is why I keep the part-baked baguettes in... this time four rolls.

Vacuum packed they sit there for 2 months before the "best before" date - and as that's a flexible date I've even cooked them after 3 months.

Once opened, you've a choice of freezing the ones you didn't cook, or cook the whole packet and freeze the 2nd portion if you must. I tend to cook the lot, then put what I didn't eat into a plastic lidded box for up to 2 days... I'm sure they'd be fine after 3 though.

I always look at these things in the shop and I think that for price/size Lidl, then Aldi, give you a good portion for about 39p. Other shops seem to have smaller ones a bit pricier.

That's two baguettes, or four rolls, for 39p.... to make them crustier just splash them under a tap before you shove in the oven. In a toaster oven you don't even need to pre-heat, just lob them in, 12 minutes, done.

Also, handily - I find that one baguette, cut in half precisely, fits exactly into the takeaway plastic boxes! Or one cut half, filled with filling, fits in. Easy to make packed lunches or just to keep them until you use them. I like things that "just fit".

I've got a baking dish whose length matches those takeaway boxes too - so when I cook in that, the leftovers get put easily straight in without faffing. Did that with the brussels/mash leftovers the other day.

I don't like crusty loaves/rolls, they hurt the roof of your mouth and bits drop everywhere

caronc

Veggie options in works canteens can be deplorable. In one of the sites I worked in the canteen food was actually pretty decent taste-wise but the veggie choice ran- Mon- Macaroni Cheese, Tues - Pasta in cheese sauce with broccoli and/or cauliflower, Weds - Cauliflower cheese, Thurs - Veggie curry (usually cauliflower!!), Fri- veggie breaded patty thing (quite often including cauliflower and cheese), repeated week in week out. I think they must have prepped a big vat of cauliflower, cheese sauce and pasta at the beginning of the week and just used that in marginally different ways thereafter.:eek:
Nelski glad to see Fish Pie won through hope you have a lovely afternoon:)
PN- yes the part-baked rolls etc. are really handy and as you say pretty long lasting and taste just fine:) I've a pack of 2 baguettes in to make garlic bread on Friday for the "girls" coming over

PasturesNew

It wouldn't be hard for a canteen to do more/varied veggie meals, just using 1970s thinking/recipes.

e.g. what's so hard about a 2nd veggie option of: quorn/chilli & rice, quorn/cottage pie, veggie cottage pie, vegetable pie, cheese/potato pie, cheese/onion quiche, tomato & onion flan, nut roasts, spicy bean burger, veggie curry, egg curry, potato curry, spanish rice without meat.

Also, rethink dish presentation - instead of having stuffed peppers, have halves of pepper baked, topped with a big scoop of the filling... so those who dislike peppers can just point to the rice and say "just that bit please".

Or even side dishes available as the main dish - e.g. make firm gratin dishes of cauliflower cheese, potato/cauliflower gratin, etc - and serve one scoop as a side dish, or a generous 2.5 scoops for a main veggie option. Ditto with potato based cakes, which could be a side portion or a main, eg spicy onion potato cakes, bubble and squeak cakes.

They could run those 2-3x a week using only the vegetables section for serving area.

Nobody's asking them to re-skill and learn anything "new", just think a bit ... and once they've got the list of simple dishes, it's job done.

Run a brainstorming session with veggie customers to throw in "how veggies think" and what they'd like.

iammumtoone

Thinking about it I don't think my works canteen does a vegetarian option :eek: I am eating from there all next week so will take more notice I cam sure there was nothing veggie last week (if there was I would have probably choose it - I eat meat but equally enjoy food without it)

95% at my work are EU nationals I wonder if its a culture thing and vegetarianism is not so popular in their home counties. I shall be asking them about this on Monday.

PasturesNew

iammumtoone wrote: »

... I wonder if its a culture thing and vegetarianism is not so popular in their home counties....

A lot of other countries are mostly vegetarian, but once they get a bit of money it's meat, meat, meat. So maybe, to them, eating meat means they've "made it" - and only peasants would eat veggies.

When Brits eat in those countries on holiday - or here in restaurants - what's produced has been altered to meet the Brits' expectation of meat dishes.

PasturesNew

I find the problem is choice. I'm sitting here wondering what to make for lunch. I could make anything. I can go out and buy anything. I can do anything.

But first I'd have to choose .... then I'd have to make it. To much choice... too many great foods you COULD eat.

Also, a lot of recipes rely on there being 4-5 pieces. e.g. meat, 2 veg, potatoes; curry, rice, naan. Eating for one I tend to end up just eating ONE item because adding in the extra stuff is just "extra faff".

e.g. if I buy a meat pie I might just end up eating that alone.

Then there's presentation issues.

A good shepherd's pie is: mince, topped with mash, maybe some cheese, mash on meat, grill/oven to brown.

Zero presentation is: plonk the mince on a plate with the mash alongside.

There's usually no point in taking the extra 15-20 minutes to top/brown it off and generate another dish in the washing up pile.

I think today I'll do Yorkshires ... with veggies and gravy. And some instant mash on the side as I've run out of real potatoes and don't want to commit to buying a replacement bag yet, I need a "potato rest". I'll see what frozen Xmas veg I've got.... brussels for sure... mixed veg bags, broccoli and cauli are in there. And might as well toss a bit of onion into it, to make onion gravy. So ... I might as well add some stuffing in there too....

That's sorted then: Yorkshire pudding with onion gravy, stuffing, brussels, carrots, peas, green beans and mash.

LameWolf

Nelski wrote: »

Meal plans and me don't get on I'm afraid..I never manage to stick to them or just don't fancy them on the day so I will pass but it will be interesting to see other peoples ...I do like a nosy the other threads on OS with everyones meal plans on

I do sort of meal plan, but always with the option of switching days around, if it's a "complicated" meal on a day when I'm feeling very unwell, if that makes sense.

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

I've found that even the most "hard core" meat-eaters can and will eat vegetarian food.
But a vegetarian can't/won't eat meat choices.

Aye, this is true - and if you're at a free-for-all type buffet, unless you're a veggie with sharp elbows, what tends to happen is by the time you get to the buffet table, the meat-eaters have snaffled all the veggie food because "that looks interesting, let's give it a try".

Am I the only person who never has take-away, and who actively dislikes eating out, btw?

caronc

LW - completely get the swapping things around if unwell (have to do that myself if I'm having a particularly off balance day) but I am finding a plan is helping me to be a bit more varied in my meals. I'm not particularly keen on takeways apart from the local Indian restaurant's pakora but do like eating out from time to time
PN - I love shepherd's or cottage pie so don't mind the extra effort (crunchy bits on the top make extra washing up worth it to me), mince with mash (mince "n" tatties) on the side is something I think of a completely different dish very enjoyable but not the same. Your meal sounds lovely anything with onion gravy always gets my vote.
Son has now headed back to Newcastle taking the remains of the trifle with him so solves that as a leftover. Between him and having guests on Friday I'm going to need some more fresh stuff so will need to get that sorted out in a few days