Cooking for one

PasturesNew

caronc wrote: »

.... 15ft by 15ft....

That's not a kitchen, it's a small country
225 sq ft. Mine's 96; mine has big sq footage, but most is mid-room void... and one wall with a big window awaiting a table/chairs at some point (right size, shape, price).

caronc wrote: »

... kitchen/conservatory .... two glass walls
3 floor to 6ft 5 inch cupboards
fridge freezer,
bit of work top (2ft ish)
more work top
range style cooker,
bit more more worktop
sink/drainer,
more work top,
another corner with a bit more worktop
upright freezer.

6ft by 4ft island come breakfast bar.

So, only JUST room to toast a crumpet then

[Deleted User]

PN, I empathise about accumulating foodstuff, its a throwback to being children, when our parents saved averything, including string and wrapping paper, which was ironed to make it smooth. I remember the ration books, it is a comfort to have these dried foods in, not necessary but a comfort and I have much to much but am trying to run it down too

Food today will be like yesterday, I enjoyed every meal and didn`t feel any need to pick. That was either because I am being busy outside or because I am reading a book by Deepak Chopra called `hungry for what` it makes me realise that I am not hungry when I pick, it is a psychological need

moneyistooshorttomention

Livelongandprosper wrote: »

I totally get that as a single, a store is just more food that "needs to be eaten before I add to it". I would cut mine to the wire( I'd keep my herbs and spices) if I was once again cooking for one

It just struck me that maybe location to available money ratio comes into this.

Thankfully - money pressures are starting to ease a bit at last - though not out of the woods yet (ie financially straight). So - if I were still living in my home city then I don't think I'd be so concerned about keeping that much food in. The reason being there is a large selection of places to eat out and that includes quite a few choices of having a main meal at lunchtime out for around £5 or so. I'm rather a foodie and I experiment a lot within my food parameters and places to eat there "come and go" like no-one's business.

Living out in the sticks = it's a struggle to find somewhere I want to "eat out in" and places I would like come in dearer. I need to reckon on nearer to £10 than £5 to eat a "cheap lunch out" somewhere I'd like here - if I can find it...

So - the combination of "eating out choices" being dearer/much fewer and the worse weather here (ie I think about what the weather is doing before I go out here - instead of just automatically heading outdoors pretty much whenever I think I will) means I need to keep a much wider range of food in here.

So - in some parts of the country one does need to basically "have one's own restaurant" if at all foodie-minded. I'm having to learn to be a much better cook by necessity....

PasturesNew

I don't eat out. Eating out for one's traumatic at best. I once spent an entire evening trying to find an indian restaurant that would let me in. "Table for one?" I asked, from about 7pm when they were entirely empty .... up until 11pm when I finally found one that said "Yes". Many restaurants don't want you there... and will say "No" to a request for a table for one, even if they are empty.

And if you're there, what are you doing? Menu comes, you order, food comes, you eat, you leave. An overpriced 'experience'... just find a takeaway and shuffle off to your bedsit

I also don't have the budget for it.

I try to keep my daily food costs to £1, enabling me to "waste" money on my choccies and some fizzy pop.

I've just added up the cost of yesterday's food/drinks and it looks like about 30-35p for food.... 25p for sweeties ... 25p for fizzy pop. So still under £1.
Breakfast this morning cost me 35p, but I'm full, so it's like "a full meal".

Across a whole year I probably spend a maximum of £20 on takeaways/hot food out.

Hollyharvey

PasturesNew wrote: »

What... run out of oven chips???

No room in the freezers for any, so there is no point in buying them at the moment

PasturesNew

Hollyharvey wrote: »

No room in the freezers for any, so there is no point in buying them at the moment

I always had a bag, plus a back up, but since I've been trying to empty the freezer, in order to defrost it, I've denied myself them.
I've probably not had a bag in the house for 5-6 weeks now.
They do make for a "quick and easy" meal.

moneyistooshorttomention

PasturesNew wrote: »

I don't eat out. Eating out for one's traumatic at best. I once spent an entire evening trying to find an indian restaurant that would let me in. "Table for one?" I asked, from about 7pm when they were entirely empty .... up until 11pm when I finally found one that said "Yes". Many restaurants don't want you there... and will say "No" to a request for a table for one, even if they are empty.

And if you're there, what are you doing? Menu comes, you order, food comes, you eat, you leave. An overpriced 'experience'... just find a takeaway and shuffle off to your bedsit

.

Now will be weighing up how often I've ever been turned away from a cafe or restaurant....

Offhand - I can only think of one occasion ever. That was when a friend and I had found the sole reasonable eating place in a one-horse town place and decided to have dinner there. I think she asked for a table for us and we were refused - as told all tables reserved.

Otherwise - whether on my own or with company I just look round at those tables that DON'T have reserved signs on them, decide which one I want and walk confidently over to it and "make myself at home". I've never had a problem yet on my own. Don't know whether it's down to having approached the table in a confident/I'm used to this sorta way and they realise there will be questions as to why it's "unavailable" if they tell me that it is (starting with asking why it's apparently busy when there is no "reserved" sign there on it) and an air of "I'll soon be telling other people about this...." (and I would....) on the one hand.

Or, on the other hand, I've discovered the way to instantly have a smile appear on the face of nearest salesman when I walk into a kitchen/bathroom showroom is for them to spot my white hair (ie giver-away of agegroup) and then I turn round and they see I'm late middle-age (rather than elderly). At that point - you can see them mentally starting to count the cash and that helpful smile goes up on their face. My cynics take on that one being = mine is the agegroup that should be/often is financially straight and able to have what we want by now (they've got that one wrong with me then....but they're not to know that:cool:), followed by thinking "....and they're still young enough to figure it's worth buying things if they want them" (ie I doubt I'll be buying very much at all once I get to my 80's - as I'll probably be thinking "what's the point at my age?"

So I'm guessing that may translate into "Late middle age person walks into restaurant/cafe = they'll probably buy exactly what they want at their age" and they start mentally counting the cash.???

PasturesNew

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

...

It's not just me, but it's rarely spoken of... there have been some recent articles by journalists struggling to get a table.

Maybe they thought I was a hooker, single/female.
Maybe culturally they didn't want women dining alone.

You don't walk in and choose a table anywhere I go ... you step inside the door and wait until one comes trotting over to find out what you want.

If you Google it quite a few articles and tripadvisor posts come up where people have been refused service.

[Deleted User]

I have only eaten out by myself twice in two years, I just haven`t got the bottle for a posher restaurant, its not like me being in a nice place not far away from here, I can get a roast dinner for a fiver and just sit and look around at all the other singles. I eat and go. The other was a NT property, that was fine. I think other people were thinking I was brave but I was looking at those coping with difficult husbands, possible dementia and thinking that they must be finding life very difficult

I had to have toast and coffee just now, had been thinking of going out but traffic on a friday is no joke in a tourist area, so got cleaning because today I noticed things. I knew that would happen after giving my specs a darn good clean. Dusting skirtings, then noticed the stairs and the hand rail :eek: children evidence and grey grubbiness on the sides and at the top, I cannot believe I never noticed it before.

Oh yes also noticed the gravy spots on my white painted wall over the upstands at the back of the kitchen surface, near the hob. Got the paint out after much shoving, unwrapped all the tape and plastic all around, couldn`t find a stick, so used a knife to stir. Washed knife and was glad it easily came off, so was the right water based paint, put it on the spots and it was the wrong flaming colour, light beige. Washed it off quickly thanking lucky stars it was water based. Got the correct paint out and the gravy spots are still showing through, its going to take several coats, luckily the paint absorbs and there is no demarkation line. I can no longer be bothered washing a foam brush so am using disposable cotton buds

That is why I needed the coffee and toast, I cannot be doing with noticing stuff

PasturesNew

kittie wrote: »

.....noticed the gravy spots on my white painted wall ..... wrong flaming colour, light beige. Washed it off quickly...

I'd have just dabbed at it with circular motions and the corner of a microfibre cloth and either plain water, or some anti-bac spray.

Re colours: I've always been a believer in "white everywhere" because you can always buy it, it's cheap, you only have to have one tin kept, you never have to waste time choosing colours....

Having said that, when I moved in here the previous owners had painted the hallway/stairs a bit of an indistinguishable light green and the gloss and front door a green .... that I think might be Farrow/Ball colours. And I kind of like them, so I am considering having the whole living room painted those two colours when I have the wall removed.... but everywhere else/everything else will be white.