Healthy Eating for One

staffie1

splishsplash wrote: »

Breakfast: porridge (couple of minutes in the microwave). Give it life and variety with different toppings/mixes: peanut butter; berries; nuts; seeds; fruit, yogurt; granola etc.
Porridge takes a couple of minutes in the microwave, you can make it with water or milk.

Lunch: wraps; sandwiches; rice pots; soups; salads; leftover dinners.
Prep the evening before while your dinner cooks. If you make a pot of soup one evening or at the weekend, you could freeze individual portions.

Dinners can be as easy as you like. Sheet pan meals or dinners cooked 'en papillote' (in parchment paper) are probably the two easiest and quickest methods, and can be the healthiest.
Try Mealpreponfleek for sheet pan recipes.

Cooking chicken or fish dinners in parchment paper is simple - this video gives you the general idea. Just add whatever you want to eat and make a sealed envelope with baking paper (not waxed paper). I always add in spuds but you can cook rice or pasta separately if you prefer.
Main thing to remember is to season everything well or it can be a bit tasteless.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjDDUC8QvH8

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It's more difficult to recommend a cookbook - do you want it to focus more on techniques or recipes? What's your taste in food like? Budget? Have a look at 101 Square Meals - some nice recipes and information in there.

I would recommend using websites - step by step guides with video instruction makes the most difficult recipes simple.

Thank you! That is really useful. I am going to enjoy this! I do love good food, I just need to be more confident in what to buy and how to make it, so this will help me loads.

staffie1

BrassicWoman wrote: »

Delia Smith - one is fun

Now I do have that book - bought it years ago. I’ve had a go at a few things in there, but Delia does like her puddings and sweet stuff!

staffie1

wort wrote: »

I can't recommend a cook book as I tend to make enough for two then eat the second portion the next day or freeze a portion depending on what I make.
If you have freezer room batch cooking something is good as it's easy to pull something out to warm through when you get home from work. So you don't snack on rubbish.
I agree most meals can be cooked in 20 mins. I put potato and veg in one pan , then add a foil wrapped piece of salmon/fish later and it all cooks together.
I've heard people mention jack Monroe cooking on a bootstrap, she cooks cheap meal but I think she's now vegan but look for earlier recipe these are available on Internet. :beer:

Thanks I’ll look that one up.
Some great suggestions from you all - thank you.

bouicca21

Build your meal plan round the recommended 5 a day.

In keeping with Mr S's ox liver, I present you with more offal - last night's main dish - lambs' kidneys saut!ed with shallots, 1/2 a green pepper, spinach and broccoli, a couple of spoonfuls of plain goats' milk yogurt, a splash of manzanilla and some smoked paprika. Serve with noodles/fettuccine or similar. Delicious and takes about 10 minutes plus prep time in decoring the kidneys.

trailingspouse

You're absolutely right about supermarkets v local butchers etc. Unfortunately, where I live, we only have one butcher and the place just doesn't feel quite clean to me (the back of the shop, where they take the carcasses in, is a disgrace) - so I've got into the habit of just buying at the supermarkets. Forgot some people might have a better choice!!

Bigjenny

Another recommendation is "Nosh for Students" by Joy May

BrassicWoman

staffie1 wrote: »

Now I do have that book - bought it years ago. I’ve had a go at a few things in there, but Delia does like her puddings and sweet stuff!

She does Leah Lenneman's Vegan Cooking for One is a tad healthier but lots of people I know recoil in horror at the V word... personally I love her recipes!