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Cooking for Two

Yeah, I'm still cooking, and I'm still writing about it. Just so you know in case you hate this kind of thing, so you can come back next week when I've got other things on my mind.

My house has been empty of children for months now, and I'm still trying to figure out how to cook for two. Often, I find I cook for three and have the leftovers for lunch. I'm OK with that, but sometimes I find I've got stuff to use over and over again.

Earlier this week, I grilled two steaks and served them with leek tarts. I only made two single-serving tarts because they aren't good the next day, but that meant I had a ton of diced leek leftover. That stuff goes a long way, you know, so I stored the bag in the fridge, and now I feel obligated to keep using it.

I've decided to use it in place of onions, so on Monday, leeks went in with the sliced zucchini that was baked in cedar papers. Yesterday, leeks went in with the sautéed zucchini with Havarti cheese. Tonight, what's left will go into a frittata.

Speaking of zucchini, I bought two medium-sized organic zucchinis on Sunday, and they seem to be reproducing in the produce drawer. As I mentioned, I sliced them in sticks Monday and bundled them in cedar papers for roasting. Yesterday, I grated a cup's worth and mixed them in a carrot cake, and I still had plenty left over to slice up and serve with roasted pork later that night. I won't be putting zucchini in the frittata.

Yeah, so I made this carrot cake, just an 8x8 single-layer cake, and who's going to eat it? Even if husband and I each have a reasonable serving every day, we'll still have cake left by the weekend. By then, it will be dry and inedible, and even the cats won't want to lick the icing.

I know you can freeze leftovers or even fresh veggies, but that never works for me. Really, when I put something in the freezer, what I'm really doing is postponing throwing it in the garbage. So, I'm working on cooking for two and shopping for two and not having to eat the same thing every night. That never seemed to be a problem for my mother who, when I was growing up, would reheat leftovers every single night until the last crusty bit from the bowl was eaten, and God help the complainer. I don't think we can do that without retching or dreading mealtime, so I'll have to come up with another way.

Comments

kyle@sift said…
You can always invite friends over for lunch! They'll never know it is leftovers.
dive said…
I can never get enough cookery posts, Robyn, especially not posts that include leek tart, courgettes (hee hee) and carrot cake.
Mouthwatering!
I'm often cooking for two or three. I use the freezer a lot! I still cook casseroles for the 5000 and just bung the rest in the freezer when it's cooled. It means you've then got meals which you only need to heat up on another occasion. Cakes, the same. Often I chop a cake in half and put the other, wrapped in cellophane in the freezer. I make cheesecakes two at a time and freeze those too. My freezer is full of home cooked stuff, I reckon this is your way round it.
I recently did the same at my parents' and they are currently pulling this and that surprises out of their freezer! How many times have I said freezer in this? I'm glad this isn't an article. lol.
Erm,,, you didn't reply to your comments. What's granola?
Scout said…
Kyle, good point.

Dive, spring food is nice.

Lynn, I really should figure out how to use my freezer.

And granola is like mueslix, but it isn't a bar—it's like a cereal.
Oh ok - YUM!

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