COOKING FOR JUST ME: Cooking for one can still be fun

When my last child was finally out of the nest I found preparing meals was more of a chore and I was wasting a lot of food because I didn’t seem to know how to cook small.  No one likes to eat the same thing for a week and so I wasn’t eating as healthy as I should.  I began turning to fast foods and pre-packaged meals and I gained weight and didn’t feel as well.  I was eating a lot of additives and preservatives and just plain junk my body wasn’t used to and didn’t need and shouldn’t have.

Finally after about a year of this I decided I was doing it all wrong and got back to basics.  I decided that two or three times a month I’d have a cooking day, make my own healthier pre-packaged, individual meals, just the way I like them.  Most meals will freeze well if properly packaged for three or four months or longer.  Not only would I have the meals I enjoy most and from my own favorite recipes I would save a lot of money.  I have found this is to be a very economical practice now that I am living on a fixed income.   

Pre-packaged meals bought at your local super market can get expensive and they aren’t always made the way I like them.  It seems to me that they are all over seasoned or under seasoned and 99.9% of them contain way too much sodium, sugar And other preservatives for anyone who cares about a healthy diet. 

I enjoy casseroles and have a particular fondness for lasagna but to make a pan of lasagna seems like a lot of work with a lot left over that ends up going to waste now that I no longer am cooking for my family with them all out of the nest and on their own.  It took me awhile to learn but eventually I learned that cooking for one can still be fun and I can still have the nutritious and flavorful meals I love best.  I have included my layered lasagna recipe with this article and I hope you will enjoy it.

This lasagna recipe serves me well when having a cooking day and making up easy meals I can freeze for later use.  Cooking for one isn’t always easy and you need to think and plan ahead but when you cook up meals you can freeze you can still have a variety of dishes so dinner is never boring and you eat healthier.  I often cook casseroles like the following recipe for layered lasagna and then freeze it in individual servings I can thaw and heat up later.  Just wrap it in foil, shiny side in and reheat in your oven or zap it in your microwave, minus the foil of course.  Just cover it in a microwave safe wrap and zap it for a couple of minutes or until hot.

Layered lasagna goes a long way if I do happen to have guest or can be cut into individual servings and freezes well.

This is really tasty and a simple lasagna to make.  Here is how to make it:

LAYERED LASAGNA

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Light brush inside of lasagna pan with a little olive oil and set aside

You will need 1 32oz can or jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce and a

package of shredded Mozzarella cheese

Cook one 8 oz pkg. Lasagna noodles until just softened according to directions; drain and rinse with

cold water to prevent sticking.

In a large fry pan sauté in 2 Tbsp. olive oil over med-high heat

2 cloves garlic minced

1 small onion diced

1 1/2 cups fresh spinach or kale chopped (or 1 10oz pkg. frozen, thawed and drained)

1 cup diced zucchini or summer squash

1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped

1 carrot grated

1 stalk celery chopped fine

1 1/2 tsps. Italian seasoning

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black ground pepper

As soon as onion starts to turn transparent

Add

1 pound ground chuck beef (80 % lean or better) broken up loosely

You can use half beef and half sweet sausage or other ground meat if you want to but I prefer just using the beef only.

Mix gently to combine

As soon as the meat is browned reduce heat to low

Add and mix well

1 10.5 oz can condensed cream of mushroom soup

1/2 soup can hot water

1 8 oz pkg. cream cheese

1 1/2 cups small curd cottage cheese

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese or the grated 4 cheese blend (I prefer using the blended cheese for its unique flavor.)

Mix well and stir in 1 egg plus 3 Tbsp. water beaten

Continue stirring until mixture begins to simmer. Remove from heat and allow to cool about 7 to 10 minutes.  Stir.

Layer in prepared lasagna pan in this order

Spaghetti sauce (about one cup)

4 Noodles placed length wise in pan

Meat mixture

Spaghetti sauce, noodles, meat, etc until all is in the pan. You should

have about 1 cup spaghetti sauce to spread over the top.  Sprinkle top

liberally with shredded mozzarella cheese and cover.  Bake 30 minutes

covered.  Remove cover and continue baking for another 10 to 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and allow to cool 8-10 minutes before serving.  Cut

into squares and serve with a tossed green salad and crusty bread.  For dessert I’m serving slices of pound cake topped with a blueberry sauce and a dab of whipped cream for garnish but you can have whatever you like.