just because you live alone

and feel like you can't be bothered, doesn't mean you should start living on toast and coffee, or cups of tea and biscuits.

Cooking a whole meal every night can be a hassle, when there's only one, but you don't have to cook every single night.
Freezer foods are the answer.
Single portions, frozen in suitable containers, to be thawed and reheated.

Choose a day (or a weekend) when you know you are going to be home all day and have nothing else planned and get cooking.

Make a pot roast,

take a little for your dinner, then slice or shred the rest and put single serves into freezer containers for future meals. Divvy up (and freeze), the cooking liquid likewise, keeping enough to make into gravy for the meat portion you're eating tonight.
A blade roast about 1-1 1/2 kg should give you 3-4-5 meals depending on your appetite.

Buy packets of filled pasta such as ravioli in sizes that serve four,

my favourite is the spinach and ricotta,



separate it into four equal serves and freeze.
Buy (and heat) a jar of spaghetti sauce, jazz it up with added extras, (extra garlic, extra mushrooms, extra whatever you like), divide it into four portions, to go with the four raviolis, and freeze.

If you fancy a tuna mornay, make individual ones, eat one and freeze the others. Well covered of course. Reheat thoroughly after thawing.

Stir fry some spring onions and shredded carrots,


Add some shredded ginger, a small can of tuna, (drained), a little soy sauce,

then half to one cup of cooked rice. Eat half and keep half for the next day's lunch.
Naturally you don't have to be cooking all these things in one day or even one weekend, but if you choose a day a week for cooking and freezing, you'll soon have a variety of meal choices in your freezer.
Simply choose one each morning to thaw ready to be reheated for your dinner.
There are many other options. Make pots of soups and freeze, by frozen pizzas, add your favourite extra toppings, bake the pizza then wrap and freeze half for another day. Ready made frozen dinners are another option, Lean Cuisine make a good range.
None of these things will keep for extended periods of time, but you should be able to eat from your freezer for several days or a couple of weeks before having another big cook-up.
Of course you can have a night with scrambled eggs on toast, get a takeaway from a restaurant, have a fish'n'chip night.

In hotter weather, a fruit platter is a great option, add salad ingredients such as cucumber and tomato, a hard boiled egg for protein and most of your nutritional needs are covered.

In these days of ever rising prices, fruits and vegetables are still relatively cheap, and better for you than tea and biscuits. Mmmm, grapes....bananas....apples....

Comments

  1. Girl you are organized.... it all looks so darn good.

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  2. I've been cooking and freezing the same way as you since i've been single, its the only way to go. I'm going to try the spinach and ricotta ravioli adding a jar of garden vegetable pasta sauce :-).

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  3. Delores; now and again I fall into the sandwich and cup of coffee habit, but it doesn't last long before I need real food and start cooking.

    Windsmoke; you'll find the raviolis have different names according to the shape and what's in them. The spinach and ricotta is half moon shaped and called agnolotti.

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  4. We have two separate diets in this house - three at the moment so I have been cooking like that for a while. It makes a huge difference to be able to reach into the freezer and pull out a tasty meal with no cooking required.

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  5. All of that food looks so delicious. That fruit plate at the end made my mouth water so I went and grabbed a handful of grapes. Yum!

    I always say that if I lived alone, I wouldn't cook but I know that isn't true. I enjoy a good meal, good nutritous food, and the act of preparing a meal can be very creative and enjoyable. Lovely post.

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  6. EC; a freezer full of tasty meals is such a big help when getting home tired from work.

    Jenn June; welcome to drifting.
    I love quick and easy fruit platters on hot days. On cold days it's great to reach into the freezer and microwave a quick bowl of veggie soup.

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  7. Great strategy for sure! But you see, the one problem I have, is I got distracted back there in the middle and all I can think about is that Tuna Morney pie thingy!! ;)

    OMG yum.

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  8. Melissa; tuna mornay is delicious warming comfort food.

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  9. You are the most ambitious woman. Yes, a good meal is always in order, even when living alone. I've been doing stir-fry every day. I make a big batch in the AM and have enough for dinner, too. I always vary the veggies so I never get tired of it.

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  10. All the food looks yummy. When I was living alone, I survived on milk and cereal for breakfast and dinner. Buy lunch. Good for the weight though - went all the way down to 45kg. hmmmm, maybe I should try that again - cereal for dinner!

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  11. Manzanita; there's many times when I get home later than I'd like and I'm too tired to bother, that's when the frozen portions come in so handy.

    drb; cereal for dinner is fine, as long as you get protein and fibre in other meals such as lunch. a veggie sub from subway would cover that. Add cheese and some kind of meat and all the food bases are covered.

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