Cooking Solo

Cooking for one can be both liberating and depressing. Because there is no one else to impress but yourself, the pressure is less than when cooking for a large group. Also, with only your taste buds to satisfy, you don't have to worry about catering to picky eaters or special diets. But at the same time, cooking for one can be lonely. One of the main reasons I love to cook is to nourish and (hopefully) bring joy to others. Personally, I never find a meal as exciting when you have no one else to share or express it with.

Going solo in the kitchen has always been a challenge for me. I can never seem to get the portions right when cooking from a recipe. I like to use fresh vegetables and herbs, but these often go to waste when a recipe only calls for a tablespoon of chopped basil, and you don't need a whole head of broccoli to feed yourself. By the time dinner rolls around I usually think, "What's the point in putting so much time into a nice dinner if it's only for me?"; and I wind up making something boringly simple: stirfry, an omelette, or worse, a frozen dinner.

But now that I have devoted myself to this food blog and moved to New York in hopes to pursue a career in food, I figured it is time to stop making excuses. For someone who claims to love food and cooking as much as I do, one would think I'd jump at the chance to cook anything, whether it be for a Thanksgiving feast or my solo self.

To prepare myself for this cooking challenge I invested in a new cookbook: "Table for One: Perfectly Portioned Meals for the Single Cook" by Camille Funk. The attractive photos, organized layout, and helpful planning tools won me over on this title. In each recipe Funk highlights the perishable ingredients, and in the back of the book, lists all of the recipes that contain each perishable item, so that you can plan your meals for the week accordingly. For example, if you want to make a meal that contains asparagas, but you only need a few spears, you can look up what other recipes need asparagas and cook those later in the week--extra asparagas saved!

Before food shopping this week, I chose 3 recipes from this book, which I plan to make for dinner this week, and then did my shopping as needed. My choices for the week are:

1. Chicken Curry--this recipe uses mostly pantry items, such as curry powder, nutmeg, honey, and dijon mustard. So the only fresh ingredient I had to buy was the chicken.

2. Tomato-Basil Chicken--I can use the extra tomato, mozzerella cheese, and fresh basil to make a caprese sandwich or salad for lunch.

3. Mushroom Fettucine--this also used many ingredients that I already had on hand. The extra mushrooms and asparagas I can saute to have with the curry chicken or tomato-basil chicken on another night.

After coming home from my internship in the pouring rain, I decided I was in the mood for something hearty and comforting...the mushroom fettucine it was!

The dish was very easy to make; it took only about 25 minutes from start to finish. I was surprised at how luxurious the meal tasted for something so simple. The sauce was rich and creamy, without being too heavy; and the dijon mustard gave it a nice kick and depth of flavor. The mushrooms added a good meatiness, while the asparagas served for a little refreshing crunch. Overall I was pleased not only with how delicious the meal tasted, but also with my efforts to rise up against my solo-cooking phobia. Afterwards, I felt accomplished and satisfied. Already, I'm starting to realize that making the extra effort to cook yourself a nice meal can be just as exciting as cooking for others.

Mushroom Fettucine (recipe courtesy of Camille Funk, author of "Table for One")

-4-6 oz. fettucine (I used whole wheat)

-1 tbsp flour

-1/2 cup milk

-1 tbsp heavy whipping cream (I substituted light cream)

-pinch salt and pepper

-1 tbsp dijon mustard

-2 tbsp butter

-1 tsp garlic, minced (I just minced a 1 small clove)

-1 tsp. fresh thyme (I substituted a dash of dried thyme)

-1 cup sliced mushrooms (I used cremini mushrooms. They have more flavor than plain button mushrooms)

-3-4 asparagas spears

1. Fill medium saucepan with water. Bring to boil. Add fettucine and cook until al dente. Drain and return to pot.

2. Melt 1 tbsp butter in saucepan. Add flour, milk, cream, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Stir for about 3 minutes until the sauce begins to thicken. Remove from heat and stir in the dijon mustard.

3. Heat remaining tbsp butter in another skillet. Add garlic, mushrooms, asparagas, and thyme. Saute over medium heat until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Toss together with sauce and pasta.