How to Cook for One

It is hard to find recipes with ingredients to feed only one person. Despite this fact, we are seeing more and more recipe books and Internet websites that are dedicated to the act of cooking for one. Divorce and the death of spouses or grown children leaving for college are all reasons that someone accustomed to cooking for more than one would suddenly need to learn how to adjust all the cooking practices utilized before into a streamlined plan of cooking that is more efficient for one person creating less waste.

The mission, should you choose to accept it, is to make cooking for one a challenge rather than a trial. Use this opportunity to try new and exciting cuisines. Perhaps one of the greatest things about cooking for one is the fact that it isn't quite as expensive as cooking for two. This means that you have a little more money in the grocery budget with which to plan and prepare your meals.

One thing you may want to keep in mind however is that when cooking for one, if you prepare foods that are freezable. It may save more time (and in the end money) if you cook the full 2-4 servings that most recipes call for and freeze the leftovers in single serving portions for a later point in time. This leaves you with a freezer full of foods for those nights when the thought of cooking just seems beyond your capabilities. This also leaves you with doing the work once and enjoying the fruits of your efforts many times over. This is a great position to be in if you ask me.

We are finding more and more recipes and cookbooks that are designed around the concept of cooking for one. No matter what situation placed you in the position of cooking for one, there is no reason that you shouldn't enjoy great food that is exciting and pleasant simply because you are dining alone. There is no harm in enjoying a fabulous meal with a glass of wine and great music whether you are cooking for one or one hundred.

Remember you are what you eat and if you relegate yourself to boring meals that lack excitement and spice that is what you will become. However if you decide to reach out and try new and exciting dishes with every meal you prepare when cooking for one, it will show in the way you embrace life in other areas as well. While we should not live to eat, we should also not limit ourselves to eating to live. Enjoy the foods you prepare whether the portions are large or small in size.

If you do not want to invest heavily in cookbooks that relate to cooking for one, it is quite possible that your local public library will have a few from which you can find some excellent recipes tips and resources. While you are there be sure to check out their selection of exotic food cookbooks in order to spice things up a bit. You never know what treasures you may discover on the shelves or your local library. You may even find local resources on classes that center on the idea of cooking for one. But if you don't have success at the library just search online and take your pick from thousands of recipes.


 

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Great Gluten-Free Brownie Recipes

If you're finding yourself in need of switching to a gluten free diet – if you've just discovered you suffer from celiac disease, for instance – you're probably wondering how in the world you can still enjoy the finer things in life. But you shouldn't worry – in addition to many different gluten-free pasta and cake recipes out there, there are quite a few delicious gluten free brownie recipes available, too!

Gluten Free Brownie Recipe

To make this brownie recipe, you'll need:

4 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup cold water
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup rice flour
4 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons shelled hemp seeds
2 tablespoons walnuts
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Now for the preparation: preheat the oven to 350 F. Melt the butter and combine it with the water, vanilla and sugar. Then, add the rice flour, the cocoa powder, the baking powder, nuts and chocolate chips. Make sure to mix thoroughly. Before you transfer it to the pan, coat it with non-stick spray. Then pour. Bake for 20 minutes, and viola – the perfect gluten free brownie recipe.

If you're more of a chocolate fiend, this next gluten free brownie recipe is for you.

Gluten Free Chocolate Brownie Bite Recipe

To make this delicious treat for your chocolate-loving friends, you'll need:

3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 ounce garbanzo flour
1 ounce fava bean flour
2 ounces sorghum flour
2 ounces flax seed meal
2 ounces tapioca flour
1/4 teaspoon iodized salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
4 ounces unsalted butter
4 ounces unsweetened applesauce
2 ounces raw organic sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

First, stir all of your dry ingredients together. Melt the sugar, butter and applesauce together over low heat. Cream together the eggs and the vanilla. Add the sugar, butter and applesauce to that mix. Next add in all the sifted ingredients. Pour the batter into mini-muffin pans – that will give you a nice bite-sized brownie. Bake at 325 degrees for around 14 minutes, and you have a delicious recipe for yummy gluten free brownies.

Having to cut gluten out of your diet doesn't mean you can't enjoy treats once in awhile. If neither of these gluten free brownie recipes appeal to you, try searching for others or even inventing their own – there are plenty of alternatives out there and you're bound to enjoy some of them!


 

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Why The Raw Food Diet?

Because cooking takes so many nutrients and vitamins OUT of food, you automatically start feeding your body what it needs when you stop cooking food and start eating uncooked, nutrient-rich foods. A raw carrot has exponentially more nutrition than a cooked carrot.

Cooking also alters the chemistry of foods, often making them harder to digest. Why do we have so many digestive problems in this country? Because we're putting foods into our bodies in a form that we weren't designed to absorb. High fiber, high water content fresh produce abolishes constipation of the bowels, cells and circulatory system. Obstructions are cleared and blood flow increases to each and every cell in the body. Enhanced blood flow is significant for two reasons: as mentioned above, blood delivers nutrients and oxygen to living cells, and carries away their toxic metabolites.

Obesity is endemic in this country. The diet industry is more profitable than the oil companies. Why? Because the way we eat and prepare our food practically guarantees that we'll overeat. Psychologists tell us that we overeat because our souls are hungry. But in reality, our bodies are hungry, even though we may feel full. When you start giving your body the nutrients it craves, overeating will cease.

Eating raw foods is a boost to your metabolism as well. It takes a little more energy to digest raw foods, but it's a healthy process. Rather than spending energy to rid itself of toxins produced by cooking food, the body uses its energy to feed every cell, sending vitamins, fluids, enzymes and oxygen to make your body the efficient machine it was intended to be.

You'll naturally stop overeating, because your body and brain will no longer be starving for the nutrients they need. A starving brain will trigger the thoughts that make you overeat. The brain and the rest of your body don't need quantity; they need quality.


 

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Know How To Cook Healthy Meals For Your Family?

Do you have trouble know how to cook healthy meals for your family? The good news is that there are recipes that are very healthy but the healthy nature of these recipes is somewhat disguised. What they do not know in these instances truly should not bring harm their way (outside of allergies, which should never be ignored).

Healthy cooking is often difficult as most of us do not want to spend time planning and preparing meals that our families refuse to eat. At the same time, we want our families to be healthy so we feel compelled to learn new and improved ways of cooking healthy foods for our family to enjoy (and unfortunately in some cases scorn).

With weight and nutrition being known as the culprit in so many health conditions it is impossible to ignore the importance of not only eating healthy ourselves but also of teaching our children the importance of eating healthy. One way to insure that your loved ones are in fact eating healthy is to make sure that you are cooking healthy and nutritious foods for them. This does not mean that you cannot enjoy the occasional calorie splurge or even that you shouldn't. The key to cooking healthy is learning to control portions and understanding the importance of moderation.

For those that are hoping to incorporate healthy cooking habits into their daily routines, there are no more resources available than ever before in order to assist you in those endeavors. You can seek the services of a professional nutritionist, your doctor can offer advice, you can find all kinds of books on healthy eating, cooking, and living at your local library, and the Internet is an outstanding source of all kinds of information when it comes to leading a healthier lifestyle all around.

There are many books and magazines that are filled with recipes that encourage healthy cooking and eating habits. If you truly love to cook, then there is no shortage of recipes that you can try out along the way. The really good news is that you can incorporate healthy cooking into your cooking routine whether you are cooking for one or a household of ten.

There are many that will argue that cooking healthy food costs more than cooking the prepackaged foods that pack on the calories and additives. The truth of the matter is that when you compare the costs with the medical bills of the future for failing to do so, they seem rather slight by comparison. Yes, good food costs more money. In many cases, that is a simple fact of life. However, by learning portion control and eating the proper portions you just may discover that you are actually spending less as you adjust to the proper amounts of food you should be consuming in order to maintain a healthy and active lifestyle.

Cooking healthy isn't an overnight change; it is a lifestyle change that should be implemented one step at a time. You do not have to go into your kitchen and through out every little thing that you deem 'unhealthy' only work to not buy more of these items once they've been used. Make wiser decisions when purchasing fats for food preparation and you will discover that you've made a vitally important step in the process of incorporating healthy cooking and eating habits in your home.

It's those small steps you take towards your goal of cooking healthy foods for your family that will matter far more than any giant leap. Before you know it you will find that you all have more energy and a better sense of overall health than you would have imagined before changing your cooking habits. The healthier your meals, the more likely your whole family are to maintain a healthy body weight.


 

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What is the Raw Food Diet?

Have you started hearing about the Raw Food Diet? It's gaining popularity and buzz, not just as a diet to lose weight, but a diet for a long and healthy life. We eat so much in the way of processed food that we don't even stop to think about what we're putting into our bodies, and how far we've come nutritionally from our ancestral, agrarian roots.

A raw food diet means consuming food in its natural, unprocessed form. There are several common-sense rationales for why this is a good idea. Processing and cooking food can take so much of the basic nutritional value away. Think of some of the conventional wisdom you've heard about for years, such as: If you cook pasta just to the al dente (or medium) stage, it will have more calories, yes, but it will have more the nutritional value in it than if you cooked it to a well-done stage. Or you probably remember hearing not to peel carrots or potatoes too deeply, because most of the nutrients and values are just under the surface.

The raw food diet means eating unprocessed, uncooked, organic, whole foods, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, dried fruits, seaweeds, etc. It means a diet that is at least 75% uncooked! Cooking takes out flavor and nutrition from vegetables and fruits. A raw food diet means eating more the way our ancient ancestors did.

Our healthier, more fit ancestors. They cooked very little, and certainly didn't cook or process fruits and vegetables. They ate them RAW. Their water wasn't from a tap; it was natural, spring water. Maybe they drank some coconut milk on occasion.

Doesn't it just make sense that this is how our bodies were meant to eat? It's a way of eating that's in harmony with the planet and in harmony with our own metabolisms. Our bodies were meant to work, and need to work to be efficient. That means exercise, certainly, but it also means eating natural, raw foods that require more energy to digest them.


 

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