Grandma and her boys

Sunday 16 October 2011

Very industrious.....


Since living on my own I am getting  very good at cooking for one ... I managed to get down from 4 to 2 when Kids flew the nest .... and now I  am alone and I have to go from 2 to 1.
It is not easy ( as I am sure many will vouch for me on this )  but I have worked it out okay ( only taken 2 years) trouble is you see it's teaching old dogs new tricks that can be tricky.
I know of many people on their own who do not cook at all ...bar the odd  egg or two or beans on toast or tin of soup.

Every now and again I have a Cook In Day I make either  a beef casserole, a Chicken one , and may be a veg one and a chilli con carne.... each one of these I make for 4 portions.... I have collected take away plastic containers and I freeze them in single portions .... I then take one and defrost  then add cooked potatoes or a dumpling  or rice  what ever the dish calls for etc.....and there you have a hearty meal in minutes when you are tired and can't be bothered.....

Today I  have done the Beef casserole 3 portions for the freezer and one portion for dinner tonight of course and a fresh pizza sauce ready for the week ahead..

Beef Casserole just follow your favorite one but make sure it has plenty of gravy so you can add to each container.


I do a good line in pizza sauce which I keep in container in the fridge... this is very useful at lunch time or when hunger pangs strike .... and so much nicer than the bought stuff. A snack will take just 2 or 3 minutes to produce I also keep small  size pitta breads in the freezer I split them from the 8  packet into 4 x 2 breads in zip lock bags and freeze. They will defrost when they are toasted.


I also keep ready grated mozzarella cheese in freezer ....  you can't have a pizza with out the mozzarella ( I shake it up now and again when I go to the freezer to keep it loose)
 I can then just take out just as much as I need for a pizza.

Simplest Pizza Sauce in the world.....

Chop an onion  and fry ( but do not brown) also garlic if you wish but optional
Add a tin of chopped tomatoes
a teaspoon of sugar and any herbs you like ....  ( you need the sugar believe me it makes tomatoes taste perfect)
simmer until sauce thickens stirring on occasions 
once thickened add seasoning  ( remember it thickens on cooling also) ...

Cool put in a plastic container with tight fitting lid ..... in coolest part of the fridge it  will keep for a good week or more and come to no harm .... give it a stir each time you remove some..
Take a pitta bread and lightly toast it ... but not crisp ... large spoon of sauce on top and sprinkle with cheese and anything else you wish ...grill for a few minutes till cheese melts. Ummmmm!!
You can also use a thick crusty bread or french stick they both work as well.

 It beats the proverbial cheese or ham sandwich lunch.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

sounds yummy Laurie,well done

Nancy J said...

Wow to you!!! When I am home on my own, and that is hardly ever, I can manage on yoghurt and fruit, and think it is wonderful to not think about PROPER meals.But if it was every day,I would need to be sensible.Great idea to do lots and freeze,I love the idea.hope the rest of the school hols went well.Cheers from Jean

Fiona said...

you are right about home cooked being so much nicer.... your pizza sauce sounds lovely... I bet it is nice with pasta too... (which is my weakness)
Hugz

sunny said...

Your pizza sounds delish! When I lived alone, I usually made a nice big dinner on Sunday, and then ate leftovers for as many days as I could. Now I have a hubby who does not like leftovers, except for one lunch the following day. So I usually freeze some things for later use. It seems pointless to just try to cook one portion!

Bee Jay said...

Good for you Laurie - all sound delish! Blessings!

Ann said...

Good for you, I know when Graham isn't here I don't eat properly.