Single Servings: Tips Quick Reference

Meals to Scale

Each recipe on Allrecipes has a scaling tool that allows you to change the number of servings. (Handy, right?) You can find it next to the recipe photo--I highly recommend taking advantage of it.

A Couple Things to Keep in Mind

With the exception of the Prep and Freeze recipe, I intend for you to eat all the meals in one week, which is why prep is done on a Sunday night. If you don't plan to eat them all within seven days, adjust your prep accordingly. (Veggies may go bad if cut and stored for too long.)

Keep all meats frozen in individual servings until one or two days before you plan to cook them. And don't scrimp on the resealable bags--get the good ones--the generic variety aren't as good at keeping things fresh.

Secrets to the Single Serving

• The freezer is your friend! Keep it clean and organized so you don't lose track of anything in there--help it, help you.
• Get to know the bulk section of your grocery store. In addition to the usual stuff (granola, oats, nuts, etc.), you can also buy spices and often get away with spending mere pennies rather than five dollars on a full container of something. After all, we so rarely need half a cup of parsley flakes at any one time. Although, they're delicious heaped over ice cream. (I'm kidding. Don't do that.)
• Cozy up to the deli and the meat and seafood counter. Getting meats and cheeses from the in-store counters are often the same price or less expensive than pre-packaged versions, and you can get the exact amount you need.
  
  

Spice up the Organization

Now, remember in my first column I told you to make use of the bulk spices in your grocery store? Well, learn from my mistakes and make use of some cheap spice containers to store them in. A couple weeks ago I innocently opened up the cupboard where I keep my spices and it was like taking the wrong apple from the market--I reached for one and they all came tumbling down.

Guess what? A bunch of plastic bags with twisty-ties (that may or may not have the names of what's inside written on them) does not a spice rack make.

You can find empty spice containers at most kitchen supply stores--let's all invest in some and avoid being pummeled (lightly though it was) by little bags of ground flavors cascading out of an open cupboard.

Also pick up some removable tags from an office supply store to write the contents and date of purchase. Toss and replenish every six months.

Storing Leftover Wine

Want a glass of wine for dinner, but don't want to spoil a bottle by having it open for several days? These tips for storing wine come to you courtesy of our Allrecipes wine expert, Carl Hanson:

• Store wine in a simple mason jar to eliminate the amount of oxygen it comes in contact with.
• A water bottle also does the trick--if the wine doesn't fill the bottle completely, just squeeze as much air out as possible, then cap it.
• You can also purchase a vacuum pump--pop it right into the top of the wine bottle and pump out remaining oxygen.

Freezing Marinated Meats

There are a couple marinated dishes this month, so what should you do if you want everything prepped on Sunday, but don't want to over-marinate your meat? I'm so glad you asked:

• You can prepare marinades completely, add meat, then freeze.
• Pull individual portions out of the freezer the night before, then the meat will marinade as it defrosts.
• Cook as directed.

Preparing and Storing Fresh Herbs

Putting an entire bunch of parsley to use in mere days can be challenging, so here are some tips for increasing their lifespan.

Full disclosure: I'm totally cribbing this information from another article on Allrecipes.

• To prepare fresh herbs, submerge in water, then rinse and blot dry. Pick the leaves off of the stems, then tear, chop, or use whole. (The stems can be used for flavoring soup stocks.)
• Fresh herbs can be stored in the refrigerator for up to five days.
• For storage up to 10 days (depending on the type and freshness), place the bouquet of herbs, stem end down, in a tall glass and fill with cold water. Change the water every two days to maintain freshness.

Once and for All

I keep finding myself writing the same things when giving options for making the meals healthier, so I thought I'd just put them all together and sidestep that whole sounding like a broken record thing.

• Use low/non-fat and low-sodium versions of foods whenever you feel you can stealthily slip them past your taste buds. I, for instance, can't tell the difference between low-fat and regular sour cream, but try to give me non-fat milk in my latte, and we're going to have some problems. Make an effort to go healthier everywhere you can, but I say keep a few that feed your soul!
• Make sandwiches open-face. Of all the changes you could possibly make to the way you eat, this one really has very little impact on taste. If anything, it's just going to make the sandwich a little harder to eat--but, harder…more exciting…kinda the same thing, right?
  Cut the oil/butter. I find that most of the time, I can easily get away with using half to three quarters of what a recipe calls for, and I'd never have known the difference in the taste.
  
• Add veggies! Many recipes call for a modest amount of vegetables, but there's always room for more.

Keeping Veggies Fresh

Use this quick reference to make sure your veggies enjoy their maximum lifespan.

Store the following in an airtight container or resealable plastic bag in the crisper:

• Broccoli: up to 4 days
• Carrots: 2 to 4 weeks
• Celery: up to 1 week
• Cucumbers: up to 5 days
• Ginger: up to 3 weeks
• LeafyGreens: 7 to 10 days
• Mushrooms: up to 5 days (in their wrapped box or in a paper bag)
• Scallions: up to 1 week (wrapped loosely--trim roots just before using)

Tomatoes: (I know that technically tomatoes are a fruit, but you know what I'm going for here.) If fully ripe (dark red or orange and slightly soft), store in a cool spot (55 degrees Fahrenheit (13 degrees C)) for up to five days. If not ripe yet, store in a brown bag at room temperature for one to two days, until ripe.

Once sliced, put a folded paper towel over the cut end, then wrap in plastic or resealable bag and store in refrigerator.

Onions, Eggplant, Potatoes, and Squash: Store in a cool, dry place. Once an onion has been sliced, put a folded paper towel over the cut end, then wrap in plastic or resealable bag and store in refrigerator.

Organics: The "Dirty Dozen"

Have you ever heard of this? I hadn't until I started researching organic produce, but the "dirty dozen" refers to the items that you should either buy organic, or skip altogether. The U.S. Department of Agriculture found that even after washing them, these fruits and vegetables consistently carry much higher levels of pesticide residue than others.

For myself, I am trying to buy as much organic as possible, but it gets pricey. Hopefully this list will help you determine where your money will be best spent if you can't do a full organic shopping trip.

• Apples
• Cherries 
• Grapes, imported (Chili) 
• Nectarines 
• Peaches 
• Pears 
• Raspberries
• Strawberries
• Bell peppers 
• Celery 
• Potatoes 
• Spinach
  
  

Other produce items have less risk of pesticide residue:

• Bananas
• Kiwi 
• Mangos 
• Papaya 
• Pineapples 
• Asparagus 
• Avocado 
• Broccoli 
• Cauliflower 
• Corn 
• Onions 
• Peas

Here are a few more organic products that are worth it if you can swing it:

• Milk
• Beef
• Poultry

(Though I did read more than once pregnant women and children might be more susceptible to pesticides in the so-called "safer" items--it might be worth it to go completely organic in such cases.)

Customize Your Shopping List

Hypothetical situation: three of the dishes I've selected in this column sound great, but one doesn't strike your fancy. Such a pain--now you're going to have to create a new shopping list from scratch, right? Nope--not so!

You might or might not already know this, but you can add recipes to a shopping list to compile a list to include only the dishes you plan to make. It will even adjust amounts if you change the serving size. You do need to be an Allrecipes Member to use this tool, but it's free to sign up. You can sign up here.

Here's more tips about creating Shopping Lists.

Bookmark This Page

I've received emails from many of you asking where updates of this column can be found each month. Easy! You will always find the complete history of all columns here.

Click on 'Bookmark This Page' near the top left of the page to keep it in your favorites.

Prep Your Kitchen

It seems to happen every time I get home from the grocery store to begin cooking, and everytime I find myself irritated I've done it again. I have failed to get my kitchen ship-shape and ready for new food and cooking. No more!

Here are a few things you (and I) can do before heading to the grocery store to make coming home with fresh, pretty food a happy experience. (I always prefer happy to irritated, don't you?):

• Weed out your fridge. Ideally you are able to use all the food you've bought, but this doesn't always happen. Toss all the leftovers you never got around to eating and wipe out with a clean, damp cloth.
• De-clutter your kitchen counters. You try not to let it, but it's been building up over the week--it happens.
• Deal with the dishes. Whether that means loading or unloading the dishwasher, or washing them by hand, do it now--you'll be so happy you did when you get home. You're going to start accumulating dirties as soon as you start cooking, so it's best to start with a clean slate!
• Take out the garbage/recycling. I know, I hate it too, but it's just better to get the garbage out of the way.

And I say don't bother with the floor until after cooking. If you're anything like me, you're going to have to clean it again when you're done cooking anyway.

Options for Cooking With Wine

This is a tip I got from a reader way back in March but wanted to include it now since recipes I'm featuring this month call for wine. Gay, from Wetherford, Texas, mentioned that she doesn't necessarily enjoy drinking the types of wine that are best for cooking with, but obviously, doesn't want to see anything go to waste. As an alternative, instead of opening a whole bottle of something she won't likely drink, she buys the small four-packs of wine--perfect!

Other options:

• Grocery stores will often carry "cooking wines" that are much less expensive than the average bottle of wine. (I found mine near the olive oil for about six dollars a bottle.)
• Wine can also be substituted completely with the following items: 1 cup of wine=1 cup chicken or beef broth OR 1 cup fruit juice mixed with 2 teaspoons vinegar OR 1 cup water.

Quick tip: Make sure you cook/simmer without a lid to allow the alcohol to burn off.

Quick Flavor

For a super-fast dinner on those nights where you have zero to no time, make some of these seasonings to keep on hand. Just sprinkle on your protein of choice and cook!

Mix it up with Salads

I often suggest serving a simple salad with your main dish. Why? Because it's easy and I know that's all I have the energy to make with my main dish. But easy can also get boring, so I wanted to give you some tips to keep that "simple" salad a little more exciting:

• Keep it colorful. Food is always more appealing if it's also a feast for the eyes, so add colorful veggies like bell peppers, tomatoes, sprouts, carrots, etc. You can also mix different types of lettuce together.
• Get nutty. Add a small sprinkling of walnuts, sliced almonds, etc. for a different flavor. (Toasted almonds are my favorite thing to add…just cook in a pan on medium heat for a few minutes, stirring constantly until golden brown.)
• Crunch time. Add a little texture with sunflower seeds, dried fruit (okay, those are more chewy than crunchy, but…), or croutons.
• So cheesy. Parmesan, mozzarella, pepper jack, feta--the possibilities are endless!
• Getting dressed. They say (and by "they" I mean the people that know more than me) that a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar is the healthiest way to dress a salad, so give that a try--I love it.

Obviously you don't want to negate the health benefits of a salad by drenching it in a high-fat dressing, but…I have a hard time with low-fat salad dressings so as a compromise, I mix my favorite dressing with a low-fat version. The other thing I like to do to cut down on fat and calories is shake the lettuce and a small amount of dressing in a resealable bag--makes the dressing go much further.

While all these items can add flavor to a salad, the important thing to remember is you don't want to get carried away and end up adding lots extra calories and fat. A little goes a long way with all these items. (But add as many extra veggies as you like, obviously!)