Small Plates, Smaller Portions

                                    

I had a cousin come over to stay for the last few days of spring break. It was lovely to take him around and indulge in margaritas, bar snacks and a juicy, custom-made chicken burger with a real ol-fashioned (drink) on the side. We even went to watch 'The Artist'. All of these things happened in intervals while I was cooking up a storm of comfort food, yellow dal, a spicy potato dish, lots of rice and a very spicy and rich Thai chicken curry. Needless to say, the binging took its toll this morning and I'm reducing my portions.

Last night, I cooked a dish of elbow macaroni and pesto with fried eggs and a few sticks of pork sausages (ripping off the tough skins). I ate the leftover 'mini' portion for lunch sprawled on the sofa with a new Claire Berlinski novel from the library and a glass of orange juice. I never thought I'd be the person eating mini portions. My body however seems to crave it. I'm also craving the juicy grapes I'd chomped on throughout the weekend.

I could really munch on some frozen grapes for dessert. What do you recover on after a night (or a few nights) of binging?

Cooking for One Instead of Table for One

When I'm not drooling over the food pics in Eric Gower's cookbook, I'm reading Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant - an anthology of one-person cooking articles from really creative people (writers, filmmakers, teachers, foodies) in diverse fields. I'm not too surprised to find comfort food - in different forms - ranging from recipes with canned black beans to poached eggs over asparagus, scrambled eggs on toast topped with truffle oil, polenta to a layered salmon, shallots and lentils dish. It's not just an amazing recipe book, it's a great comfort read - something to read in bed with a bowl of ice cream.

My comfort food was the Macaroni stir fry recipe - even if it happens that I'm missing a few ingredients, eggs, onions and pasta are always available along with my spice rack. In fact, eggs are very personal to me and my first choice when cooking a meal for myself. They're super easy and fun to eat, try scrambling them with rice or pasta or just over toast, they're very comforting and uncomplicated. I've even eaten boiled egg sandwiches with mustard and thousand island dressing for dinner alone, which prompted my husband to look in the fridge to see if everything in there rotted beyond recognition.

I love that these writers are all emphasizing on the simple things that are very self-indulgent, you'd make them because you want to pig out and not share. They're just as pampering if not more than the meals we make for dinner parties or for special weekends alone with your sweetie. I love that this book exists to take away the depressive air around 'Meals for One'.

Book: Alone In The Kitchen With An Eggplant - Confessions of Cooking for One and Dining Alone

Edited by Jenni Ferrari-Adler

Written by a lot of talented, creative people who love themselves 

Macaroni Stir Fry



Macaroni Stir Fry





   
I promise, it's a healthy way to use odds and ends (or leftovers) for a one-pot dish when you're home alone and forgot to pick up some Chinese takeout. I was working last night and suddenly realised there was nothing for dinner other than some quick pasta fix and instead of bothering with white or red sauces or chopping up garlic, I just threw in these ingredients and cooked up a nice, hot meal in minutes.


Ingredients:

1 cup cooked elbow pasta (macaroni)
1/2 cup veggie mix - chopped bell peppers, corn kernels and chopped white button mushrooms (that's what I had but you can use any - shiitake is wonderful stir fry material)
1 chopped (fully cooked) turkey/chicken sausage
1/2 a medium-sized yellow onion chopped
2 eggs
1 tablespoon Korean stir fry sauce
1 tablespoon tomato ketchup
1/4 teaspoon turmeric (optional)
1/4 teaspoon paprika
3 tablespoons olive oil (or any cooking oil)
Chopped cilantro for garnishing
Salt for seasoning

Method:

Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil to the gradually heating wok or pot (medium heat). Add onions immediately and sautee them until translucent. Add the veggie mix and the sausages. Lowering the temperature (low heat), cover the wok and let the veggies steam a bit (I like to make them a little tender).

Add the spices (turmeric and paprika) and stir in the sauces (Korean stir fry and tomato ketchup). Stir well. Turn up the heat to medium. Then make space in the center of the wok (shift the veggies to the sides of the wok and create a hollow space in the center) and add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Break the eggs into this hollow space and let them fry a bit before scrambling them up and gradually folding them into the veggies.

Once the eggs have scrambled and mixed with the veggies, add the pasta to this mix. Mix well. Add salt (taste first to see if you need a lot or a little and adjust - coz the sauces have a little salt).

Finally, add the cilantro, turn off the heat, get a bowl and enjoy your healthy mac stir fry!

Serves: 1 really hungry person