Im tired of cooking the same old same old stuff each week. I need some new ideas...

But here is the thing. I have to watch my sugar intake (diabetes), HD has to watch his sald intake (high blood pressure).

Does anyone have any ideas that they can give me? on what to make for the 2 of us.

Like I said their are just the 2 of us, n either I make to much or not enough. I need some ideas on who to stretch my food budget n what I can cook, some different would be nice.

With summer here, we are eating a lot of salad's, mostly when its really hot out, cause I dont like to cook when its hot. We try to cook out on the grill on the weekends (weather premitting), but its getting harder to figure out what to make.

If you can offer me some suggestions I would really aprieate it.

Thanks

 

 Both my husband and oldest child have to watch sugar and carbs, I can't take too much salt and my middle child is underweight so he needs more carbs. I usually cook several courses so that we each get what we need and get enough out of it.

One of my favorites to offer is meals that work around grilled meats. My husband and daughter can have larger servings of meats and veggies while those who need more carbs can choose the dish that offers that. I can use different seasonings, marinades and even sauces to make it a little different than the last one.

All I can offer on the salt is cook as much as you can from scratch. It lowers the salt drastically. Don't add salt while you are cooking unless the dish absolutely will not turn out right without it.    

Raw veggies are quick to make and add no heat to the kitchen. They make excellent side dishes in the summer.

 

 

I am in the same boat, 2 person household trying to eat healthy but frugally but don't like to cook all that much.

Those are great suggestions, Brandy.  I agree about cutting up raw veggies as cheap (almost free for me) and easy snacks.  I've been cutting up cucumbers  and peppers for snacks all throughout the day and they're a good low-cal snack to take the edge off hunger between meals.  Since I have a small fridge, I have to shop 2x a week for fruit/veg.  I cut up the vegetables the night of shopping day and store them in handy containers for my SO to snack on.

We do very simple meals like oatmeal for breakfast, salads for lunch and a very light dinner.  We'll often steam vegetables for the side dish instead of making an actual dish. I do this in a steamer but you can do it in the microwave as well.

I've been considering getting a toaster oven so as not to heat up the kitchen when baking 2 pork chops for instance. 

I do a lot of precooking whole grains/meats and portioning them out/freezing for later use.  I just dump it in the slow cooker and then when cooked, portion it out.    It's really nice to pull out a frozen meal to thaw and not have to do any cooking that day, except say steaming vegetables for side dish and overall I think it does save me a lot of time.
 

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oh i'm sorry, looks like you're looking for recipe ideas.  I've been reading the "Itty Bitty Kitchen Handbook" and it has some good ideas for small meals.  I wish I could give you specific recipes but I'm not sure you would like them (most of my cooking is ethnic, not American) 

 

Joanne, I, for one, would love to see some of your recipes.

I'm part of a 2-person household as well.  One thing I do is make the full serves-4 recipe and either give two portions to my string-bean of a boyfriend and put the extra portion in the fridge for my lunch, or if it freezes well, I'll freeze the extra for the following week. 

I also do a lot of planned-overs with meats.  I'll make a pork shoulder or a pot roast or a whole chicken (or a bunch of pieces) and have them plain with veggies and rice or noodles or potatoes on day one, then day two I'll make them into something else: pulled BBQ pork, or shepard's pie, or enchilada casserole...

chicken is the easiest, I can throw it on salad or re-stir fry it with veggies and a bottled sauce, put it in a casserole, quesadillas... I let my mood guide me. 

Joanne,

Oh please do share some of them ethnic recipes, my Dh n I love to try different foods. were not picky, just getting tired of eating the same old same old.

Im all for the crock pot/slower cooker meals. I have an entire shelf in a cubby devoted to cook books, but do you think I feel like pulling one out?  NOPE.

Toaster ovens are a wonderful thing to use. we dont even own a toaster, i love using my toaster oven, it gets more usage than my microwave, since its a small one, hard to cook anything in it.  We are in need of a new toaster oven tho, we have gone threw about 4 of them in the past 8 yrs.. (that should tell you how much we use it)  lol

I used to have a small cook book called Cooking for 2, but I do beleive that I lent it either to my inlaws or my girlfriend, if she has it, I will never see it again, cause she moved away, if my inlaws do, who knows where its at up there.

As for raw veggies, oh my yes we love them, but at the price of raw I dont buy very often, mosty carrots, cause thats what Dh takes in his bucket for work. I try to buy the 2lb bag, that way it gives me some to munch on during the day.

I also have one of them rice steamers, that I use for veggies as well as rice, but it can be a pain to clean, so it dont come out very often. mostly i just use a pan on the stove with a colander for steaming.

But do share any recipes that anyone has to offer, that is different that what one would find in a cook book. Im willing to try anything new, just as long as the expense isnt to much on the wallet.

 

You might try this web site:  http://www.razzledazzlerecipes.com/cooking-for-2-recipes/index.htm

I have found it to great in all types of recipes from exotic to comfort foods.  Hope it helps.

Oh wow, that's a great site, thanks!

I'll go home tonight and try to find a recipe that doesn't require unusual ingredients, (like garam masala).
 

Try www.savingdinner.com Though you can sign up for menus, they have a bunch of free sample menus with cooking instructions and shopping lists.  Based on one week each.  She also puts recipe hints for low carb, kosher, non meat eaters etc. There is a bunch and based on 6, 4 or 2 servings.  There are lots to chose from.. slow cooker, frugal, low carb, heart healthy etc. Body clutter one is for losing weight. She uses lots of spices etc for favor.