Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Easy-Peasy Dinner for One


Another night where The Man has a dinner engagement for work. So...lucky, lucky me - I got to "stink up the house" with some favorites that he won't touch with a ten-foot fork.

Forgive me - I was in a groove (literally, as I was listening to the 80s channel on the XM radio in the kitchen while I cooked) and neglected to write down exactly what I was doing. So measurements are approximate.

Stinky food night - salmon, asiago, and asparagus LOL

Honey-Mustard Glazed Salmon for One

1 salmon filet
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp dijon mustard
Olive oil

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Drizzle a little olive oil in the bottom of a small baking dish that will hold your filet. Place the filet in the dish. Combine the honey and mustard; baste the salmon and put in the oven. Bake until done (15-20 minutes, depending on the thickness of your piece of fish) - it's done when it's no longer pink in the middle, if you're like me and like your fish cooked all the way through.

Easy Risotto for One

1/2 cup Arborio rice
2 to 2 1/2 cups chicken stock or broth
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 grated Asiago cheese
1/4 cup onion, diced small
2 garlic cloves, minced
Olive oil
Heavy cream

Put about 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a small stock pot (big enough to hold about 2 1/2 cups of cooked rice). Start the fire on medium heat and then add the onion; saute until translucent. Add the garlic and rice; toss to coat and then give it a good couple of minutes to "toast" the rice. Add the wine; stir constantly until the wine is absorbed. Then start adding stock a half cup at a time. Pour in a half cup; stir occasionally until the rice has absorbed the liquid. Continue to do this until the broth is gone, the risotto is cooked and it's not soupy. Remove from the heat and add the cheese and a splash of heavy cream; stir well until combined and the cheese has melted.

2 comments:

Janell said...

What I love/hate about cooking for 1 is that the measurements tend to get so small that I just eye-ball everything - a splash of this, a dash of that, a pinch of another. When it comes time to share the reipes or scale them up, I have no idea how!

Sheri said...

I cook this way a lot, so I guess I am used to it. What I usually do is take a recipe I use all the time and cut it in half and it works for me.