Cooking For One

Cooking for one is really hard. Especially when you dislike eating the same things over and over again. A lot of times, I do eat the leftovers of some crazy concoction I came up with. But lately, I've been getting creative. Not only to make delicious food but also to save money!

I've discovered some foods that are great for cooking on a budget!
-Canned tomatoes
-Pasta
-Rice
-Roasted vegetables

I used to hate that I could never finish a whole can of crushed/diced tomatoes... but only because I wasn't getting creative! For the first night, I would make a Fra Diavolo sauce. And then what?

A lot!!

Lately, I've been using a lot of canned tomatoes. I add them to pasta with some roasted vegetables and anchovies... OMG! Quick, delicious, super flavorful! And how about adding some spices and putting them in an omelette with cheddar? Yayyyy!!!

Here was tonight's concoction. It's such half-assed cooking. Is it even cooking? I consider it blending hahaha... But whatever. It was SOOOOO good! I looked in my fridge and had leftover brown rice, canned whole plum tomatoes, carmelized onions, and mushrooms.

I sauteed the sliced mushrooms with some garlic. I dumped the chopped up tomatoes in with some tomato sauce. I add the onions and let it simmer. I add my new favorite spice blend: Trader Joe's 21 Seasoning Salute. The ingredients-Onion, Black Pepper, Celery Seed, Cayenne Pepper, Parsley, Basil, Marjoram, Bay Leaf, Oregano, Thyme, Savory, Rosemary, Cumin, Mustard, Coriander, Garlic, Carrot, Orange Peel, Tomato Granules, Lemon Juice Powder, Oil of Lemon, and Citric Acid. Interesting right?! It's also delicious and goes with a lot of different dishes that I make. I've been adding this to everything!

And of course I like to make everything spicy so I added some red pepper flakes!
It was kinda like a rice soup/stew/ghetto risotto... really hearty and perfect for cold days!

P.S.- The key to eating delicious food on a budget is SPICES. Spices are my life. It turns rice into an unusual, ethnic dish, and it makes omelettes taste like you're eating at a cute little French bistro :-)