At last, a cookbook with recipes that serve one or two people that are not only scrumptious but also healthy.
"Choice Menus: Cooking for One or Two" (HarperCollins) is the work of veteran Canadian dietitians Marjorie Hollands of Toronto and Margaret Howard of Leith, Ont.
"People have told us they are cooking for themselves as they are living alone or for two so we thought we'd target that group, which is a growing segment of the population," says Hollands.
It is also geared toward those who are managing diabetes or want to prevent the onset of Type 2 diabetes, which is on the rise in Canada.
The book has a split-page format providing numerous meal choices with accompanying recipes that offer a wide variety of everyday favourites with new flavours to savour.
"All of our books have been focused on menus," says Hollands, who co-authored the first "Choice Menus" book with Howard in 2000 directed at families.
"This seems to be a real help when you live alone because you can run out of ideas and this gives singles or couples something to add to their collection."
One big change since 2000, says Hollands, is the new approach to sodium.
"It really is focused now on reducing salt in the diet, avoiding processed foods that are loaded with it which, in turn, will lower the rate of heart disease and hypertension," she says.
Hollands says that the book urges its readers to substitute lemon juice, lime juice, freshly ground pepper, garlic, herbs and spices for flavouring instead of salt.
"It's the same emphasis on portion size," she says. "When people think portion they relate it to what is served in a restaurant and because they are paying for the fast-food meal, they hate to waste money.
"Put simply, they have to re-educate their taste buds and decrease the portion sizes."
So the recipes in the book make smaller serving sizes, tailored for one or two people. There are 120 mix-and-match menu flaps providing meal choices for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks.
The authors have also given tips on meal planning, eating out and grocery shopping. Finally, it offers complete nutritional information for every recipe using the Canadian Diabetes Association's meal-planning guidelines.
Local strawberries have arrived, so here is a recipe from the book to enjoy them a little differently.
Balsamic Strawberries
500 ml (2 cups) sliced homegrown strawberries
15 ml (1 tbsp) balsamic vinegar
10 ml (2 tsp) brown sugar
5 ml (1 tsp) low-calorie sweetener
Fresh mint leaves (optional)
Place fruit in a shallow bowl. Sprinkle with vinegar, sugar and sweetener; toss to coat well. Leave at room temperature for up to 30 minutes. Garnish with mint, if using.
Makes 2 servings.
Nutrition information per serving: 69 calories, 1 g protein, 1 g fat, 17 g carbohydrates, 4 g fibre, 4 mg sodium.
