Happy New Year! It’s an old southern tradition to eat blackeye peas on the first day of the new year so you will have good luck, health, and abundance all year long. Even though I like to find recipes for us solo cookers, I am making an entire batch of blackeye peas and plan on freezing the rest. I will be able to enjoy them for months down the road. I added collard greens to my blackeye peas making them Southern-style. I hope we all have good luck and good health and abundance all year long. Cooking for one can be fun.

Ingredients: 1 bag Blackeye peas, 6 chorizos, 1 yellow onion, 1 green bell pepper, 2 cloves garlic, 4 collard green leaves, 1 box organic chicken broth, cumin, gram masala, Trader Joes 21 season salute, basil, oregano, black pepper.

Directions: Soak your blackeye peas overnight. I used my crockpot but you can use a large pot if you don’t have a crockpot. Drain and rinse your blackeye peas. Pour the chicken broth into your crockpot or large pot. Add your blackeye peas. Dice your green pepper and onion and add them to the pot. Rinse your collard greens. Slice the leaf off the stems. Using your kitchen shears, cut the collard greens into small pieces into the blackeye peas. Slice the chorizo and add them to the pot. Sprinkle a generous amount of all the spices. Stir and cover and cook on high for two hours. Reduce and continue cooking on low until you are ready to eat. Serve with a biscuit or sourdough bread. I put the leftover blackeye peas in four containers. I saved one for later on in the week and froze the rest for later. Cooking for one can be fun.

This baked salmon meal is one of my easiest and quickest meals when I just want to cook something easy and quick. All you need is salmon and asparagus, lemon, and a touch of pesto and butter. I made pesto rice for one while the salmon was baking. This really is a quick and easy meal and so delicious and healthy. Adding pesto to the rice made the rice so flavorful. Cooking for one can be fun.

Ingredients: 1 small piece of salmon filet, a small bunch of asparagus, 1 lemon, 2 dollops of butter, 2 tbls pesto, 1 tsp Dijon mustard, 1/4 cup rice

Directions: Rinse your salmon and pat dry. Place your salmon on a large sheet of parchment paper. Rinse and snap your asparagus and add it next to the salmon on the parchment paper. Squeeze one lemon over the salmon and asparagus. Sprinkle some salt-free dash and lemon pepper over the salmon. Add a dollop of butter to the asparagus. Spread the pesto and Dijon mustard on top of the salmon. Fold the parchment paper over the salmon and asparagus, place on a foil-lined cookie sheet, and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. While the salmon is baking start your rice. In a small saucepan add 3/4 cup water and a spoonful of pesto and bring to a boil. Add 1/4 cup rice, cover, and cook for 15 minutes on low. Remove the salmon and asparagus and serve with the rice. Cooking for one can be fun.

I found this great recipe last year on Pinterest from Michelle at A Latte Food. I made mini loaves of this banana bread and they made great gifts. This year I plan on making them again and giving them to neighbors and my wonderful friends and family that have brought me joy throughout the year and I hope they make them happy. I doubled the recipe because I needed to make several. I hope you find them fun and easy to make. Cooking for one can be fun.

Ingredients: Bread; 3-4 medium bananas, 2 tbsp brown sugar, 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract,1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 cup unsalted butter, 1 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tsp baking soda, 1/4 tsp salt. Maple Glaze; 1/4 cup unsalted butter, 1/2 cup pure maple syrup, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, 1 cup powdered sugar

Directions: Bread; Preheat oven to 350. Grease 8 mini loaf pans and line the bottom with parchment paper, it makes it easier to remove the bread after it’s baked. In a small bowl, mash bananas, brown sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream the softened butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add eggs into the butter mixture and beat until combined. Sift flour, baking soda, and salt into the butter mixture. Stir until just combined. Pour in mashed bananas, and mix until combined. Pour the batter into your bread pans. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until the cake tester comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs stuck to it. Reduce the oven temp to 325 and bake for another 15-20 minutes until the cake tester comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs stuck to it. Allow the bread to cool for 10 minutes before removing it or leave them in the mini loaf pans for easy decorating. For the maple glaze; melt butter, maple syrup, vanilla, and cinnamon over low heat in a small saucepan. Once melted together, pull off the heat. Sift in powdered sugar, and whisk until thoroughly combined. Allow cooling for 8-10 minutes so the glaze can thicken. Once the glaze has thickened, give it a quick stir and pour it over the banana bread. Allow the glaze to harden completely before cutting into slices. Thank you Michele at A Latte Food for this delicious banana bread recipe. Cooking for one can be fun.

Sometimes you have leftover ingredients that you need to use before they go bad. This is what happened to me, I had leftover milk and tomato sauce and knew I had to use it before it went bad and spoiled. That is when I thought I could make a vodka cream sauce and use the pasta I bought a while ago at the Italian deli along with some chicken breast. It is fun to look around the fridge and pantry and come up with something easy to make and I didn’t have to go to the store. This dish turned out so yummy. It made a big batch and even though I served it all in one bowl I ended up putting half in a container for a meal the next day. I bet the sauce will be even better tomorrow. Cooking for one can be fun.

Ingredients: 1 organic chicken breast, 1/2 cup vodka, 1/2 cup milk, 3/4 cup tomato sauce, heaping spoonful of sour cream, 3 cloves garlic, parmesan cheese, Nastri pasta, basil, oregano, salt-free dash, Italian seasoning, thyme, black pepper

Directions: Chop 3 cloves of garlic. Add some olive oil to your frying pan and add the garlic. Cut your chicken breast into bite-size pieces. Cook your chicken till brown. Sprinkle a generous amount of basil, thyme, oregano, Italian seasoning, black pepper, and salt-free dash on your chicken. Stir and let it continue to cook. Start your pasta water and bring it to a boil and cook your pasta. To your cooked chicken add 1/2 cup vodka, tomato sauce, and milk. Add a generous spoonful of sour cream. Stir and bring to a boil. The sauce will reduce as it cooks. Do not drain your pasta, use tongs to place pasta in the sauce. The pasta water will help thicken the sauce. Stir all together and serve with a spoonful of parmesan cheese. This cooks in less than 30 minutes. Cooking for one can be fun.

Making chili for one isn’t easy to do. You usually have a big pot and lots of leftovers. I made individual chili bowls using large ramekins and topped them with cornbread. I made four bowls and had a little chili leftover which I froze along with two of the ramekins. I like using old-school Jiffy corn muffin mix. It is so simple and always turns out perfect. The Jiffy corn muffin mix only covered three of the ramekins but I ate the plain one later on in the week and topped it with some cheese. You can add beans if you want to the chili or just make it with grass-fed ground beef. Cooking for one can be fun.

Ingredients: 1lb grass-fed ground beef, 1/4 onion, 1 cup tomato sauce, 1 10oz can RoTel diced tomatoes and chili, 1 can organic black beans, Carrol Shelby’s chili kit, 1 box Jiffy corn muffin mix, 1/3 cup milk, 1 egg

Directions: In a large pot add 1lb ground beef and brown. Cut 1/4 onion and add the onion to the ground beef, stir. Drain and rinse your black beans and add them to the pot with the ground beef and onions and stir. Add the RoTel tomatoes and chili, one cup of tomato sauce, and one cup of water to the beef and beans. In 1/2 cup water add the masa flour from the chili kit and blend till smooth. Add the masa water to your chili. Add the seasoning mix to the chili and stir well. I used 1/2 of the cayenne package from the chili mix but you can add a little or the whole package depending on your spice level. While the chili cooks, start your corn muffin mix. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Stir the Jiffy mix with the milk and egg together till creamy. Spoon the chili into four ramekins. Top with the corn muffin mix making sure it goes to the edges. Bake for 20 minutes. Enjoy. Cooking for one can be fun.

Most of us like sweet potatoes or yams. Me too. I bought a yam the other day and even though I can just bake it and eat it with some butter and cinnamon and be happy, I decided to make yam fries. They are quick and easy and take less than 30 minutes to complete. I used my air-fryer, but if you don’t have an air-fryer you can bake them in the oven at 400 degrees for 20 minutes tossing after 10, and continue cooking for another 10. You can serve your fries with your favorite protein. I also made horseradish aioli. Cooking for one can be fun.

Ingredients: 1 yam, avocado oil, garlic powder, salt-free dash

Directions: Peel your yam. Slice in half and cut into thick or thin slices depending on your favorite. Place them in a bowl. Coat with avocado oil and season with garlic powder and salt-free dash. Mix all together till all your yam slices are coated. Place the yam fries in your air-fryer basket and cook at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Give them a toss and cook for another 10 minutes. Serve and enjoy. To make horseradish aioli, just add 1 teaspoon of horseradish to 1 tablespoon of mayo, press 1 clove of garlic, and stir. Cooking for one can be fun.

Recently I went to go see all the pretty fall colors up in the mountains. There is an old quaint town called Genoa outside of Carson City Nevada that is really fun to walk around in. They have this amazing Italian deli and bakery that has lots of imported Italian foods and delicious pastries and sandwiches. I bought this imported organic Italian pasta in fall colors called Nastri. I had some tri-tip and mushrooms and thought it would be good with the pasta. The meal was delicious. I loved the pasta. Since it was homemade it is a little thicker than store-bought pasta. I found it has more flavor too. I understand that it might be hard to find organic Italian pasta, however, store-bought fettuccini will work as well. I had leftover tri-tip, but I will use it during the week for other dishes. Cooking for one can be fun.

Ingredients: Tri-tip, 1 handful of Italian organic pasta, 1 package of sliced mushrooms, 3 cloves garlic, 2 TBL butter, 1 TBL Worcestershire sauce, white wine, 2 TBL pesto, parmesan cheese, olive oil, classic steak seasoning, smoked paprika, garlic powder, pink salt, black pepper and a pinch of sugar.

Directions: First marinade your tri-tip. Rub with olive oil and sprinkle generously with steak seasoning, smoked paprika, garlic powder, pink salt, black pepper, and a pinch of sugar. Rub the seasonings on both sides. Cover and refrigerate for 1-4 hours or overnight. When ready to cook the tri-tip, add some olive oil to a frying pan and heat. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Add the tri-tip to the pan and sear for 5 minutes on each side. Place your seared tri-tip on an aluminum foil-lined cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, 5-10 minutes longer if you don’t like it rare. While the tri-tip is roasting, using the same pan you seared the tri-tip in, add 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce. Bring water to a boil for the pasta. Turn your frying pan back on medium-low and add 2 tablespoons butter along with chopped garlic cloves. After the butter melts add your package of sliced mushrooms. Saute your mushrooms and stir often until nice and brown. Add some white wine, enough to cover the bottom of the pan. Keep cooking on low. Place your pasta in boiling water and cook. Take the tri-tip out of the oven. Make a doughnut out of foil and place the tri-tip on top. This allows the tri-tip to continue cooking without sitting in its own blood. Let it sit for 10 minutes. After your pasta is cooked, drain. Remove the mushrooms into a container and save half for later. Add the pasta to the frying pan and the pesto, and stir. Add half of the mushrooms back into the pan and save the other half for another dish. Stir this all together and while this is cooking on low, slice your tri-tip. Serve slices of the tri-tip with the pasta and a little parmesan cheese and a nice glass of Cabernet. Cooking for one can be fun.

The other day I was at Trader Joe’s and found this cute squash called Delicata. It is supposed to taste like a cross between corn and pumpkin pie and it got my curiosity up and I had to try it. So I decided to stuff it with some chorizo just for something different. I used simple ingredients to stuff the delicata, and it was a good combination. The flavor of delicata is like a mild pumpkin but I didn’t taste any corn flavors. The delicata doesn’t have a lot of vegetable in it so I ate both halves. I had leftover chorizo so I used it in scrambled eggs for breakfast the next morning. Cooking for one can be fun.

Ingredients: 1 Delicata squash, 2 chorizos, 1/4 onion, 3 cloves garlic, feta cheese, 2 tbls butter, pumpkin spice

Directions: Cut your delicata in half then scrape out the seeds using a spoon. I have a microwave steamer that does a great job of cooking vegetables. Set the delicata in the steamer. Add 1 tbls butter to each half and sprinkle with pumpkin spice. Place in microwave and steam. Put a little olive oil in a frying pan and heat on medium-low. Chop 1/4 onion and add to the frying pan. Press 3 cloves of garlic into the frying pan and saute. Chop the chorizo into small pieces. Sprinkle in some feta cheese. Mix this all together. When the delicata is done, stuff with the chorizo and enjoy. Cooking for one can be fun.

Last week I made chicken enchiladas and had leftover sauce, chicken, and chicken stock. I added all of these together along with some organic white beans and it made a delicious soup. A little spicey and full of flavor. If you don’t have leftover chicken stock or enchilada sauce you can buy low-sodium chicken stock and a can of green enchilada sauce and shred some chicken thighs or chicken breast. It is easy to throw this all together making a delicious soup. If you don’t have leftover enchilada sauce I would add some seasoning to your soup such as; oregano, chili powder, cayenne pepper, lemon pepper, garlic powder, and black pepper. This does make a big batch, way too much for one, however, you can freeze half of it and enjoy the other half during the week. You can serve this soup with a warmed tortilla or some sourdough bread or some crackers. Cooking for one can be fun.

Ingredients: Chicken stock from boiling your chicken thighs or buy 1 box of organic low-sodium chicken stock. Leftover enchilada sauce that has onion, corn, jalapeno, and garlic mixed in along with some chili powder, cayenne pepper, lemon pepper, garlic powder, oregano, and black pepper. 3 shredded organic chicken thighs. 1 can organic northern white beans.

Directions: Basically, add your leftover chicken stock, enchilada sauce, chicken, and mashed organic white beans all together. Heat through and serve with a little grated pepper jack cheese, crumbled tortilla chips, and a dollop of sour cream. Serve with a warmed tortilla, sourdough bread, or crackers.

If you don’t have leftover stock or sauce you can buy a box of low-sodium chicken stock, and boil your chicken thighs in the stock. Cut 1/4 onion and add this to your stock while the chicken is cooking. Chop some jalapeno peppers and add this to your stock. Add some frozen corn. Sprinkle in some oregano, chili powder, cayenne pepper, lemon pepper, garlic powder, and black pepper into the stock. Remove the chicken thighs and shred them. Add the chicken back to your stock. Pour in your enchilada sauce and heat. Drain the beans and rinse. Mash lightly in a bowl saving some of the beans whole. Add your beans to the soup. Let this heat for about 5 minutes. Enjoy. Cooking for one can be fun.

Mexican food is one of my favorites so I decided to make some chicken enchiladas. I went to the store and bought all the items I needed but cooking for one you don’t need to make a large baking dish of enchiladas; you can make a small dish with four enchiladas. These turned out really good and went well with a Margarita. I cooked all the chicken thighs in the package and will use the leftover chicken for soup also I saved the chicken stock I cooked the chicken in and the leftover enchilada sauce. When you buy a package of tortillas there are usually 12, so I used the 4 and froze the rest to use at another time. The enchiladas are very filling so I only ate one. I saved the other one for another meal during the week and I froze the other two to have a quick meal another time. Cooking for one can be fun.

Ingredients: 1 package organic chicken thighs, frozen corn, 1 28oz green enchilada sauce, 1 package pepper jack cheese, one 4 oz can jalapenos, 1/2 onion, 2 cloves garlic, sour cream, tortillas. Cayenne pepper, chili pepper, smoked paprika, lemon pepper, and oregano.

Directions: Place your chicken thighs into a large pot with water, just enough water to cover the chicken. Shake in some chili powder, cayenne powder, smoked paprika, lemon pepper, and oregano into the pot with the chicken thighs and bring to a boil. While the chicken thighs are cooking take a saucepan and add some grapeseed oil to the bottom of the pan. Chop up half an onion and add that to your saucepan along with two cloves of garlic, pressed. Saute. I had some frozen corn in the freezer from some fresh corn that I bought a while ago so I added that to the pan with the onions. Check your chicken to see if they are almost done. Chop several jalapenos, depending on your spice level. Add them to the saucepan with the corn and onions. Add the green enchilada sauce and let this heat while you shred the chicken. Once you have your chicken shredded, gather your sauce, sour cream, pepper cheese, and tortillas. Place one tortilla into a baking dish and add a generous amount of chicken in the middle of one tortilla. Add a few tablespoons of your sauce over the chicken. Add a couple dollops of sour cream. Grate some pepper jack cheese on top. Fold over and roll then push to the side of your baking dish. Repeat with the other three tortillas. Pour and cover the enchiladas with the sauce. Top with grated pepper jack cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Serve with a Margarita and remember to have fun cooking for one.