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Posted on: May 11, 2011

Tips to Trim a Table For Two

Empty nesters are prone to overcook for the kids that no longer live at home. Here’s how to adapt to feeding fewer folks

By Bev Bennett
CTW Features

For empty nesters, there are a few telltale signs that adjusting to cooking for two might not be going so well:

• Squirrels have your yard pegged as the best source for breadcrumbs.

• It’s Wednesday and you’re still eating the Sunday night pork roast.

• A sale on a 10-pound bag of potatoes sets your heart fluttering.

• The weekly gallon of milk spoils before you finish it.

Scaling back after years of cooking for a full table is challenging, but essential to saving money and avoiding waste.

And, when empty nesters downsize their meals, it’s much simpler to eat healthfully, say nutrition experts. People may not have been aware of how much they were consuming when those big serving platters continued to adorn a table for two.

Now is the time to change.

“Before you get to shopping, resize your mindset,” says Dayle Hayes, registered dietitian, Billings, Mont.

To get a better idea of how to scale back favorite dishes, check recipe websites. Some offer the ability to recalculate ingredient lists according to how many people are being served.

Look at a dinner plate and, “acquaint yourself with the idea that half the plate should be fruits and vegetables; one-fourth should be a protein source and one-fourth should be grains,” Hayes says.

Once a person can visualize a healthful plate, draw up a shopping list, including produce, dairy, lean meat or poultry, fish and whole-grains, such as whole-wheat pasta or brown rice.

Opt for individual pieces of fruit, not large bags, says Drusilla M. Banks, extension specialist, food science and nutrition programming, University of Illinois Extension, Chicago.

Consumers in urban areas can adapt a European shopping style, purchasing what is needed for the day.

“I really like that style,” says Hayes, president, Nutrition for the Future, Inc. “I can buy a half pound of asparagus at a time and don’t have to bulk up,” says the Montana-based dietitian. She also enjoys the mile a day walk to her grocery store.

Many folks are still purchasing milk by the gallon, forgetting that there are no longer kids standing in front of the refrigerator drinking out of the carton, says the extension specialist. Pick single-size servings of milk in six packs and single-size cartons of juice, Banks says.

Frozen food also offers advantages for the one- or two-person household, Banks says. She suggests buying packages containing individually wrapped frozen fish and chicken breasts.

“Pull out what you need and keep the rest [in the freezer]. It works very well,” Banks says.

Smaller cooking utensils can also help empty nesters adapt.

“If you have a 5-quart Dutch oven you may feel compelled to fill it. You may be tempted to fill up a 10-inch skillet; buy an 8-inch once instead,” Banks says.

When tempted to purchase more food than needed for a recipe, schedule “planned overs,” says Hayes, who writes at www.eatwellatschool.blogspot.com.

“Plan ahead. Roast a chicken [for dinner] and have multiple plans for using the remainder in sandwiches, soup stock and maybe the chicken wings for a picnic,” Hayes says.

Bev Bennett, a veteran food writer and editor, is the author of "Dinner for Two: A Cookbook for Couples" and "30-Minute Meals for Dummies"