Waste not, waist not

You may have noticed that most (all?) of these recipes so far have been one-dish dinners, at least by the time they get assembled. Yeah, I had to use a separate saucepan to boil the eggs or make the couscous or pasta, for example. But mostly, it all goes together, rather than a hunk of meat in one pan and a little pan of veggies cooking separately.

That's only partly because I'm lazy and don't want to wash a bunch of pans if I can avoid it.

It's partly because I'm trying to plan most of my dinners by thinking first about the vegetables and then about the protein. For one thing, I eat more vegetables that way! And when you think about it, there is a lot more variety in vegetables than in protein. You've got your beef, pork, chicken, lamb, fish, eggs, cheese and vegetable proteins such as soybeans. But the list of vegetables goes on and on and on, literally from asparagus to zucchini. It's fun to pick out "what looks good today" at the supermarket and plan the meal around that.

Also, cooking for one or two portions makes it less practical to make, say, a roast beef or even a roast chicken. Not that I don't do that occasionally, but there are all those leftovers to deal with. I try to be creative there, and I do use my freezer, but I seem to waste less food if I cook fresh.

I'm also wasting a lot less produce this way. I used to have to throw out a lot of produce that I thought looked good at the time but didn't quite get around to cooking in time. By focusing on the veggies, I use them in time.

And I do tend to keep some key proteins around, like smoked salmon, prosciutto, sausage (freezes well, and can be thawed one link at a time as needed), eggs, cheese. Although I haven't used any yet, I also have a few cans and pantry pouches of things like chicken, salmon and tuna. Those are for emergencies! A lot of the proteins I do buy are easy to get in one or two portions, such as a filet of fish or a half-pound of scallops or a couple of chicken breasts, or to divide into portions at home such as the sausage links. And they are also easy to cook in my modified stir-fry method.

And of course the pantry is full of grain products, from wild rice to pasta to couscous to quinoa (KEEN-wah -- we'll get to it some day). And whole-grain toast is a favorite of mine. There's usually a loaf of whole-grain bread on the counter and another in the freezer.

I'm also lucky to now have a superb grocery store right around the corner from my office and another one right on the way home from work, so it is easy to stop and grab one or two ingredients that I've just realized I need for my next creation. I like to buy things like fish and seafood the day I'm going to use them, or at most the night before.

OK, and here's the fun part: Without actually trying -- other than by cooking this way -- I have lost 7 pounds! It's the veggies.

I've often seen the tip that you should pretend to divide your plate in half, and half of it should be filled with veggies (and fruit), one quarter with grains and one quarter with protein. With a lot of these meals, that's just kind of the way it worked out, or at least, over time, that's how it divides up.

The other thing I've noticed is that because I am taking pictures of everything, I am very conscious of wanting the plate to be colorful. Something red or orange, or both. Something green.
Maybe something yellow. Anyway, at least not all beige or white or brown. I made an exception for the squash croquettes because, well, they are squash, already a veggie. Well, having a more colorful plate pretty much guarantees a more nutritional plate, right? (No, sprinkles on vanilla ice cream do not count.) So whip out your digital camera instead of keeping a food diary. Watch, someone will steal this idea and make a fortune. Just remember, you read it here first.