Cooking for One

When I was 18, I met a real live bachelor who cooked.  Not a man living alone who heated frozen dinners up, or ate cereal over the sink.  He shopped often, buying small quantities of fresh ingredients.  And then he prepared them simply but with real care, and enjoyed his creations at the table with a good wine or beer.  A good (European) role model.

I think of Gem from time to time, when single friends confide their solo eating habits, and when I have the house to myself for several days in a row.  Mostly I put together a respectable repast and serve myself with some care. (I'm more likely to make supper of guacamole and popcorn, or salad and yogurt, on a random night at home alone, tired after work.)  But I do notice that I kick my game up a notch anytime I have someone else's palate to think about. 

While Europe is by no means uniformly populated with great home cooks, married or single, there still remains a generally more respectful attitude about meals.  Lunch and dinner are for sitting down and eating something worth paying attention to, not merely ingesting during a rushed break between activities (or while doing them, in the car or on the computer).  If there are friends or family, schoolmates or co-workers to share the meal with, then there is conversation.  If not, there is music, reading, or people-watching for company.  When company is not present, you treat yourself as the person for whom the meal is served, the recipient of your own care.