Low Calorie Recipes & Cooking Tips for One | Simple Nourished Living (2024)

I received this email from a reader a while back...

Q: Hi, Martha, Do you have recipes for just one person? I find most of the recipes are for 4 or more people, so I end up with way too much food. Thank You.

A: It's a question that comes up regularly, "What's the best approach to cooking for one (or two) that doesn't result in too many leftovers?" "Do you have single-serve recipes that are easy and healthy?"

So I assembled a list of my favorite easy healthy low calorie single-serve recipes. Then I brainstormed the best shopping and cooking strategies and tips to be successful when you're cooking solo on a diet and organized them here....

Cooking for one has its limitations and can be tricky, but it doesn't have to be. Let's begin with a list of some of my favorite easy healthy low calorie single serving recipes with Weight Watchers freestyle SmartPoints...

Favorite Easy Healthy Low Calorie One-Serving Recipes

Breakfast

Skinny 4-Ingredient Microwave Mug Frittata
(177 calories | *1 WW SmartPoint)

4-Ingredient Microwave Mug Apple Pancake Puff
(198 calories | *5 WW SmartPoints)

WW Cottage Cheese Danish
(118 calories | *4 WW SmartPoints)

Skinny Cottage Cheese Power Pancakes for One
(276 calories| *7 WW SmartPoints)

Blueberry Muffin Overnight Oats
(238 calories | *5 WW SmartPoints)

Pepperoni Breakfast Pizza
(173 calories | *3 WW SmartPoints)

Don't Miss: Diet to Go Meal Delivery: Healthy Eating Made Easy

Single Serving Lunch & Dinner Ideas

English Muffin Hawaiian Pizza
(230 calories / *6 WW SmartPoints)

(289 calories / *7 WW SmartPoints)

Easy Buffalo Chicken Wrap
(210 calories / *5 WW SmartPoints)

(350 calories / *7 WW SmartPoints)

Healthy Taco Salad for One
(297 Calories / *9 WW SmartPoints)

Greek Turkey Mason Jar Salad
(302 calories / *5 WW SmartPoints)

Trader Joe's Easy Asian Chicken Salad
(350 calories / *5 WW SmartPoints)

Skinny BLT
(247 calories / *7 WW Freestyle SmartPoints)

Skinny Cheesy Hot Dog Quesadilla
(250 calories / *7 WW SmartPoints)

(368 calories / *6 WW SmartPoints)

(190 calories / *4 WW SmartPoints)

Hungry Girl's Pizza-fied Chicken
(272 calories / *2 WW SmartPoints)

Hungry Girl's Mac Attack Burger Bowl
(316 calories / *7 WW SmartPoints)

Hungry Girl's Sloppy Jane Stir-fry
(339 calories / *5 WW SmartPoints)

Easy Healthy Egg Roll in a Bowl
(270 calories / *1 WW SmartPoint)

Snacks & Desserts for One

Creamy Chocolate Yogurt
(79 calories / *0 WW SmartPoints)

Microwave Baked Apple
(103 calories / *2 WW SmartPoints)

Sugar Free Sliced Apple "Cookies"
(245 calories / *3 WW SmartPoints)

Skinny 3-2-1 Microwave Mug Cake
(105 calories / *5 WW SmartPoints)

WW Gluten-Free Chocolate Mug Cake (no cake mix)
(138 calories / *3 WW SmartPoints)

Other Favorite Easy Healthy Single Serving Meals:

When you're eating solo, the decision of what to cook and eat is yours and yours alone, which can take tons of pressure off. You are free to eat whatever you want! Here are some of the foods I choose when cooking just for myself:

Smoothies: Most smoothie recipes make one or two servings. Just pop whatever you want in the blender (affiliate link) and push the button (frozen fruits work great for this).

Potatoes: You can make one or two baked potatoes in minutes in the microwave (affiliate link). To make it a meal, add veggies, any sauce, shredded cheese, and canned lean chili, beans, or shredded chicken.

Sandwiches: Fancy sandwiches make a nice dinner for one, especially when they are grilled. An easy way to do this is to use your George Foreman as a panini press (affiliate link). Lightly coat the outside slices of bread with canola or olive cooking spray, and cook in your indoor grill for about four minutes. And it's really hard to beat a good BLT!

Salads: It's easy to make main-dish green salads in one- or two-serving sizes. The bags already washed and ready to go greens work great because you just take as much as you need, seal the bag back up, and you still have washed and ready lettuce for the next time. Top it all off with bottled light dressing and you're good to go.

Quesadillas: Another variation on the sandwich theme, your favorite low calorie tortilla can be filled with a variety of ingredients and then just heated on each side until toasty. Think outside the Mexican box like I did when I used what I had around the house to create these tasty skinny cheesy hotdog quesadillas.

Individual Pizzas: Top a tortilla or a split and lightly toasted english muffins with your favorite toppings. Heat in a toaster oven till warm and melty.

Easy Healthy Cooking & Shopping for One Strategies

#1 Plan Your Meals Ahead

One of the keys to successfully cooking for one is planning ahead. Having a meal plan in place before your weekly grocery shopping trip will keep you on track with buying just what you need, and keeping wasted food to a minimum.

This is especially helpful when it comes to perishable items, like produce and dairy.

#2 Buy only what you need from the bulk bins, meat/deli counter and salad bar

Shopping from the bulk bins, meat counter, deli counter and salad bar is a great strategy for singles.

Why? You can take only as much as you need - a single chicken breast, ¼ pound of shrimp, 3 slices of cheese, 1 cup of sliced onions and peppers, a few ounces of nuts - instead of buying pre-packaged ingredients you know you won't use up.

#3 Consider canned and frozen options

Keep frozen fruit and vegetables on hand that will keep much longer than fresh. Just warm up the veggies you need from the bag and the rest goes right back in the freezer.

Frozen fruit can top your waffle or be whipped up into a smoothie.

Stock your pantry with convenient canned items including fish, beans and low calorie soups. Dress up canned soup by adding frozen vegetables or leftover meat cut into pieces.

Use cans of fish (tuna, crab, or salmon) for sandwiches and a wide variety of salads from green to potato to pasta.

#4 Stick with meals made up of individual ingredients

When cooking for one it is helpful to think in terms of individual elements. Cook single servings of fish, chicken, or steak. Small amounts of pasta or a single baked potato. Even vegetables and salads can be easily prepared for one.

When each element of your meal is individual, you have more control over how much you're cooking. This will also provide you with more options for reusing any leftovers.

#5 Change up your spices and marinades

Just because you're eating chicken breast often doesn't mean it has to taste the same. A fillet of fish or chicken breast can taste totally different depending on the spice blend or marinade you choose. There are so many spice blends and marinades available to choose from you never have to worry about getting bored.

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#6 Consider countertop cooking

A toaster oven or indoor George Foreman grill (affiliate link) comes in handy when you just want to broil a chicken breast, salmon filet, or burger. No need to heat up the entire oven or outdoor grill this way.

#7 Cut the recipe in half or quarters

There's no reason why you can't make eggplant Parmesan or tuna noodle casserole in smaller quantities. Make a half or quarter of your favorite casserole.

If you halve a recipe that calls for a 9 x 13 inch pan (affiliate link), use an 8-inch baking pan (affiliate link) (8" x 8" square dish) or a 9-inch pie plate (affiliate link) instead.

If you're making one-fourth of the recipe, a loaf pan (affiliate link) might work best. Cooking time might be a bit less, though, so keep an eye on that.

For recipes likes stews and chili, you can usually cut the ingredients in half and use a smaller size pot. Or consider making your favorite meatloaf in muffin tins and freezing the extra.

Did You Know that All the Recipes on My Blog Can Be Reduced or Increased with Just a Click to Making Cooking for One Easier?

The 'servings' for all the recipes on my blog can be increased or decreased adjusting the ingredient amounts accordingly.

(Just click the up/down arrow located beside the "servings" number!)

#8 Find creative ways to repurpose your leftovers

Leftovers are an inevitable part of cooking for one that I appreciate. The lazy part of me likes knowing there is always something in the fridge.

Not having to start from scratch makes life easier and keeps me from resorting to fast food or takeout when I am too tired and hungry to expend much effort in the kitchen.

But instead of eating the same meal night after night, I like to "re-purpose" my leftovers into a brand new meal, like tacos, quesadillas, a frittata or pasta.

I love having leftovers I can use in different dishes. This is especially easy when you've got individual ingredients like grilled chicken, roasted vegetables, rice, or beans ready to go.

For example, leftover chicken fajitas can be turned into a quesadilla, burrito bowl or stir-fry with brown rice.

Roasted vegetables can be the filling for an omelet or topping for a salad or pizza or stuffing for a sandwich. Use leftover chili to top a baked potato.

#9 Enjoy breakfast for dinner

You know those nights you want a simple, satisfying supper but have zero energy to cook? Breakfast foods are the perfect solution.

It can be as simple as a few scrambled eggs, poached egg on toast, an omelet, or a frittata, with a simple green salad alongside. Even a stack of pancakes can be a light and healthy choice.

#10 Make your own freezer meals

Portion out and freeze any extra servings for future quick and easy meals. I particularly love to do this with soups, stews, chilis and casseroles.

If you've made a big pot of vegetable soup but are sick of eating it after a few days, pour it into plastic containers, label it, and freeze it. Then the next time you know you're going to have a super busy day, open the freezer first thing in the morning, take a look around, and pull out that soup to eat for dinner later that night.

Recipe & Cooking for One Suggestions from Readers

#1 German Potato Salad Recipe For One

• 1 baked potato chopped
• 2 hard boiled eggs chopped
• 2 pieces of bacon

1. In a small fry pan add ¼ cup water. Place bacon in pan and fry. The water will remove most of the grease
   and cook the fat part before it fries.
2. Cool and then chop the bacon.
3. Mix all ingredients and add a fat free salad dressing of your choice. Enjoy!!!

Dutch potato salad variation: add cup of iceberg lettuce to the warm mixture.
~Lauren

#2 Batch Cooking for One

Create a stockpile of frozen meals so you can have a different dinner every night...

I spend one full day cooking and freezing the extras. Then when I have nothing in the refrigerator, I head to the freezer. ~ LeeAnn

I always cook for 4 even though most of the time it's just me as I love leftovers and freeze most things, I'm a British girl and make myself a Sunday roast every week then use the leftover meat/ veggies to make soup for the week in the winter months, lucky me living in Florida where fresh fish, fruits & veggies are in abundance - I have no excuse to be overweight! ~ Sharon

I make large dishes that freeze well and use up all the ingredients I bought. I eat one portion that night, and freeze the rest individually. Once you do this a couple times, you'll have several different meals to choose from in the freezer ready to heat up and eat. Some of my favorites to freeze are curries, stews, and meatballs in sauce (to keep them from getting dry).
~ Melissa Walthart

While I like leftovers, but I don't like eating the same dinner two nights in a row. Cooking dinner on back to back nights helps to change things up. For example, if you cook on Monday and Tuesday night, you can re-purpose Monday's leftovers on Wednesday and do the same with Tuesday's leftovers on Thursday. ~ Kelli Foster (TheKitchen)

Do you have any other favorite "Cooking for One" tips to share?

I'd love to know so please leave a comment and share them below!

*Points® calculated by WW. *PointsPlus® and SmartPoints® calculated by Simple Nourished Living; Not endorsed by Weight Watchers International, Inc. All recipe ingredients except optional items included in determining nutritional estimates. SmartPoints® values calculated WITHOUT each plan's ZeroPoint Foods (Green plan, Blue plan, Purple plan) using the WW Recipe Builder.

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