Eatingwell Serves Two: 150 Healthy in a Hurry Suppers

by Jim Romanoff

For millions of fast-paced, modern households, the old cookbook standard of "serves four" is increasingly outdated and a daily nuisance. With more than 77 million baby boomers adjusting to the Empty Nest Syndrome, and with their adult children setting up their own new homes, there is a mounting demand for quick, easy, healthy recipes yielding fewer servings.

But cooking for two people or even singles isn't as simple as cutting a recipe in...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0881507237
• ISBN13: 9780881507232
• Release Date: October 2006
• Publisher: Countryman Press
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 2.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 8.2" x 10.2"

Customer Reviews

Delicious, easy, healthy

The book is large and sturdy and stands up well to typical kitchen abuse. It includes information on shopping healthily for two, as well as menu suggestions. Recipe chapters include: dinner salads, soups & stews, vegetarian mains, poultry, fish & seafood, meat, and accompaniments. In keeping with the healthy aim of the book, desserts are relegated to a several-page portion of the accompaniments chapter. Small symbols mark particularly low-carb or high-fiber recipes. Each recipe estimates both "active minutes" spent preparing the dish as well as total minutes. There are make-ahead notes and detailed nutrition information. There's also a "nutrition bonus" note that points out any particular vitamin benefits found in that recipe. For example, the "Caesar Salad Three Ways" includes plenty of Selenium, Vitamin C, Vitamin A, and omega-3s (it also comes with a basic recipe as well as a shrimp and a chicken variation--hence "three ways"). Sometimes extra notes are included, for example, the Caesar Salad has a side note with instructions on making your own croutons. It also includes a delectable-looking photo; while photos aren't included with all of the recipes, there are certainly enough to make your mouth water! I personally found not all of the flavors to my liking. Some were a bit bland, and some tried to make up for blandness in ways that just didn't appeal to my palate. A Lentil & Chicken Stew appealed to a friend of mine who particularly prefers bland food, but I just couldn't enjoy the lemon, dill, and chicken flavors together. On the other hand, she and I both loved the Creamy Artichoke & Spinach Soup, which takes a rather unusual approach to making a thick and creamy soup out of very healthy ingredients. There's a really nice Grilled Peach Sundae recipe in the quick desserts section that we heartily enjoyed. While it's true that I found a few of their recipes to be not entirely memorable, on the whole they're quite good. The Eggplant-Cheddar Bake, for example, disappeared very quickly! My only reservations with this book are definitely taste-dependent. If you don't enjoy the kind of semi-bland, lemony-chicken type of recipe that shows up in a lot of healthy eating cookbooks, then there will be some recipe sections in here that won't appeal to you. That said, there are plenty of people who will enjoy those recipes, and even the rest of us will find lots to work with in here!

this is a fabulous cookbook!

I have dozens of cookbooks and it takes something special for me to keep one on my kitchen counter. This one certainly qualifies. I've tried several of the recipes and all were delicious and it is so nice not to have a ton of leftovers. I love that the nutritional information and suggested sides and included for each recipe. What really makes this book a winner for me are the Notes. Every time I read an instruction or ingredient I'm not quite sure about, there is a Note exactly on point, anticipating my question. In addition, the tips regarding shopping in small quantities are very valuable. If you're looking for a cookbook with delicious recipes and smaller quantities, don't pass this one up!

Fabulous cookbook whether you're serving two or more

I use this cookbook regularly, usually doubling recipes for leftovers or to serve more than two, and I have been very impressed with the food. Everything is so flavorful, the recipes are clear and easy to follow, and above all, the food is truly healthy. Beyond the main recipes, there is a section on quick sauces and sides to spruce up any salad or meal. There's a huge variety, too--Asian, Mexican, Italian, American--a range of flavors to enjoy. This book also has thick, glossy pages and tons of gorgeous photographs to make browsing and planning pleasure. You can't go wrong with this purchase. A fantastic cookbook! I also recommend the EatingWell Healthy in a Hurry cookbook, which was my favorite for a long time but is now rivaled by Serves Two.

Everyday Cookbook

I bought this cookbook in November and use it 3-4 time a week. Every recipe is easy and fast. My boyfriend is somewhat of a picky eater and he likes just about everything I've made. I bought copies for my empty nester parents and "in-laws" and would give it to every couple I know if I could. I like the built in "portion control" since every recipe is for 2 which keeps us from over-eating. The vegetarian recipes even satisfy carnivores. Each recipe includes nutrient information, too, so when you need to up your calcium, fiber, etc. intake, you know what recipe to choose. Even when you're too tired to cook, some recipes are so simple and tasty (chicken tarragon) it takes less energy to whip something up than look through the take-out menus. I have dozens and dozens of cookbooks, but this is definitely the most-used. Buy this book!

Tasty, tasty, and quick

Quite simply, this is the best "cooking for two" cookbook I have ever used. Most recipes call for "regular," i.e. non-exotic, ingredients and attention has been given to avoiding awkward leftovers: you know, 1/2 can of white beans that -- well, what are most of us going to do with THAT? These go together quickly, too. Each recipe includes an estimate of time to table and, if anything, the estimates seem to run a little on the long side. Some cookbooks that promise 30 minute recipes are optimistic about how quickly some of us can chop. Here are recipes that really do go together in a scant 30 minutes, especially if both people are in the kitchen. The Publisher's Weekly bit above mentions some of the more esoteric recipes. Interesting as those sound, more appealing to us have been chicken tacos and salt and pepper shrimp (Best. Shrimp. Ever. -- and incredibly fast and easy to make). A strength of this book is its imaginative ways with relatively ordinary ingredients and its helpful introduction to ingredients that I have not used before (chipotles [smoked jalapenos] in adobo sauce is one example that comes to mind). I am becoming a bolder, better cook because the information gives me courage to try new things and to use old ingredients differently. The introduction provides an overview of how to shop when cooking for two, including specific suggestions for shopping for produce and meats. A concise section of very basic cooking instructions will help anyone new to or simply timid about approaching a stove. There are complete, accurate descriptions of methods and there is a brief but thorough section on outfitting a kitchen for the first time. The lavish photographs are beautiful, in themselves, but also impart information about how a particular dish should go together. The back of the book has an easy to use section on sauces, side dishes and fast (really fast!) desserts for two. These things are, for me, particularly challenging because I am used to preparing larger quantities. I appreciate directions for scaling down sauces and preparation of grains. In addition to indexing recipes by name, recipes are also sorted by preparation time and a list is provided of "healthy weight" recipes. Yes, this is a book about healthful eating and each recipe includes nutritional data. But the reason I like this book and recommend it so highly is that the recipes are exceptionally tasty, easy to prepare, and fast. It is a book we would have enjoyed as newlyweds. As empty-nesters, it's an absolute treasure.