food
By Taryn Pire
•
Published Sep 30, 2020
Just a wild guess, but you probably go above and beyond in the kitchen when you have guests over but lean on cereal and microwave dinners when you’re dining solo. It’s time to change that. Presenting 40 recipes for one that are well worth treating yourself to for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
1. Salted Peanut Butter Cup Smoothie
This 10-minute blender beauty boasts 22 grams of protein, so it’s sure to hold you over until lunchtime.
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2. Easy Microwave Scrambled Egg Cup
Fill a mason jar with meat, cheese and veggies, add an egg, stir and nuke. You can even meal prep a bunch of jars and leave them in the fridge for when you need them.
Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
3. No-bake Gluten-free Breakfast Cookie For One
Oats, almond butter and almonds will give you all the energy and protein you need to make it to your lunch break.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
4. Mini Spanish Tortilla With Zucchini
It’s basically a skillet omelet made with potatoes. This one’s also got zucchini and Manchego cheese.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
5. Waffle Breakfast Sandwich With Chorizo
You can never decide between a sweet or salty breakfast—so why not have both? We’ll be drizzling ours with syrup, too.
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6. Single-serve Egg And Chickpea Breakfast
Minimal mess means more one-on-one time with your morning coffee.
National Honey Board
7. Mini Cauliflower-crust Breakfast Pizza With Spicy Garlic Honey
We won’t tell if you start with a store-bought crust.
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8. 5-ingredient Banana Egg Pancakes
These grain-free flapjacks are bursting with fiber and protein, so go ahead and lay the whipped cream on thick.
Erin McDowell
9. Blueberry-ginger Smoothie
Sweet, tangy and the slightest bit spicy, this purple sipper is so worth getting out of bed for.
10. Individual Shakshuka With Hominy And Feta
Let’s be honest: Mini skillets can make anything look good. But this brunch dish needs no extra help.
11. Healthy Homemade Egg Mcmuffin
They freeze like a charm, so feel free to make a whole batch to last you through the week.
Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
12. 10-minute Macaroni And Cheese In A Mug
No leftovers? No problem. Save yourself the dirty pot and make just the right amount of mac. (Though we wouldn’t blame you for whipping up a second mug.)
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
13. Salmon Bowl With Farro, Black Beans And Tahini Dressing
Helloooo, omega-3s. Don’t look now, but you’re about to be the envy of the breakroom.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
14. Grilled Peach, Prosciutto And Mozzarella Sandwich
One bite will transport you straight to barbecue season. Use a grill pan for the peaches if your grill is out of commission.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
15. Blackberry-peach Grilled Cheese
You know those days when you absolutely, positively *need* something to eat like, ASAP? This three-cheese melt only takes 10 minutes.
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16. Pesto Chicken Mug Pasta
Dress up precooked chicken breast (or hey, shredded rotisserie chicken) with store-bought pesto, veggies and cheese.
Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
17. Greek Wedge Salad
Cut the salad ingredients down to size depending on how hungry you are. But we suggest making a big batch of dressing and saving the leftovers for future deliciousness.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
18. Swanky Blt
Update the traditional ingredients with pancetta, escarole, balsamic-roasted tomatoes and sourdough bread. Even the mayo gets VIP treatment (read: malt vinegar and crème fraiche).
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
19. Mini Nachos
Having chips for dinner is a smart move. But mini nachos that have cheese and toppings in every single bite without a single naked chip? Now that’s genius.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
20. Avocado Egg Salad Sandwich
And just like that, lunch for the week is ready in 25 minutes. Did we mention it’s keto?
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Photo/Styling: Katherine Gillen
21. Grilled Peanut Butter And Jelly Sandwich
The simplest upgrade to the timeless PB&J is no doubt grilling it in butter.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
22. Mini Chicken Shawarma
Make the chicken ahead of time, then stuff a fresh pita with the meat, veggies and yogurt sauce every time you’re feeling peckish.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
23. Fruicuterie Board
OK, picture that Michelin-caliber cheeseboard you made for your friends over the summer. Now, do that again—only smaller.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
24. 20-minute Paleo Egg Roll Bowls
It’s got cabbage, scallions, ginger, carrots and ground pork, just like your go-to takeout spot. Have the leftovers over rice or salad.
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Colin Price/Great Grilled Cheese
25. Cherry Cheeseball Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Sour cherry marmalade. Nutty pistachios. Creamy Camembert. Buttery challah bread. BRB, we’re suddenly starved.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
26. 15-minute Cucumber Avocado Blender Soup
Making soup from scratch always seems easy in theory—until we’re slicing, dicing and simmering for a few hours. Luckily, this lazy version comes together in the blender.
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Erin McDowell
27. Triple-decker Grilled Cheese
Loaded with tangy goat cheese, salty sharp cheddar and soft mozzarella.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
28. Easy 5-ingredient Corn Soup
Don’t rob yourself of the sesame seed-brown butter topping. You really deserve it.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
29. Ginger-pineapple Shrimp Stir-fry
This main is super bright and fresh with lots of veggies, fresh herbs and acidic pineapple. But our favorite thing about it is definitely the lack of leftovers.
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30. Avocado Pasta
Because a runny sunny-side-up egg never hurts. Neither does a creamy sauce that’s made in the blender instead of on the stove.
Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
31. 15-minute Mediterranean Couscous With Tuna And Pepperoncini
This dinner tastes and looks so fancy that even you won’t believe it didn’t take all night to make.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
32. One-pan Eggs With Asparagus And Tomatoes
Just roast yourself a serving of veggies, crack an egg on top and bake to yolky perfection.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
33. Greek Lemon Chicken Skewers With Tzatziki Sauce
Grill up as many skewers as you’d like and save the extra tzatziki for gyros, crudités or salad dressing.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
34. Ultimate Cheese Plate With Roasted Grapes
We love raw fruit, too. But seasoning and roasting the grapes makes them complex and richly sweet, meaning they’re just the pair for your favorite cheese.
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35. Egg Fried Rice In A Mug
You know how plain white rice is never quite the same when reheated? This recipe can bring it back to life.
36. Avocado Caprese Salad
Spicy arugula, fresh mozzarella and pantry staples take you from zero to dinner in minutes.
Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
37. Chocolate Chip Cookie In A Mug
This one’s for those of us who can’t be trusted around a whole batch.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
38. 5-minute S’mores Mug Cake
Because you shouldn’t have to wait for next year’s summer bonfire to get your toasted marshmallow fix.
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Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
39. 10-minute Strawberry Cobbler
The key to this impromptu treat is instant oats, whole milk and all the whipped cream.
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40. One-bowl Giant Chocolate Chip Cookie For One
There’s no bad day this sheet-pan treasure can’t fix.
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Taryn Pire
Food Editor
Taryn Pire is PureWow’s food editor and has been writing about all things delicious since 2016. She’s developed recipes, reviewed restaurants and investigated food trends at...
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