If you believe food media, we are all constantly having friends over, feeding a crowd or, at the very least, making merry family dinners. But what about those of us who cook solo? If ever you’ve struggled to scale a recipe for eight down to a single portion, then this is the book for you – no longer will you need a calculator to hand to divvy up ingredients, or figure out if cooking times and pan sizes need to change, as Eleanor has it all worked out. The downside to being a solo cook is that you’re also doing the clean up and that’s where the ‘one pot’ part comes in to keep tiresome tidying up to a minimum. It’s not a new idea (see Nici Wickes’ excellent books that walk the same trail) but I loved the useful partner recipes to use up ingredients that solve the solo shopper’s dilemma such as what to do if you only need a stick of celery but had to buy a full head. This book turns around the idea that dining alone is a sad, dreary existence of filled-up freezers and reheated leftovers. No! Claim it as an opportunity! Embrace the joy of doing something just for yourself as, after all, one of the joys of cooking for one is that you get to decide what you eat and when you eat it. I’d never considered that Beef Wellington was for one, or a cinnamon bun could be a single, but if you’re setting about a labour of love, who deserves that love more than you? TRACY WHITMEY
