So, my other question was more general techniques and advise ... but for the actual cookbook question ... the whole 'cooking for one' has been a pet peeve of mine for some time (I missed getting my entry together for the first Food Network Star competition, and they have a restriction in the application form that's kept me from entering ever since)

But, a couple cookbooks that seem to still be in print:

• Going Solo in the Kitchen : Mostly cookbook with lots of simple recipes, but lots of advice and tips in the beginning and scattered throughout. And brings up a good point:

Actually, cooking for yourself isn't difficult--like anything else, it just sounds difficult if you haven't mastered the basics. Solo cooking is really much easier than cooking for others: It takes far less time, is less costly, and is less emotionally charged (if your food doesn't come out well, you're the only one who knows it.) It's probably one of the arenas of your life where you are totally in control. You can eat when and what you like every night.

• Serves One: Simple Meals to Savor When You're on Your Own : a little more complex recipes ... also includes pictures of the food on some plates in the middle, so if you prefer cookbooks with pictures for inspiration, this one might be a better choice.

... also look for the 'low number of ingredient' type cookbooks. (the concept's been around for longer than Five Ingredient Fix ... I have plenty of this sort of cookbook, but most are out of print. (and I don't actually have that one))

... and if you're not looking for the fine dining type cooking for one, some of the 'college cookbooks' and other introductory cookbooks tend to be more suited for low effort (or low skill), and fewer people, but most still insist on making 4-8 servings, even for the college ones, so take NBenatar's advice.

• The College Cookbook
• The Healthy College Cookbook
• Help! My Apartment has a Kitchen
• Cooking Outside the Pizza Box
• Your Shirt is NOT an Oven Mitt
• The "I Don't Know How to Cook" Book

Also, not exactly cookbooks ... more food writing, plus recipes, but specifically of the 'cooking alone' variety:

• What we eat when we eat alone (about 1/2 cookbook, half stories)
• Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant (mostly stories, a few recipes)

... I have some other ones, eg, "The Bachelor's Dinner: Good Food for Single People", by David Jones which strives to be more fine dining (a little too much in that direction for my opinion), but they're out of print, and that one doesn't even show up when I search by ISBN.

Also, if you follow any of the links, Amazon makes recommendations of similar books, as there's lots of books on the topic (just they're ones I haven't read)

So, my other answer was more general techniques and advise ... but for the actual cookbook question ... the whole 'cooking for one' has been a pet peeve of mine for some time (I missed getting my entry together for the first Food Network Star competition, and they have a restriction in the application form that's kept me from entering ever since)

But, a couple cookbooks that seem to still be in print:

• Going Solo in the Kitchen : Mostly cookbook with lots of simple recipes, but lots of advice and tips in the beginning and scattered throughout. And brings up a good point:

Actually, cooking for yourself isn't difficult--like anything else, it just sounds difficult if you haven't mastered the basics. Solo cooking is really much easier than cooking for others: It takes far less time, is less costly, and is less emotionally charged (if your food doesn't come out well, you're the only one who knows it.) It's probably one of the arenas of your life where you are totally in control. You can eat when and what you like every night.

• Serves One: Simple Meals to Savor When You're on Your Own : a little more complex recipes ... also includes pictures of the food on some plates in the middle, so if you prefer cookbooks with pictures for inspiration, this one might be a better choice.

... also look for the 'low number of ingredient' type cookbooks. (the concept's been around for longer than Five Ingredient Fix ... I have plenty of this sort of cookbook, but most are out of print. (and I don't actually have that one))

... and if you're not looking for the fine dining type cooking for one, some of the 'college cookbooks' and other introductory cookbooks tend to be more suited for low effort (or low skill), and fewer people, but most still insist on making 4-8 servings, even for the college ones, so take NBenatar's advice.

• The College Cookbook
• The Healthy College Cookbook
• Help! My Apartment has a Kitchen
• Cooking Outside the Pizza Box
• Your Shirt is NOT an Oven Mitt
• The "I Don't Know How to Cook" Book

Also, not exactly cookbooks ... more food writing, plus recipes, but specifically of the 'cooking alone' variety:

• What we eat when we eat alone (about 1/2 cookbook, half stories)
• Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant (mostly stories, a few recipes)

... I have some other ones, eg, "The Bachelor's Dinner: Good Food for Single People", by David Jones which strives to be more fine dining (a little too much in that direction for my opinion), but they're out of print, and that one doesn't even show up when I search by ISBN.

Also, if you follow any of the links, Amazon makes recommendations of similar books, as there's lots of books on the topic (just they're ones I haven't read)

So, my other question was more general techniques and advise ... but for the actual cookbook question ... the whole 'cooking for one' has been a pet peeve of mine for some time (I missed getting my entry together for the first Food Network Star competition, and they have a restriction in the application form that's kept me from entering ever since)

But, a couple cookbooks that seem to still be in print:

• Going Solo in the Kitchen : Mostly cookbook with lots of simple recipes, but lots of advice and tips in the beginning and scattered throughout. And brings up a good point:

Actually, cooking for yourself isn't difficult--like anything else, it just sounds difficult if you haven't mastered the basics. Solo cooking is really much easier than cooking for others: It takes far less time, is less costly, and is less emotionally charged (if your food doesn't come out well, you're the only one who knows it.) It's probably one of the arenas of your life where you are totally in control. You can eat when and what you like every night.

• Serves One: Simple Meals to Savor When You're on Your Own : a little more complex recipes ... also includes pictures of the food on some plates in the middle, so if you prefer cookbooks with pictures for inspiration, this one might be a better choice.

... also look for the 'low number of ingredient' type cookbooks. (the concept's been around for longer than Five Ingredient Fix ... I have plenty of this sort of cookbook, but most are out of print. (and I don't actually have that one))

... and if you're not looking for the fine dining type cooking for one, some of the 'college cookbooks' and other introductory cookbooks tend to be more suited for low effort (or low skill), and fewer people, but most still insist on making 4-8 servings, even for the college ones, so take NBenatar's advice.

• The College Cookbook
• The Healthy College Cookbook
• Help! My Apartment has a Kitchen
• Cooking Outside the Pizza Box
• Your Shirt is NOT an Oven Mitt
• The "I Don't Know How to Cook" Book

Also, not exactly cookbooks ... more food writing, plus recipes, but specifically of the 'cooking alone' variety:

• What we eat when we eat alone (about 1/2 cookbook, half stories)
• Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant (mostly stories, a few recipes)

... I have some other ones, eg, "The Bachelor's Dinner: Good Food for Single People", by David Jones which strives to be more fine dining (a little too much in that direction for my opinion), but they're out of print, and that one doesn't even show up when I search by ISBN.

Also, if you follow any of the links, Amazon makes recommendations of similar books, as there's lots of books on the topic (just they're ones I haven't read)

So, my other question was more general techniques and advise ... but for the actual cookbook question ... the whole 'cooking for one' has been a pet peeve of mine for some time (I missed getting my entry together for the first Food Network Star competition, and they have a restriction in the application form that's kept me from entering ever since)

But, a couple cookbooks that seem to still be in print:

• Going Solo in the Kitchen : Mostly cookbook with lots of simple recipes, but lots of advice and tips in the beginning and scattered throughout. And brings up a good point:

Actually, cooking for yourself isn't difficult--like anything else, it just sounds difficult if you haven't mastered the basics. Solo cooking is really much easier than cooking for others: It takes far less time, is less costly, and is less emotionally charged (if your food doesn't come out well, you're the only one who knows it.) It's probably one of the arenas of your life where you are totally in control. You can eat when and what you like every night.

• Serves One: Simple Meals to Savor When You're on Your Own : a little more complex recipes ... also includes pictures of the food on some plates in the middle, so if you prefer cookbooks with pictures for inspiration, this one might be a better choice.

... also look for the 'low number of ingredient' type cookbooks. (the concept's been around for longer than Five Ingredient Fix ... I have plenty of this sort of cookbook, but most are out of print. (and I don't actually have that one))

... and if you're not looking for the fine dining type cooking for one, some of the 'college cookbooks' and other introductory cookbooks tend to be more suited for low effort (or low skill), and fewer people, but most still insist on making 4-8 servings, even for the college ones, so take NBenatar's advice.

• The College Cookbook
• The Healthy College Cookbook
• Help! My Apartment has a Kitchen
• Cooking Outside the Pizza Box
• Your Shirt is NOT an Oven Mitt
• The "I Don't Know How to Cook" Book

Also, not exactly cookbooks ... more food writing, plus recipes, but specifically of the 'cooking alone' variety:

• What we eat when we eat alone (about 1/2 cookbook, half stories)
• Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant (mostly stories, a few recipes)

... I have some other ones, eg, "The Bachelor's Dinner: Good Food for Single People", by David Jones which strives to be more fine dining (a little too much in that direction for my opinion), but they're out of print, and that one doesn't even show up when I search by ISBN.

Also, if you follow any of the links, Amazon makes recommendations of similar books, as there's lots of books on the topic (just they're ones I haven't read)