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When I found myself living on my own for the very first time in my adult life a few years ago, I found out that it's actually harder to cook for one than it is for a family. Fast food was not the answer. At first it seemed cheaper than buying groceries, but in the long run that's not true. Also, it's not exactly healthy.

So, what is a single girl (or guy) to do? I would like to share a few pointers that I have learned when it comes to cooking and buying groceries. Forget about buying by "value". Indeed, a larger package is the better value, but it does not make much sense if you end up throwing away what you don't use.

One of the problems I did not want to bother with cooking at first was that I was taught to "follow the recipe and the instructions or it won't work out". That would create a problem when shopping for ingredients. A simple meal, when all was said and done, could run up a $15.00 grocery trip to the store, just to get those two elusive items that the recipe called for. It was much easier to just get two things from the dollar menu at the place around the corner.

However, I have since figured out that all you have to do is to keep the ratios intact in a recipe. What does this mean? Usually recipes are geared for a family of four. If you simply use half of everything, you end up with the perfect meal for yourself, plus leftovers for the next day's lunch.

In addition, there are many ingredients that you can substitute for, and keep on hand. Spices, herbs, and seasonings are the perfect example. The possibilities are endless when it comes to those ingredients, and don't be afraid to experiment. There is no reason to rush out and buy a $ 10.00 jar of something you will only use once, just because the recipe calls for it.

If you are not sure how to use spices and are hesitant to experiment, just go and look for pre-mixed jars of seasonings. Read the back of what the suggestions are. They now make many mixes that can be used for pork, fish, chicken, and red meat alike. You really can't go wrong with those.

Here are some other ideas that will save money: Unless you are someone that actually consumes milk by the glasses, you only need to keep a small container of 2 % milk on hand. Why 2%? If you prefer skim, just water the milk down. You just increased your milk volume, while the cost stayed the same.

I also keep stuffing mix on hand, as you can keep that for a long time. I never buy breadcrumbs. If a recipe calls for breadcrumbs, I simply put some of the stuffing

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