Nancy, I too am retired and alone. I quickly found that pre-made, commercial food was high in salt and expensive for what I got. I am a good cook if I put my mind - and energy - into it, so I started making regular meals and freezing at least one extra meal from what I had made. Soups and stews are especially useful, which I usually freeze in wide-mouth, quart canning jars that can be popped in the microwave to at least defrost.... and even heat up. When I make a cake I try to freeze part of it for future reference. Cutting things into portion size and separating a little bit before freezing helps remove only one piece for a snack or dessert. Also, the butchers at my local market and Whole Foods all know me as the woman who buys 1 small piece of meat and will sometimes tease me by showing me something itty-biity. And, I'm always ready to go out to eat if someone suggests it, and, I always bring home a 'doggy-bag' that goes straight into the garage freezer as I pass-by on my way in the house. Those always come in handy when I'm not into cooking. As to recipes to share with you: I think anything you want specifically you'll need to ask for... as suggested by others.

I've done it before a few different ways. I went looking for you and found a good video of a recipe by Martha Stewart, you can find it easily with a search. It's the classic approach. Besides the obvious first step of browning the meat, it's then painted (when cooled somewhat) with Dijon mustard and then coated with seasoned breadcrumbs. The seasoning is basic but includes garlic (of course). Then back into the oven to finish, but I think her time is a bit long for medium rare. Use your instant read thermometer and start checking it maybe 10 minutes before the expected end so as to not run over. The preparation she explains is easy and not too time consuming. The end result will be dramatic and delicious. Enjoy it. mushcreek, I'd be curious to hear why you're going the sous vide approach. It's easy enough to cook meat to the right degree of doneness (or non-doneness) in an oven. Are you worried about over-cooking it? I'd think raising the internal temperature via sous vide and then searing it afterwards risks doing that too. I guess in the end, whichever process one gets comfortable with and can use to the desired outcome is what matters but I'd be worried about not rendering off enough fat AND not overcooking it doing it your way, unless you're using a broiler. Still not clear why.

PM, it's too late for me, I didn't get a chance to sit down until now, and the cornbread is already made and eaten. We had black eyed peas and greens, Mother had chicken strips and mashed butternut squash left over from another meal. I do like the idea of adding pumpkin, though, or maybe some of that butternut squash... Elery's two youngest boys will be here tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. with their families. Mother is here and that's a lot like cooking with a 3 year old, a lot of "what can I do?", but at least she's still here so I'm thankful for that. Anyway, I spent the day roasting tenderloin, making pizza "rolls", cheesecake, caramel nut tart, baking one more batch of cookies. Mother helped me frost. Elery's oldest granddaughter got her wisdom teeth taken out two days ago, so I'll be up early and making macaroni and cheese for her. Happy New Year, everyone, and may it be a happy and healthy one for all of us. Annie

The mobile app is funny and I don't use it. If you're using a browser, tap/click the Get Ideas tab at the top of the screen and you'll see a big white menu. One the far right is a section header that says "Discussions". At the bottom of that section is "Gardenweb". Click that and you'll get to a page on Gardenweb.com callen Your Topics. You might see one there that will take you to cooking, but to be sure look at the sidebar on the left. It may say Cooking within the sidebar under the "Your Topics" header and you can just use that link. Otherwise, click on Home Forums and scroll down. Cooking is listed alphabetically there. That will get you to the CF if you can't remember the address, which is: https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/cooking I don't know how long it's been this way, because it used to be a big muddle, but you can get right to the above address for GWCF using those links.