Festive Chocolate Pretzel Rods

Some recipes are supposed to make somebody marry you. This one is designed to make you rather pleased you have the evening to yourself.

Welcome to Single and Loving It Spaghetti, part of my Just Me, Thanks series of anti-Marry Me dinners.

No seduction by sauce. No pretending you only want a tiny sprinkle of Parmesan. Just a proper bowl of spaghetti Bolognese, made for your own enjoyment.

This easy spaghetti recipe for one has a rich tomato-and-beef sauce, a little garlic and enough vegetables to give it flavour without turning dinner into a chopping marathon. There’s also a two-serving option, so you can freeze half the sauce for another evening.

One for you. One for future you.

That second portion isn’t being saved for someone who might text you back. It’s for you, hungry, next Thursday.

I was recently contacted by a lady looking for single-serve dinners, and her request got me thinking about how often recipes assume we’re feeding a whole household.

Cooking for one deserves more attention. Sometimes you want a proper dinner without dividing six servings’ worth of ingredients or committing to eating the same meal until Friday.

That helped inspire this Just Me, Thanks series. With so many “Marry Me” recipes around, I fancied taking things in the opposite direction: delicious dinners made for your own enjoyment, with absolutely no proposal required.

Each recipe includes quantities for one, plus an optional second serving for the freezer. Not an unexpected dinner guest. Just future you, who will be delighted to find something lovely ready to reheat.

One for you. One for future you. Because feeding yourself well is reason enough to cook.

A Proper Dinner Without the Proposal

The Marry Me-style recipe promises food so irresistible that someone will propose. This series cheerfully heads in the other direction: delicious dinners made because you deserve to eat well yourself.

This is a quick, weeknight Bolognese-style sauce rather than a traditional ragù simmered for hours. It uses a small quantity of mince, everyday ingredients and a manageable cooking time.

You don’t have to be single to enjoy it. An evening alone, a different dinner schedule or a household full of people who want something else are all perfectly good reasons to make your own bowl of pasta.

For more small-portion inspiration, our feature on The Ultimate Cooking for One Cookbook offers another useful starting point.

Recipe at a Glance

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: approximately 25 minutes
Total time: approximately 35 minutes
Servings: 1, with an option for 2
Equipment: small saucepan or deep frying pan, pasta saucepan, chopping board, knife and food thermometer

Use a roughly 18–20 cm saucepan or deep frying pan for one portion of sauce. Choose a slightly larger pan for two servings.

Ingredients for One or Two Servings

The two-serving column makes two portions of sauce. If you’re freezing one, cook only tonight’s spaghetti.

For one dinner now and one later: make the two-serving sauce, but cook only 75 g spaghetti and use 10 g Parmesan tonight. Cook another portion of pasta when you reheat the saved sauce.

The mince quantity is its raw weight. The spaghetti quantity is its dry weight.

How to Make Single and Loving It Spaghetti

1. Soften the Vegetables

Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced onion and grated carrot.

Cook for approximately 5–6 minutes, stirring regularly, until softened. If the vegetables start catching, add a teaspoon or two of water and lower the heat slightly.

2. Add the Garlic

Stir in the chopped garlic and cook for about 30 seconds.

Keep it moving so it becomes fragrant without burning.

3. Brown the Mince

Add the beef mince and break it into small pieces with a spoon.

Cook for approximately 4–5 minutes, stirring, until browned.

4. Cook the Tomato Paste

Stir in the tomato paste and cook for about 1 minute.

5. Simmer the Sauce

Add the passata, water, oregano and optional Worcestershire sauce.

Bring to a gentle simmer, then reduce the heat. Cook for approximately 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens and the mince is thoroughly cooked.

Check that the sauce reaches 75°C, measuring in the centre and avoiding contact with the pan surface.

If it becomes too thick, add a splash of water. A small quantity of sauce can reduce quickly, especially in a wide pan.

6. Cook the Spaghetti

While the sauce simmers, cook the spaghetti in boiling water according to its packet instructions.

Before draining, save a little of the starchy cooking water.

7. Put Away the Future-You Portion

If you made the two-serving sauce to save one portion, transfer half the sauce to a shallow container before adding any spaghetti.

Follow the cooling and freezing instructions below.

8. Toss and Finish

Add the drained spaghetti to tonight’s sauce and toss gently.

Add reserved pasta water a teaspoon or two at a time if needed to loosen the sauce and help it coat the strands.

Taste and adjust the seasoning. Finish with Parmesan and optional basil, then serve immediately.

One for Future You: The Freezer Option

For this recipe, freeze the Bolognese sauce separately from the spaghetti and Parmesan.

It makes reheating straightforward and lets you cook the pasta fresh when you want your second dinner.

1. Make the two-serving quantity of sauce.
2. Before adding pasta, transfer half the sauce to a shallow freezer-safe container.
3. Cool promptly in the fridge. Don’t leave it on the bench until completely cold.
4. Once chilled, seal and label the container.
5. Freeze and aim to use within 2 months for best quality.

Choose a container that holds one portion comfortably, leaving a little room for expansion.

Future-Me Freezer Label

Single and Loving It Bolognese Sauce
Made on: __________
Best-quality freezer date: __________

Thaw in the fridge. Reheat thoroughly. Serve with freshly cooked spaghetti and Parmesan.

Writing “sauce” on the label saves future you from expecting a fully assembled dinner. We’re making her evening easier, not setting a small kitchen trap.

How to Reheat the Frozen Sauce

1. Thaw the sauce overnight in the fridge.
2. Transfer to a small saucepan.
3. Add a splash of water if it has thickened.
4. Heat promptly over medium heat, stirring regularly, until steaming hot throughout and reaching 75°C.
5. Meanwhile, cook 75 g dried spaghetti according to the packet instructions.
6. Toss the hot pasta with the reheated sauce.
7. Finish with 10 g grated Parmesan and serve immediately.

Reheat only the portion you intend to eat. Avoid repeatedly cooling and reheating the sauce.

Keeping a Portion in the Fridge

If you refrigerate the sauce instead of freezing it, keep it at 5°C or colder and use within 2 days.

People at higher risk of foodborne illness should follow the stricter guidance to use refrigerated leftovers within one day.

Tips for a Better Bowl of Spaghetti

Give the onion time to soften.
A few minutes at the start makes a difference. Crunchy onion can be distracting in an otherwise lovely sauce.

Grate the carrot finely.
It softens quickly and blends into the sauce. Chunky carrot pieces need longer to cook.

Keep the simmer gentle.
If the sauce starts sticking or drying out, lower the heat and add a little water.

Save some pasta water.
A small splash helps the sauce coat the spaghetti. Add gradually so you don’t dilute it too much.

Season at the end.
Passata, Parmesan and Worcestershire sauce vary in saltiness. Taste the finished sauce before adding more salt.

Easy Variations

Turkey Mince

Use the same weight of turkey mince instead of beef. Cook thoroughly and check that the sauce reaches 75°C.

The flavour will be lighter than the beef version.

Extra Vegetables

Add a small handful of finely chopped mushrooms with the onion and carrot.

Cook until their released moisture has mostly evaporated before adding the mince.

A Little Heat

Add a pinch of chilli flakes with the oregano.

You’re the person eating it, so the chilli level is entirely your decision.

Different Pasta Shapes

Penne, shells and fusilli work well too. Use the same dry weight and follow the packet cooking time.

Without Worcestershire Sauce

Simply leave it out. It adds savoury flavour, but the recipe doesn’t depend on it.

Gluten-Free Spaghetti

Use gluten-free pasta and check the Worcestershire sauce and other packaged ingredients, as formulations vary.

Other Ways to Use the Saved Sauce

Future you doesn’t have to eat spaghetti again.

You can serve the reheated Bolognese sauce:

• Over a freshly baked potato.
• With penne and a little grated cheese.
• Spooned onto toast for a savoury supper.
• As part of a small baked pasta dish.

Reheat the sauce thoroughly before combining it with your chosen freshly prepared base.

Use Up the Ingredients You’ve Opened

Cooking for one is more practical when there’s a plan for the rest of the ingredients.

Onion and carrot: chop or grate spare vegetables and freeze in small portions for another cooked sauce or soup.