Making Dinner For Two? Try This Pan For A Mess-Free Meal

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A beautiful dinner for two can often leave your kitchen in shambles, especially if you're making something gourmet. Whether you're making a vegetable tortellini casserole or red wine beef short ribs, it can take every dish in the house to put together a romantic meal to share with your sweetheart. Bonding over delicious food is always worth it, despite the hard work — you'll get to the mess in the kitchen later. But there is a way to make a stunning meal without all the clean-up work after, a way to do dinner with only one dish and a couple of forks.

The key to a mess-free meal for two is a loaf pan, and throwing together dinner in one of these couldn't be easier. Loaf pans are designed for breadmaking, but they're perfect for a one-pan meal, and they look pretty on the table (especially in candlelight). A loaf pan dinner will also set the stage for a cozy, intimate dinner date since you aren't using plates and are instead diving into the same dish, together. Loaf pans are often sold in sets with lids, like this M MCIRCO 6-Piece Glass Loaf Pan with Lids Set, meaning you can pop the lid on and throw the whole thing in the fridge when you're done eating — reducing the mess in your kitchen to just a couple of utensils.

Loaf pans are made from metal, glass, or silicone, and all of those materials work great for whipping up a one-pan meal in the oven. Line the pan with parchment or coat it with a thin layer of cooking oil to prevent the food from sticking, and make sure to fill it about halfway or 2/3 of the way, max, to ensure everything cooks properly. If you're worried about your meal becoming soggy, add a little bread to the bottom of the pan before you build the rest of the dish — it'll help soak up some of the grease and juices generated during cooking.

Vegetables, meat, and aromatics can all go into a loaf pan at once and straight into the oven for an easy, no-mess dinner for two. You can't go wrong with which dish you decide to make in a loaf pan, either (maybe avoid soups or stews, though). Make a batch of Chef Allison Robicelli's Lasagna, create a casserole in white sauce, or make a lovely dinner of roasted chicken and root vegetables. There are a few useful strategies you can implement to fine-tune your loaf pan meal, elevating it to a memorable experience, such as paying attention to how you cut the ingredients and remembering that higher-density protein tends to take longer to cook than vegetables. Do a large chop with your vegetables, slicing them into bigger chunks so they won't overcook in the oven.