Produce is tough when you’re just buying for 1-2 people. For fruit, I think of it in terms of bowls instead of pieces. When I buy fruit, I plan for how much fruit can be cut up and stored as fruit salad in my largest Tupperware container. For me, this means 1/8 – 1/4 of a watermelon, or any other small melon. Add to that 1-2 containers of berries, a supremed orange/grapefruit or two, plus 1-2 pears/peaches/plums/whatever that’re diced. Occasionally some figs. Because the fruit is cut up and in a clear container, I actually see it so it gets eaten. Plus, I like knowing I have a little fruit salad daily.

If you have leftover fruit, don’t hesitate to freeze it. I like to cut it into chunks and use those chunks when I get around to it for smoothies or protein shakes. Also, you can always make quick breads from leftover fruit (also from leftover carrots or zucchini). Oh, and if you have leftover pears, apples, etc., you can make apple/pear/whatever butter out of them. Additionally, if you have a little spare time, you can make jams and jellies out of produce that’s not quite as fresh as you’d like. For jams and such, you generally only need water bath canning, so you don’t need psecial equipment.

As for vegetables, I do a few things to avoid waste. I’m more of a loose meal planner (in that I have a general idea of what I’ll make that week, but no solid plans) so I kind of guesstimate how much I’ll need for the various things I intend to make. If you wrap your celery in foil, it drastically increases its shelf life. Also, sometimes I completely forget I have a bunch of stuff that’s about to mold over. When I discover those things lurking about, I cut off just the bad parts of the foods (I don’t tell my boyfriend I do this, because he’d have a heart attack), then roast ALL the veggies and either toss them into some pasta (great meal that can last a few days) or I roast them and puree them into a pasta sauce. Any leftover sauce can be frozen for a quick meal later. Or I make a soup, which also freezes well. Lastly, you can chop and freeze or dry loads of veggies.

I also agree about buying frozen vegetables. Most of them are texturally okay, so it can save you a lot of waste. For spinach, I think people should always buy frozen if they’re planning to cook the spinach other than lightly wilting it. It saves a LOT of money and produces no textural differences.

The frozen veggies are the way to go for single people. Just steam a small portion with your mean and voila! Yummy veggies within a couple minutes.