July 9, 2008
Sick of Mac & Cheese
I love to eat, I mean I guess everyone does, but after a year of dorm/cafeteria food I started cooking because I got so sick of freaking lean cuisines, ramen and easy mac I started looking for different things. We had a microwave and mini frig/freezer in our room so I started buying different frozen things like Stouffer’s lasagna or spaghetti and meat sauce and also Amy’s burritos. Both had more flavor than other stuff, but mostly it was just something new. Now I’m in an apartment and cook all the time. If you have a kitchen but still don’t like to cook too much, Bertolli makes these great frozen pasta dishes. They come in a bag and you put it in a pot for like 10 minutes and voila! You have a fancy dinner for two with hardly any trouble.
I felt the same exact way- campus food was rank. I did the whole frozen dinners too but actually got sick of those too. Except I don’t think I could ever get sick of easy mac. I finally started cooking this year- Rice a Roni is amazing. It’s so easy to make & it comes in like 10 different flavors. Also Egg Beaters are awesome (& u can get egg whites only if ur health conscious)- they come in a little carton so all u have to do is pour them in a pan on the stove. I like to heat up a Mission tortilla w it & add a little cheese & salsa. As far as drinks go, Crystal Light is great to put in ur water!
Fiona we should be co-chefs…breakfast tacos are my favorite college meal! I eat them for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even big snacks. They’re great b/c it only takes 5 minutes to scramble the eggs and heat up a tortilla. Eggs are great protein too! I also add fresh tomatoes, red onion, and sometimes cilantro, and I’ll also heat up a can of black beans to have w/ it for something more substantial. I also often whipped up a soup (tomato or something from a can) and sandwich (grilled cheese is great)! This last year I lived in an apartment with four other girls and we would have roommate dinners - one of our favs was taco soup. We bought it at the grocery store w/ all the ingredients and condiments (cilantro, cheese, etc.) already assembled in a little container. Then we just dumped it in a pot, added the chicken broth, and had a mom-tasting meal that was quick and easy!
umm yea, I eat breakfast tacos at least 4 times a week, but I’ll only eat them with salsa, I think food is just better when it’s spicy, maybe it’s the texan in me. That taco soup sounds awesome, who makes it? I like the one pot meal idea because I do love to cook, but cleaning.. yea, not really my thing. I have this awesome nonstick skillet from Calphalon that works wonders. You can get them on Amazon cheap too- retail price is much higher!
Crystal light is easy and so is Foldger’s instant coffee bags that you make in the microwave—so easy and nothing to clean up. (plus I was to cheap to just buy and actual coffee maker)
Haha I was too cheap for the coffee maker too, but I think the instant is just as good! As far as snacks go… almonds & granola have become my best friends. I always have bags of them from Central Market. They’re reasonably healthy & filling. Make sure u remember tub-a-ware so that u can save leftovers!
Tub-a-ware? Tupperware. But that’s a great idea! Even freshman year when I didn’t have a kitchen in my dorm room, just a mini fridge, Tupperware containers were crucial for storing yummy leftovers from restaurants!
Yes! And sometimes I make big batches of pasta sauce or soups and I put them in Tupperware that is meal sized so I just pop it in the microwave or a pot and BAM- home cooked meal!! If you actually like cooking, foodnetwork.com has this thing called My Recipe Box and you can add recipes and it saves them online. Then they’re always there and you don’t have to worry about digging them up. They have tons of fast recipes that are easy to make even in college. There’s a book called Eat This Not That by David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding- it has a ton of different restaurants, mostly chains and even fast food and it tells you what is the better thing to eat. It also has info about what juices are better to get at the grocery to which beer is better to get at the bar! Very helpful and it’s only about $14 on Barnes&Noble.com. There’s also a book called The Diet for Teenagers Only by Carrie Wiatt and Barbara Shroeder, also at B&N and it has tips about what groceries to buy, what to eat, exercise plans etc.
I know I’m going to get a lot of grief for this b/c Fiona laughs at my vitamins, but I LOVE Juice Plus. It sounds like a mom thing, but seriously, its so hard to get fruits and vegetables in college! Especially if you’re doing your own shopping… But taking the JP gives you nutrients from 17 fruits and veggies in one little pill and it gives you great energy if you take it in the morning! So there’s my soapbox, but trust me, its great!
