A Day of Simple Meals

Hello Fellow College Students!

Although I have been really busy with schoolwork recently and unable to make some new recipes. I am writing to inform you of a handful of easy meal ideas that can be made from the stuff you have hanging around in your room.

Breakfast:

They say that breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day and I know a lot of college students don't like to eat breakfast but for those of you who do, or would consider giving it a try, here are some easy non-cereal options:

Egg McMuffin:
This idea involves egg substitute which can be found in the grocery store right next to the milk and can be used to replace eggs in nearly every recipe. The benefits of egg substitutes are that they are actually healthier than the classic egg, aren't as fragile as the classic egg, and because it comes in a small carton similar to the milk you used to get in middle school, can be a real space saver in a small fridge. So, for this recipe, pour about a fourth cup (doesn't have to be exact) of egg substitute into a microwave safe bowl. Add a dash of salt and pepper. Heat the egg in the microwave for about 1 minute or until egg is fully cooked. Wrap an english muffin in aluminum foil and heat with an iron or hair straightner until slightly toasted. Put cooked egg between the halves of english muffin with a slice of cheese.

Yogurt:
I personally love yogurt in the morning. I especially love to take plain or vanilla yogurt and add some apple pie filling (or other fruit pie filling works). Then I top with some plain granola. It's a perfect blend of creamy, sweet, and crunchy.

Peanut Butter-Banana Tortilla:
Spread about 2 tablespoons of peanut butter (preferably creamy) on a flour tortilla. Cook in the microwave for 15-30 seconds so that peanut butter is slightly runny. Slice a banana into coins and add to tortilla. Sprinkle granola and a little cinnamon on top before rolling it up.


Lunch:

For the most part, lunch is sandwiched between classes and there is not much time to prepare it. Here are some fast simple ideas.

Grilled Cheese:
It is actually quite easy to make grilled cheese in your dorm room with an iron or hair straightner. Just make sure you wrap the sandwich in aluminum foil before cooking. You also might want to add a little bit of butter to the outside of the bread to make it a little more like the traditional grilled cheese. For a variation, add a slice of tomato in the sandwich. Also, it is really easy to get microwave tomato soup to go on the side.

Really Cheesy Easy Mac:
Typically a college student has easy mac in their room. I like to add a little extra cheddar cheese and to steam some veggies to put in it. To steam veggies (my personal favorite is broccoli), add about a fourth of an inch of water to the bottom of a microwave safe tupperware container, add the veggies, LOOSELY add the cover (making sure there is space for the steam to escape) and cook for about a minute or until the green veggies have a rich green color to them. Stir into the mac and cheese and enjoy.


Dinner:


Stir-Fry:
This is a really good idea for clearing out your fridge because almost anything can go in the stir fry. Just steam your veggies (the same way as the mac and cheese) and add to instant rice that has instructions on the box. There are a lot of options of sauces to add: soy sauce, oyster sauce, "stir fry sauce". Some may seem expensive but the bottles can last forever.

GO PACK GO!!!

Hello Fellow College Students!

If you've been living under a rock for the past couple of weeks, today is the SUPERBOWL!!!!! Because I will be too busy jumping out of my skin with excitement, I will not be posting a new recipe today. However, I did want to show you guys a picture of my creation for today's exciting event.

Also, I was hoping you guys might leave me a comment either here or on my facebook wall letting me know what food items you have in your room currently. I would like to use these as a challenge to myself to make them from out of the box foods into great, simple meals. Thanks guys!!!

Gnocchi al telefono

Hello Fellow College Students,

Over winter break, I went out to dinner with some friends from high school and earlier to this great Italian restaurant. As it is family style dining, we shared two dishes: one was meat, and because I didn't eat it, I have no idea what it was, and the other was gnocchi al telefono. The menu described the dish as "Italian potato dumplings tossed with fresh mozzarella in a light roasted garlic marinara and a touch of cream." This dish was absolutely fantastic, so I decided to attempt to make my own version just for you folks. The end result was definitely different than the restaurant version, but I still personally think it is fantastic.

When I was a kid, I absolutely loved gnocchi (pronounced similarly to nee-yo-key). For those of you who haven't heard of this fabulous pasta before, it is a fairly light potato dumpling about the size of shooter marble. I think I really liked them when I was little because the way they looked, they reminded me of grubs from The Lion King, although significantly less slimy. Because they have a fairly strong taste on their own, unlike a lot of other pastas, they do not need a lot of extra flavors in the dish. So I would suggest adding each of the ingredients a little at a time and tasting before adding more of an ingredient.

When making this dish, I made the mistake of not cooking the gnocchi separately first. Don't make the same mistake I did! Instead, take either a package of gnocchi (or if you prefer and know how, your own homemade gnocchi) and put it in a microwave safe bowl of water (preferably hot). PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, remember that no metal of any kind should go in the microwave!!!!!! Pop the bowl in the microwave for a minute to a minute and a half, or until the gnocchi are floating in the water (don't overdo it so the gnocchi is falling apart). A perfectly cooked gnocchi should feel a little squishy but still quite firm, if that makes any sense. It should spring back like a new mattress. Drain the water and dump the gnocchi into a 9" by 9" glass or ceramic baking dish, or a large microwave safe tupperware should work just fine. To make the sauce, take a 14.5 oz can of fire roasted crushed tomatoes and dump it in a decent size bowl, there is no need for this one to be microwave safe. I know that there are a lot of different types of canned tomatoes in the grocery store and it can be overwhelming (i know i was when I was trying to decide) considering they took up about half an aisle. When in doubt look at the organic cans, they may be slightly more expensive, but I know they have this type of tomato and there are a LOT fewer to look at. Add to the tomatoes about 1/2 to 3/4 of a teaspoon of parsley. I used the dried flakes found in the cooking spices, but fresh would also work wonderfully. Add about 1 tablespoon of milk and stir, the desired feel of the sauce is that it is creamy and fairly smooth without being runny. I suggest adding the milk a little bit at a time. The last ingredient for the sauce is a little bit of garlic powder. This can be also be found in the cooking aisle with the spices. Now, be careful with the garlic powder because you just want a hint of the garlic, not an overpowering sense of it. So add a little tap at a time until you get the desired taste. Now pour the sauce in with the gnocchi and add about a half cup of mozarella scattered over the top. I used fresh mozzarella because I really like the smooth taste of it when it melts, but the shredded kind works as well. If you use the fresh mozzarella, make sure to squeeze a lot of the excess moisture out or else it will run a bit when melted. Pop your nearly finished dish back in the microwave for about 2 to 3 minutes so that your cheese melts, and that's it.

This whole dish cost me about $6.75 and that was with using fresh mozzarella. It made about 2 to 3 servings. I am including a standard recipe format below to allow for easy reference:

Ingredients:
1 (14.5 oz) can fire roasted crushed tomatoes
1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon parsley
1 tablespoon milk
1 package gnocchi
1/2 cup mozzarella (packaged works, fresh is better)
garlic powder to taste

1. Heat gnocchi in a microwave safe bowl or microwave pasta cooker for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until gnocchi feels firm but slightly squishy
2. Mix crushed tomatoes, parsley, milk, and garlic powder together in a separate bowl.
3. Mix gnocchi and sauce together in a microwave safe 9" by 9" dish (remember, not metal)
4. Scatter mozzarella across top. If fresh, drain the liquid first.
5. Put back in microwave for 2 to 3 minutes to melt the cheese completely.

The Point

Hello fellow college students.

Let's face it, food from the dining hall is a mixed bag at best. Some of the food might be good, but you quickly realize that most of it was not meant to actually be digested. If you are a vegetarian, you will quickly discover, like I did, that although they have vegetarian options, there is not much variety. For me, my choices were often salad, a boca burger, or a grilled cheese (rarely, if ever, options at the same meal). So I started searching for recipes that could be made in my dorm room. Although I have moved up in the world of food and cooking (aka I actually have a kitchen now), one of my friends has asked me to share some of the recipes that I was able to create. Furthermore, I have decided to add the challenge of developing more. All of my cooking experiences with this blog will be centered around a few goals:

1. The only cooking appliances that can be used are the ones that are allowed in the dorms. This list only includes for heating things: a microwave, a hot pot, and at times an iron (yes the one you use to iron your clothes)
2. All of the recipes have to be inside a college student budget.
3. All of the recipes have a goal of limiting the number of dishes to be washed
4. A week's amount of groceries should be able to fit inside 1 or 2 grocery bags to allow for reasonable amount of storage space and walking/bus taking transporting
5. The recipes should be at least somewhat healthy and allow options for balanced meals.
6. They should be really TASTY!

Well, here goes nothing. Be ready for the first recipe sometime this weekend.