I remember the first time I tried to cook in college like it was yesterday. I was freshly 18, just moved into my dorm and was staring at the hamburger patty that had just exploded in my microwave. It’s safe to say twas’ a hot mess. Fast forward six years later, and I now run a cooking blog on Instagram and have created tons of delicious, simple and healthy recipes. Three meals that are absolute staples in my kitchen are pasta, sandwiches and salads. The best part about these dishes is that you can customize them any way you’d like, swapping different ingredients to fit your preference. Once you get familiar with creating these dishes, they can not only carry you through your college years but well into your adult life as well:
Pasta Dish Ideas
Ok, I’ll admit I’m a little biased here…pasta dishes are my favorite because they’re pretty universal and there are so many ways to customize them to your liking. The foundation for every pasta dish is noodles and sauce, but if you’re looking to spice up your dish, you can add garlic and some sort of veggie. The vegetables I use frequently are onions, spinach, and sundried tomatoes (iykyk). I also like to add some sort of meat for protein. Unfortunately, I have the #ChickenIck at this moment, so I’ve been loving adding ground turkey to my pasta dishes. Whenever I’m having a busy week and don’t have time to experiment with new recipes, I know I can always count on a pasta dish when I need a quick nutritious and filling meal.
Sandwich Ideas
Ah yes, two slices of bread and so many possibilities for what can go in between. In my opinion, the perfect recipe for a sandwich is two slices of sourdough bread, pesto (I like to use sun dried tomato pesto or traditional basil pesto) , some sort of greens like spinach or lettuce, the cheese of your liking and don’t forget to toast the bread. Sandwiches are staple items, especially in college, because there are so many different ways you can customize them, they take a relatively short amount of time to create, and they’re packed with protein, veggies, dairy, carbs and more.
Tips for your next salad
If you open up Pinterest right now and look up salad recipes, I guarantee you that there will be about 50 different kinds of salads that you can try. I actually just looked it up and the first thing that popped up was an article that read, “900+ salad recipes you can try.” I think it’s safe to say that the girlies love their salad recipes. The best part about salads is that they require little to no actual cooking. You probably aren’t going to need to sautĂ© anything on the stove or use your oven. From pasta salads to fruit salad, Greek salads and kale salads, the list just goes on. For today, we’re just going to keep it nice and simple and just go over a quick and easy chicken Caesar salad that you can throw together either for a midday lunch or even for a quick dinner if you’re in a rush. For this chicken Caesar salad, I like to buy a head of lettuce and chop it up on a cutting board. Then I like to throw in some pre-grilled and sliced chicken. As mentioned earlier I still have the chicken ick so I like to buy my chicken pre-made and sliced. Then I’ll toss in some garlic croutons, sprinkle in some shredded parmesan cheese, chopped cilantro, salt, pepper, and drizzle on some ranch. Then I mix it all together and voila!
In Conclusion
At the end of the day as long as you can read you can cook. Once you figure out what your personal preferences are, like what bread you like, what meat you prefer, which cheese you prefer, what toppings are fun for you, and more, these simple recipes can carry you well into your adult years and serve as your go-to’s when you don’t know what to cook that week.