I absolutely LOVE food. My mom has a collection of my favorite recipes from when I was younger, and I even wrote some of them myself. I can remember having brownie batter smeared across my face as a toddler. Now at the age of twenty, I would still love to have brownie batter every night, although that’s not the most sustainable. Cooking for yourself can always be a challenge, and between budgeting, eating healthy and planning, it can be a bit overwhelming. 

While it might not be the most convenient to cook for yourself in a communal kitchen, you only need a few things to get started. I find cooking both fun and relaxing, and oftentimes I can do my homework while I am cooking, too. My first year, I only had a pot, a pan, a good knife, a spatula, utensils and a plate. Most of these items can be found at T.J.Maxx, Target or even a thrift store, and they’re fairly inexpensive. Many students don’t utilize the communal kitchens besides the microwave, so it is pretty easy to have some peace and quiet in the kitchen. 

One of my favorite things to make in the dorm kitchens is what I like to call “my sweet potato dish.” It is pretty simple and full of protein. 

Ingredients:

1 Sweet Potato 

½ tbsp Olive Oil 

½ cup Cottage Cheese

⅓ cup ground meat (I like 

turkey!)

1 tsp of your favorite sea

sonings

Procedure:

Take your sweet potato and grab a fork. Poke a bunch of holes all over it. Then, wrap the potato in a wet paper towel and place it in the microwave. Microwave your potato for two and a half minutes, flip and microwave for another two and a half minutes. Be careful; it will be incredibly hot. Unwrap your potato and let it rest. 

Meanwhile, in a small skillet pan, heat olive oil on medium-high heat and add your ground meat and season to taste. I enjoy a mix of Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Try chili powder if you want some extra heat. Sauté your ground meat, meaning there should be no pink spots left. 

Take your sweet potato, cut it down the middle and then, without breaking the skin, make a few more slices, as if drawing a six-pack. Now top your potato with your cottage cheese and ground meat. Enjoy! 

Another thing I like to do is spice up the basic convenient meals with something fresh. For example, you can scramble an egg in the microwave and add it to any instant ramen, or you can slice an apple and sprinkle some cinnamon on instant oatmeal. These changes help make these foods feel less “instant” and a little more like homemade comfort food.

At the end of every week, I see what leftovers I have lingering in my fridge, and I toss them together into a nice salad. This week, I took some roasted carrots, broccoli, half a tomato, some romaine, mozzarella and parmesan and threw them together. What really helped elevate this dish was some good salad dressing, specifically the Trader Joe’s goddess dressing. 

I always like to try a new recipe on a day where I don’t have a lot going on and see if I could possibly add it to the rotation of food I have for myself. My friend made us these “Mediterranean Braised Chickpea Bowls,” and I absolutely loved it. We swapped rice for quinoa because that’s all that was available, and I really liked it. As I said before, adding your own spin to things really helps make cooking fun. 

At the end of the day, I understand that cooking can be frustrating. I spent almost an hour trying to make breadcrumbs just because I forgot to grab them, and it took more time than just running back for them. Cooking for yourself isn’t always easy; sometimes life can get in the way and the absolute last thing I want to do is cook for myself. It’s okay to have frozen chicken nuggets or to get Chipotle; moderation is the key. While I’m not a dietitian, I try not to look at what I eat in a day, but more so what I’m eating in a week. Food should ultimately make you happy. That looks different on everyone, but as long as you feel good about how you’re fueling your body, then you have mastered the art of college cooking.