Are you getting tired of food from the dining hall? Have you used up all your meal swipes for the day and are still hungry? Here are some easy- to medium-difficulty recipes for students who want to eat something other than Urban Eatery pasta and smoothies but don’t own a set of measuring cups and still have to use the dorm ovens.
Cheese Quesadilla (easy)
Ingredients: tortilla, shredded cheese, butter
Optional Add-ons: veggies or precooked meat, salsa/guacamole
- Turn on the stove and lightly coat the pan with butter
- Place a tortilla onto the warm pan
- Add cheese on top of the tortilla
- Make it a little more complicated: add chopped veggies or precooked meat of your choice once the cheese has melted (personally, I love adding chopped tomatoes and green pepper)
- Fold over quesadilla and remove from the pan
- You’re all set!
- Eat with salsa or guac (this really helps if the quesadilla is a little dry)
Pasta with Canned Red Sauce (easy)
Ingredients: box of dry pasta, canned red sauce, salt
Optional add-ons: chopped garlic, red pepper flakes, basil, oregano
- Boil water on the stove, add a pinch of salt
- Add pasta and let sit, check occasionally to see if the pasta is cooked enough for your liking — usually, if it’s sticky and bendable, it’s done
- While pasta is boiling, pour the red sauce into a pan and let it warm up on the stove
- If after the sauce is warm you find it’s still bland, add chopped garlic, red pepper flakes, basil and/or oregano
- Pour the boiling water out of pot into the sink or through a strainer
- Pour warmed red sauce into the pasta pot
- Stir for a couple of seconds to coat the pasta in sauce
- Serve and enjoy (I usually pair this with a side of steamed broccoli)
Steamed Broccoli with Garlic (easy)
Ingredients: Broccoli, olive oil, garlic, water
- Wash broccoli
- Pour olive oil into a pan
- Pull apart broccoli and place in the pan
- Add about a spoonful of chopped garlic to the pan
- Add a little bit of water to the pan — I usually put the pan under my running sink for half a second, it’s really something you have to eyeball and it’s better to have too little than too much water for this
- Put the lid on the pan
- Start the stove and heat until all the water in the pan has evaporated and the broccoli is bright green
- Drain any excess water (if necessary) and serve
Stuffed Green Peppers (medium)
Ingredients: Green pepper, rice, water, ground beef (or vegetarian ground beef), onion, diced fire-roasted tomatoes, shredded cheddar or mozzarella cheese
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
- Cut the top off the green pepper and take out all the seeds so it is hollow, place aside
- Cook the pepper in boiling water for about 5 minutes or so
- Mix the beef with the onions and cook them until the beef is brown
- Prepare rice in a pot (remember that the water-to-rice ratio is 2:1)
- Add fire-roasted tomatoes to the rice when there is still a little water in the pot and stir them in
- Once the rice is done, mix it in with the ground beef
- Put the beef-rice mixture into the green pepper
- Top with shredded cheese
- Cover with tinfoil and cook in the oven for 25-30 minutes
Lentil-Cauliflower Tacos (medium)
Ingredients: lentils, cauliflower, tomato paste, olive oil, soft taco shells, mayonnaise, chipotle hot sauce, chopped onion, chopped garlic
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit
- Break up the cauliflower into bite-sized pieces and place on a baking sheet
- Cover cauliflower in oil
- Add salt and pepper to season cauliflower
- Place in oven and take out after 30-35 minutes or until they start to brown
- Wash lentils
- Put lentils in a pot and fill with water
- Add a couple of spoonfulls of tomato paste (I recommend two spoonfuls of tomato paste per approx 1 cup of lentils)
- Add chopped onion and garlic to the lentil pot
- Bring to a boil and stir the pot until the lentils are soft and the water has evaporated
- Season as desired — I really like adding chili powder and cumin, but you don’t have to add anything if you want it plainer or don’t have any spices handy
- Whisk together the mayonnaise and chipotle hot sauce (you can also buy chipotle mayo and skip this step)
- Place lentils, cauliflower, and chipotle mayo into several soft taco shells, and enjoy!
Happy Cooking!