By MARIA MCNAMARA
Contrubuting Writer
Food is one of my favorite things. I love eating, I love cooking, I love taking pictures of my food. But I ran into a problem that I’m sure a lot of you have run into at some point.
As a college student, it is so hard to eat healthy, and it is so hard to cook balanced meals. Just as some background, when I was a freshman, I gained weight.
It was one of those moments where I realized that I was free from my parents, so I didn’t have to eat what they told me to eat. I could eliminate my least favorite foods (pretty much all greens except lettuce and broccoli), and I could eat all my favorite foods (burgers, pizza, and Chinese food), without them getting upset with me.
I also discovered Ben & Jerry’s pints my freshman year. I think that is simultaneously the worst and best discovery of my life. Anyway, because my eating habits were horrible, and I didn’t exercise enough, I gained weight.
Fast-forward a year. I was unhappy with my weight, but I didn’t really know how to eat healthy. I was living in an on-campus apartment at the time, so I had access to a full-size kitchen without having to share it with 100 other people.
I figured it would be easy. I had a lot of cooking supplies, and figured I had all the time in the world to cook. It wasn’t that easy, though. I didn’t really have anyone there to guide me.
Yeah, my parents gave me advice, but they were also two hours away, and it was hard to take all of their advice via phone calls.
Finally, after two years, I’ve started to figure out all the tricks–just as a quick side-note, though: you don’t have to live in an apartment to cook healthy meals. Every dorm has a kitchen available to you. But where do you even start? That’s what I’m here for.
Let’s start with the basics. When I first started cooking, I thought I needed all this stuff, when in reality, you only really need eight items:
● 1 medium-sized pot – $12 at Walmart
● 1 frying pan – $5 at Walmart
● 1 spatula – can be found at dollar stores, or for 88 cents at Walmart
● Measuring cups (for dry and liquids) – can be found at dollar stores, or less than $3 at Walmart
● 1 mixing bowl – 3pc set for $6 at Walmart
● Can opener – can be found at dollar stores, or $5 at Walmart
● Oven mitts – Can be found at dollar stores, or $2 at Walmart
● 1 sharp knife – 6 pc set for $9 at Walmart
If you were to go my route of Walmart, it’d cost you around $40, but I know that a lot of dollar stores and Price Choppers (like the one down the road) have some of those items for even cheaper. It’s worth it, trust me. Here are some other useful, but not necessary, items that I have:
● 1 whisk (a fork works, too)
● Big spoon for mixing
● Casserole dish (I’ve had a cheap, one-time-only casserole dish for two years, so a heavy duty one isn’t necessary)
● Tongs
● Extra mixing bowls, pots, and frying pans. (Having extras will help speed up the cooking process.)
Once you have the essentials, you’re set and ready to start cooking! Tune in next week for a very easy lemon-chicken recipe!
