Breakfast, college edition
Although It seem as if it was only yesterday when you were preparing the first solid food for your baby, baby has grown and he or she is almost ready for college and adult life. There is still time for some extra training in cooking their own meals and instill a few more healthy eating rules but, more than anything, to help your not-a-child-any-more kid to plan for life in college, starting with breakfast.
Imagine for a minute you are in college. College is an exciting time in the life of a young adult. There is much to do, much to see, and usually, not a whole lot to eat. Breakfast doesn’t have to be about dusting off old packages of ramen noodles or feasting on three-day-old cold pizza. College kids can have a great breakfast even if it is in a cramped dorm room on a cold and wet day, it just takes a little imagination and a touch of creativity. Let’s take a look at some ways to enjoy breakfast, even in the least-equipped situations.
No fridge, no stove, no problem
Most dorm rooms come standard with at least a refrigerator these days, but hardly any, if any at all, have stoves. Amazingly, the absence of a heating device such as an oven or stove can put a damper on grandeur visions of breakfast. Not to worry, the lack of a proper kitchen never stopped anyone who truly desired a great breakfast.
You would be surprised at what you can find to cook on and within a dorm room. If you stopped and took one good look around, you could probably locate at least one proper heating source as well as numerous kitchen-like utensils. All it takes is a little improvisation and knowing what to look for and you can assemble a makeshift kitchen arrangement from just about anything. Use irons as heating elements, desk lamps to reheat food and a ruler to stir a pitcher of tea or Kool-Aid.
Dorm room cooking
Cooking in your dorm room is easy, if you have some basic idea of what needs to happen to the food. For instance, if you knew a grilled cheese sandwich needed to be hot and pressed, just look at what an iron can do? Just please, take note not to use the same ironing board cover you iron your clothes on for a couple of reasons; either you don’t want cheese on your favorite shirt, or you don’t want starch on your favorite grilled cheese sandwich. Just flip and repeat.
As for the accompanying bowl of tomato soup, just turn your desk light upside down, grab a bowl and gently set it into the cone of the lamp. Fill your bowl with soup and let it sit while you are making your sandwich. By the time you are done, your soup should be thoroughly warmed. Ramen noodles, the staple of ever college student, can even be made without the use of a microwave. Just run a pot of plain water through your coffee pot and you have instantly hot water. Let the noodles sit for 5-7 minutes and you are all set.
College spread
Having room for a microwave would be much better, we agree. However, there are quite a few meals you can make within the four walls of your college dorm room without one. Of course, they are nothing too exotic, although stir-fry is a possibility, but they will add sustenance to your body and can help you change up your every-day-routine. Keep your eyes open for possible tools and utensils and invest in a few simple items, such as a coffee pot, mug warmer, or even a heating element; yes, like the ones they have in the Chem. lab.
Cooking in a dorm room can be done, but it does utilize some imagination. So grab some friends, grab some school supplies and see what you can make for dinner tonight. count this exercise as training for preparing a great breakfasts, college edition, tomorrow.