Guilt-Free Pizza

When my mom used to tell me about her college days, she would describe the themed parties, experience living in her sorority house, the big lecture halls filled with hundreds of students, and of course the 2 am pizza runs in the dorms. Now sadly, and she will admit, my mom fell victim to the freshman 15. While looking back on her first year of college, she decided that the late night pizza deliveries on a regular basis were probably not a good idea.

While it may not come as a surprise to most, delivery pizza and the pizza served on campus isn’t very nutritionally beneficial. But there is nothing like biting into a steaming gooey slice of pizza while pulling an all night study session. So, here is the freshman 15 version of this wonderful Italian delicacy. We used all fresh ingredients from the campus dining salad bar to make this dish.

We decided that the best way to get the full effect of the deliciousness of this recipe was to show you how to make it in a video. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Spice Up Your Ramen

Chilled Spicy Thai Peanut Ramen. Photo by Carly Cady

I love my school, don’t get me wrong, but I think I have made it very clear that the food is not my favorite part about college life. I listen to my friends at other schools talk about their smoothie bars, crepe stations, and whole made desserts, and die a little inside when I realize the most exciting thing we have is a salad bar that rarely has any vegetables.

One type of food that is especially horrible is the asian food. I have heard of multiple students getting food poisoning from eating the “Orange Chicken” or “Teriyaki Pork” and am constantly told to avoid it at all costs. So, in order to satisfy my asian cuisine cravings, I have created a Chilled Spicy Thai Peanut Ramen.

Creating different dishes out of Ramen has become a new culture in the cooking community in recent years. Books like 101 Things to do with Ramen Noodles by Toni Patrick and blogs like The Ramen Rater explore ways to upgrade regular old ramen noodles by adding easy but delicious sauces and spices.

Hans Lienesch, creator of The Ramen Rater, has boiled the art of making ramen down to a fine science. While preparing the noodles Lienesch has a few rules that he sticks to. “I try my best to cook the noodles as directed on the packaging. I also try to never crush the block of noodles,” Lienesch said.

Ramen is one of the easiest things to make in the dorms and with a little effort it can also be the tastiest. “So good! I love the spicy kick that offsets the sweetness of the peanut butter,” Emily Cantwell, freshman at Cal Poly, said of the Spicy Thai Ramen.

Once you try it, you won’t be able to get enough! “Do you have anymore?” Lauren Deitch, Cal Poly student, said as she finished off the bowl.

What you’ll need to make this dish. Photo by Carly Cady

Chilled Spicy Thai Peanut Ramen

1 package of Chicken Top Ramen noodles

3/4 bag of the Top Ramen flavoring

3 tablespoons of peanut butter

2 teaspoon or one package of soy sauce

2 tablespoons of chili-garlic sauce (Sriracha works)

1/3 cup water

Directions

1. Start by placing the whole block of ramen in a microwave safe bowl. Do not crush or break the ramen up.

2. Pour hot water into the bowl so it covers the noodle and put it in the microwave for two minutes.

3. Stir the noodles gently until the start to break up. Place back into the microwave for about two and a half minutes, or until the noodles are complete soft and break up easily.

4.Drain any excess water from the noodles and replace it with cold water.

5. Drain the cold water out and place the noodles in the refrigerator.

6. In a separate bowl, combine the peanut butter, soy sauce, hot sauce, and the ramen flavoring.

7. Mix together and add enough water to give the sauce a thinner consistency.

8. Add sauce to the noodles and stir in.

9. Add green peppers and peanuts to top it off.

Adapted from Serious Eats.

Behind Every Motivated Person is a Cup of Coffee

It’s that time of year again… Midterms. The smell of coffee fills the campus and the lines for Starbucks are longer than the lines at Disneyland, as students attempt to suppress their severe sleep deprivation.Every essay, project, and test that has been put off all quarter is now suddenly due, making the idea of the famous college all-nighter seems increasingly necessary.

I will be first to admit that coffee is a great thing for perfectionists and procrastinators alike, but the time it takes and the cost of any coffee shop is hard to justify. For those of us that don’t want to waste any of our precious cramming time waiting for coffee, becoming your own barista is the best way to go! There are three super easy ways to make a delicious cup of Jo in the comfort of your own room!

1. The Keurig

While the actual machine may be a little expensive ($99.95), it will actually save you money and a trip to Starbucks in the morning. The “K-cups” come in a ton of different flavors and strength allowing you to get exactly what you want in a single cup of coffee in less than 2 minutes.

The Keurig single serving coffee maker. Photo by Carly Cady

The Ultimate College Grocery List

Lately, I have found myself really missing one thing about home… My pantry. Looking back I realized how often I took advantage of the fact that I constantly had unlimited access to whatever I was craving. Seriously, it was the Narnia of pantries. However, it is apparent that this magic was restricted to my house because the food supply I have at school pales in comparison.

Let’s face it; no matter how good your dining hall food may be it is essential to have food in your dorm. Whether it be that it’s way to hard to get yourself out of bed to walk all the way to the cafeteria, or you just really need some midnight munchies, it’s convenient to have something more than a pack of Skittles and some questionable milk in your fridge.

Now, the problem is: What to buy? “The most popular foods that college students buy are frozen dinners, cereal, and chips… and beer,” said Jessica Majors, manager of Albertson’s in San Luis Obispo. These foods may be good choices for conveniency (and parties) but they are not necessarily the healthiest picks. Some students have somewhat of an idea of what to buy, “I always have Easy Mac, peanut butter, bread, and popcorn in my room,” said Janelle Coccimiglio, a freshman at Cal Poly. However, many others don’t have the slightest idea of what they should have in their room, “I usually have some peanut butter, and that’s about it,” said Daniel Sweeny, freshman at Cal Poly. So, here’s a list to give you an idea of what types of food you may want to stock your room with.