If you love your mother’s cooking as much as I do, you would have had a hard time adjusting to meal plan food, and an even harder time cooking for yourself. Buying the groceries, finding the time to cook, making sure you don’t set off the fire alarm — all of these are very real elements of the struggle that is student cooking. Not to mention that it costs a pretty penny.
However, none of these excuses will stand up against the recipes below. They have all been tried and tested, are quick and easy to prepare, and are very pocket-friendly.
The Varsity challenged me to create a healthy breakfast, lunch, and dinner in my residence while spending only $10 per meal, and shopping only from the Metro on Bloor Street West and Robert Street. I’m pretty satisfied to say that I used only 28 dollars and 81 cents, taking advantage of their Tuesday student discount.
Zucchini, Mushroom and Tomato Frittata
When shopping for my breakfast frittata, I was sad because my initial plan involved ingredients that were quite expensive — asparagus, mushrooms, and red peppers, respectively. Knowing my budget, I made some substitutions and ended up with a pretty great frittata. I used zucchini, mushrooms, and tomatoes to keep the same colour scheme. It does help that frittatas are extremely versatile so you can stuff them with or whatever is on sale. You can also refrigerate or freeze leftovers depending on when you’re going to eat them.
Serves: 2–3
Total cook time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
• ½ zucchini
• 1 cup mushrooms
• 2 tomatoes
• ½ bunch flat-leaf parsley
• 6 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and pepper
Slice your zucchini, mushrooms, and tomatoes and place the first two ingredients in a hot and greased frying pan. If you’re a hardcore carnivore, feel free to start with some bacon in your pan. While the vegetables soften, whisk the eggs with salt and pepper and add them to the pan. Top the eggs with the parsley and sliced tomatoes. Cover your pan and let it sit over low to medium heat for about 10 minutes. Turn your oven onto broil and broil your frittata, uncovered, for about two minutes. Use an oven-mitt or towel to get that delicious frittata out of the oven and onto a plate.
Warm Kale Salad
Boiling, steaming or toasting some of your ingredients ahead of time can help make super quick lunches. My kale salad took about 10 minutes to put together given that I had washed and chopped the kale, boiled the sweet potatoes, and toasted the pecans the night before. This recipe is vegan, but if you’re not, feel free to add grilled chicken or bacon to the mix!
Serves 1
Total time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
• 1 large garlic clove
• 1 sweet potato
• 1 bunch of green or black kale
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• 1/3 cup pecans
Wash and boil your sweet potato whole and covered in a small pot for about 20 minutes, or until it’s easy to pierce with a fork. Don’t peel it because the skin has a lot of nutrients. You can also microwave it for five minutes if you’re running low on time. While that’s cooking, toast the pecans in the oven on 350 degrees fahrenheit for 10 minutes. Use the waiting time to add a tablespoon of olive oil and minced garlic to a hot frying pan and sauté for 30 seconds. Follow up with kale and sprinkle with some salt and pepper. Pro tip: When you wash and chop your kale, make sure to leave out the woody stems because they’re pretty much inedible. Stir-fry that for about a minute and reduce the heat from medium to low and cover your pan. Let the kale cook for five minutes and then transfer it to your plate. Top with sliced boiled sweet potato, toasted nuts, and a generous drizzle of honey.
Coconut Salmon Curry
Cooking for yourself can be boring and repetitive if you don’t change things up once in a while. This coconut salmon curry is fragrant and almost as good as something you’d find in an Indian restaurant.
Serves 1
Total time: 20 minutes
Ingredients
• ¼ can coconut milk
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large clove of garlic
• ½ teaspoon curry powder
• ½ teaspoon paprika
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 fresh Atlantic salmon filet
• ¼ cup cilantro
Add the olive oil, garlic, and spices to a hot skillet and let cook for 30 seconds. Pour in a quarter of a can of coconut milk and stir for a minute. Place the salmon fillet skin-side-down into the skillet and baste with the curry. Cook covered for 10 minutes, basting once in between. Uncover and add a splash of coconut milk. Garnish the fish with cilantro (use parsley if you can’t find cilantro). Serve this with brown rice, cooked according to package directions. You can use shrimp in place of the salmon, but make sure to reduce the cooking time to about four minutes or until the shrimp turns pink.
