Cooking can seem like a daunting task if you’ve never done it before. Before I left for college I could make grilled cheese, Kraft mac and cheese and chocolate chip cookies. That was pretty much it —
I couldn’t even fry an egg.
Everyone should know how to make the basics, and the basics are really easy. When your bank account hits zero and the dorm food becomes repulsive, you’ll be glad you know how to whip up a batch of pasta. Here are a few simple recipes that take just minutes to make. Some you’ll need a kitchen, and other times a microwave will do.
Buttered Noodles
Ingredients
1 box of pasta — I usually use bow tie pasta.
Butter or the equivalent
Salt
Pepper
Shredded parmesan cheese
Six mini cherry tomatoes (optional)
Six Pepperoni (optional)
Instructions
Fill a pot with about five cups of water. Setting the pot on the stove, bring the water to a boil. Add desired amount of salt to the water.
Once the water begins to boil, scoop 3 to 4 cups — or handfuls — of pasta and toss it into the pot.
Let the pasta cook for approximately 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once the pasta has been in the pot for a few minutes, I usually like to scoop out just one piece of pasta to see if it’s cooked how I like it.
Once the pasta is cooked, take a colander and drain the water from the pot. Place the noodles back into the pot and put it back on the stove — make sure the stove is off.
Grab your butter and scoop out a tablespoon. Stir the butter and pepper — as desired — into the pasta until the butter has completely melted. Sprinkle in what Parmesan cheese you want and put the mixture in a bowl to eat.
You can stop there and enjoy your meal, but I usually like to add a little extra to my noodles. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and place them in the bowl.
Tear pepperoni pieces in two and also put them in your pasta.
Stir with your fork, and enjoy!
Naan Pizza
Ingredients
1 piece of Naan bread (available at Kroger in the deli section)
Parmesan cheese (optional)
Mozzarella cheese, shredded
½ bell pepper, chopped
Pepperoni
Instructions
Pre-heat your oven to broil.
On an ungreased cookie sheet place a piece of naan bread with parmesan cheese sprinkled on the edges of the naan. Once the oven is heated, put the cookie sheet in — only set your naan in the oven for two to three minutes — this is just to make the crust a little toastier.
Take the cookie sheet out and put on the desired amounts of mozzarella, bell pepper and pepperoni. Be careful so you don’t burn yourself.
Place the pizza back into the oven and let it broil for approximately ten minutes or until the naan looks golden brown.
Take the cookie sheet out, turn off the oven and eat your pizza once it cools.
Ramen with Veggies
Ingredients
1 pack of ramen
1 large carrot, chopped
1 stick of celery, chopped
Instructions
Follow the instructions on the pack of ramen to heat it on the stove or in a microwave.
For the stove, stir in chopped carrots and celery as the ramen is cooking. You can use whatever vegetables you want, but carrots and celery blend nicely with the broth of the ramen.
For the microwave, stir in chopped carrots and celery after the ramen is fully cooked. Pop it back into the microwave for a minute to soften up the vegetables.
Enjoy!
