Being a college student forces us to change in many ways. Our daily habits, routines and overall lifestyle change drastically once we leave the comfort of our homes and are thrown into the crazy, cramped life of the dorm-room. Living in dorms forces us to leave behind many of the activities we enjoyed while living at home. For me, I was forced to leave behind baking and cooking.
I grew up watching the Food Network and helping my mom in the kitchen, as well baking on my own and with friends. Many of my best memories from growing up revolve around food. After coming to St. Olaf the small, scary looking, semi-clean, community kitchens left me unable to bake cookies whenever I felt like it, as I was used to doing at home.
I did not have the utensils needed to just whip out a pan of brownies, and trips to the grocery store became a hike through negative temperatures and feet of snow instead of an easy 15 minute trip at home. This is especially a problem at St. Olaf, where the majority of students live in dorms all four years, and do not have the luxury of an apartment or house kitchen. I know many of my fellow college students are in a similar situation and wish that there was an easier way to be able to enjoy cooking and baking. So I am starting a blog focused on coming up with a list of super easy recipes that anyone can make, EVEN in a dorm kitchen.
I will stick to recipes that have only a few, easily found ingredients as well as utensils that either the dorm will have or you might have in your room. While some of you might have your own pans, I assume most girls do not. Aluminum pans in all shapes and sizes can be purchased at grocery stores for cheap, and they can be thrown away or reused. While most of my recipes will most likely be sweets or things you can bake, I will try to throw in some meals as well. But since we have such yummy food in the Caf, I am guessing most people are not looking to cook their own meals!
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For my first recipe, I am starting out simple and yummy: Birthday cake. This recipe is a little different from most normal cakes, though. My roommate told me about some girls who had made birthday cake with just a can of soda and a box of cake mix. At first, I couldn’t believe it. I wondered how that was even possible and doubted it would taste like normal cake. Turns out, it is a real recipe from Weight Watchers. This cake not only has half the ingredients, but half the calories! I thought this recipe would appeal to college students because you don’t need to go to the store to buy vegetable oil or eggs.
All you need is:
1 box of cake mix (either vanilla or chocolate)
1 can of soda (dark soda like Coke for chocolate cakes, and light soda like Sprite for vanilla cakes)
1 can of frosting (or cool whip if your really counting calories)
A pan to bake in
**NOTE: A can of soda has 12 oz. in it, and a plastic bottle has 20 oz. If you use a bottle, make sure you only use 12 oz. or your cake will NOT turn out right!
Preparation: Mix the cake and 12 oz of soda in either a bowl or the pan you are baking it in.
Bake according to the cake box.
Cool and frost as desired.
Here is my sister enjoying a slice of the cake!
This cake is really THAT simple, and still tastes as yummy as a normal cake! Enjoy!
*Feel free to let me know if there are any specific recipes you want me to try out, or if you have any comments or suggestions! I would also love to hear feedback if you try out my recipes yourselves!!