Although Mount Holyoke has numerous dining halls and a student center with many options, a MoHo can get a bit sick of dining hall food. Take-out is always an option, but it isn’t cheap! And cooking for yourself is too much of a hassle and leaves you with useless ingredients lying around, right? Wrong! Next time you’re sick of the dining halls and want to cook for one or two, head to one of Moho’s Golden Pear Kitchens and try these tasty meals that leave little or no leftover ingredients.
Chocolate Seasalt Pastry
To make this delicious dessert, you’ll need a Puff Pastry and a bag of semisweet chocolate chips. If you can, grab a few packets of butter and some salt in the dining hall. Lay out the puff pastry on a greased cookie sheet and let it rise according to the directions. Melt the semisweet chocolate chips in a bowl in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until completely melted. While the chocolate cools a bit, butter and salt the edges of the puff pastry. Then, pour the chocolate onto the puff pastry. Serve when chocolate is cool enough to eat but still melted.
Fettuccine Alfredo
This recipe is fairly simple and delicious. You’ll need a half pound of fettuccine noodles, six packets of butter from a dining hall, a half cup of heavy cream and a half cup of parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish. First, boil the noodles in water. In another pan, melt the butter. Once melted, add the half cup of heavy cream. Strain noodles and place in a large serving bowl. Pour butter and cream mixture over noodles, and add half of the parmesan cheese. Stir until cheese is melted. Serve and garnish with more parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper to taste.
Quesadillas
Gather up your friends to help you eat this meal! Buy a package of six tortillas and the desired cheese or cheeses. Make sure you get the cheese from the deli so you can get just enough as to not have any leftover. Also buy a can of salsa, and tortilla chips to help finish off any extra salsa leftover. Heat an oven to 350 degrees. Place a tortilla on a pan with cheese on top of it, and then place another tortilla on top of the cheese. Bake in oven until cheese is melted and the top of the tortilla is a bit golden brown.
Pigs in a Blanket
With just three ingredients, this childhood classic is still delicious to a college girl! Buy a package of hot dogs, a roll of Pilsbury crescents, and grab some ketchup from Blanchard . Roll the hotdog up in a crescent roll, place on a greased pan and bake at 350 degrees until the crescent is golden brown.
Oven S’mores
If you’re craving a bit of the outdoors, make some of these delicious oven s’mores! You’ll need some friends to finish off all the s’mores made with the ingredients, but it shouldn’t be too hard to find some girls who are in need of a taste of summer (or just chocolate)! Place half a graham cracker on a cookie sheet and three squares of chocolate on top of it. Place a marshmallow on top of the chocolate and bake in the oven at 250 degrees until marshmallow is golden brown and puffy and chocolate is a bit melted. Take out of the oven, place the other half of the graham cracker on top and enjoy the sticky treat!
College cooking doesn’t have to be hard—or involve many leftovers. Grab a few friends, a few ingredients and you’ll be on your way to a delicious home-cooked meal!