After a wonderful Spring Break of eating-out and drinking on beaches, it’s time for us to do our wallets and waistlines a favor and eat-in. Cooking your own meals is a great way to save money and control the nutritional value of what you eat. And right about now is a great time to do so. But as a busy college student with little time to spend in the kitchen, we often submit to driving through Chik-Fil-A or grabbing snacks from the Huddle to save precious time.
Not anymore! The following five recipes are fast, easy and delicious, giving you the chance to save on a delicious home-made meal without losing your entire evening.
1. Tomato & Meat Sauce Pasta
For a busy girl who only has about 30 minutes of time to spend in the kitchen before running off to a group project or work, pasta is a great meal solution. In about 10-15 minutes you can boil water and heat noodles, ready-to-serve. But plain old red sauce can get pretty boring to eat, pretty fast. By adding a few simple ingredients, you can really up your pasta game. Check out my special red sauce pasta recipe to add a little flavor to your quick and delicious dinner.
Ingredients:
- 1 jar of tomato sauce
- 1 box of pasta
- 1 tablespoon of cream cheese
- 2 ounces of goat cheese
- 1/4 of an onion (diced)
- 1 mushroom (sliced)
- 1 hamburger patty
- Olive oil
- Desired spices (would recommend garlic, oregano, salt and crushed pepper)
- Shredded parmesean
Directions:
- Prepare a large pot of water and set on the stove to boiling. Add some salt to the water to prevent noodles from sticking. Once boiling, drop the heat on the stove and add in your noodles to cook (will take 9-12 minutes).
- In a pan, cook the hamburger patty in olive oil until finished. Break up the patty as it cooks to create diced meat.
- Once the meat is finished, set it aside and cook brown the onions and mushrooms in the pan.
- Once vegetables are browned, get a small pot to cook your sauce. Add tomato sauce, goat cheese and cream cheese to the put and stir together on medium heat.
- One the sauce is simmering, turn the heat down and add in your meat and vegetables. Continue to stir so the sauce does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
- Add desired spices to the sauce.
- When the noodles are done, strain the pasta.
- Add your sauce to your pasta and top off with some parmesean cheese.
2. No-Bake Peanut Butter Cookies
No-Bake, no problem as I like to say. When you want a sweet treat but do not want to fuss with all the time it takes to load batch after batch of dough into the oven, try making some no-bake cookies! It is easy, and absolutely delicious.
Ingredients:
- 3 Cups White Sugar
- 1 1/2 Sticks Butter or Margarine
- 3/4 Cup Milk
- 1 1/2 Cups Peanut Butter (Smooth or Chunky)
- 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 4 1/2 Cups Quick Oats
Directions:
- Cook the sugar, butter and milk in a saucepan on medium heat until you’ve brought it to a rolling boil, stirring constantly.
- Once it reaches a rolling boil – cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly (NO MORE!)
- Remove from heat and mix in the peanut butter and vanilla until fully incorporated.
- Stir in quick oats a little at a time. Continue to stir gently until the mixture has cooled a bit and is thicker.
- Drop onto wax paper to cool completely and harden (at room temperature or in fridge to speed the process).
3. Baked Caprese Chicken
On days when you want a low preparation but delicious dinner, try this baked chicken recipe. It only calls for four ingredients (plus any spices you might want to add) and is as easy as stacking them up and putting them in the oven. This dish is delicious, and also great for those looking for high-protein, low-carb meals.
Ingredients:
- 2 small chicken breasts
- 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil
- 1/2 a fresh tomato
- 1/2 ball of Mozzerella da Buffalo
- 2 basil leaves
- Salt and garlic seasoning
Directions:
- Lightly oil and season the two chicken breasts. Place one breast in an oven pan.
- Slice the tomato into small thin slices.
- Place the mozzerella, tomato, and basil on top of the chicken in the pan.
- Place the other chicken breast on the top.
- Cook the stacked chicken in the oven at 450 degrees for 15-20. Cut into the meat to be sure it is not pink and is fully cooked before serving.
- Enjoy!
4. Avocado Bowl
Because who doesn’t like a little avo in the morning? When you sleep in too late for your 9:30 class that you cannot make pancakes, but not so late that you need to grab a Quest Bar and bolt out the door, try making yourself this nutritious and delicious breakfast, starring everyone’s favorite fruit.
Ingredients:
- 1 avocado
- 2 eggs
- Desired seasoning
Directions:
- Cut avocado in half, remove pit. If necessary scoop out some avocado to make room for egg.
- Crack eggs into a bowl. Place yolk and some egg white (with a spoon) into the avocado’s hole.
- Bake in oven at 425 degrees for 13-15 minutes.
5. The Perfect Margarita
For those who are still missing their Spring Break beachside cocktails, here is a quick, four-ingredient margarita recipe. This recipe by Cooking Light boasts only 130 calories for a 6 oz. drink (about half as many as a similar sized margarita). Drink up worry-free, ladies.
Ingredients:
- 1 ounce premium or silver tequila
- 1/2 ounce Cointreau or other orange-flavored liqueur
- 1.5 ounces lime juice (fresh squeezed for fewer calories)
- 3/4 cups of ice
- Sliced Lime
Directions:
- Add tequila, Cointreau, lime juice and ice into a blender. Blend until smooth
- Pour your margarita and garnish with lime
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