Why Your College Cook Needs My Cookbook

Miss Em forwarded me a story from her college paper. The intrepid reporter--also a good writer--did a test drive of some recipes for a cookbook geared to college students. The book itself has quite favorable reviews on Amazon, as it happens. The article is titled: Simple Recipes for Students End Badly. After Miss Em read the story, she emailed the writer and said, "My mom and brother put together an ebook that addresses all the problems!" So Frugal Son and I may be interviewed. Fame??

The problems with the college cookbook--this one in particular and in the genre as a whole--are many: they are a bunch of discrete recipes, and hence don't take into account the issues of shopping, equipment, know-how, storage, cost, and whattodowithleftovers. These are issues for any cook, of course, but especially for the College Cook, who often doesn't even have easy access to a stove.

The problems with the cookbook under review can be summed up in two words: PINE NUTS (or is that one word?). I looked at a pasta recipe. It called for a ricecooker (good for the stove-less). It called for simple ingredients. It was easy. BUT IT CALLED FOR A TABLESPOON of pine nuts!A 2 oz bag of pine nuts will run about $4.00 at the store. The leftovers will no doubt languish in the fridge. That's an expensive tablespoon.

Below, I've pasted the review of recipes. If you want to read the original, here it is. Basically, the author spent over $50.00 for three recipes that didn't come out well. UGH.

The book Frugal Son and I put together can be found on Amazon (if you have Kindle) and here (for a pdf). For the $50.00, you can eat for a week. And shop once. And everything comes out. Because we tested all the recipes (and they are forgiving recipes in any event).



Here is the article.

My “kitchenability” skills involve making grilled cheese, baking brownies from the box and, if I do say so myself, making an excellent bowl of cereal.

College life has made me appreciate all the foods I have at home that I don’t have here. As such, I found myself turning to “Kitchenability 101: The College Student’s Guide to Easy, Healthy, and Delicious Food” by Nisa Burns, which is a cookbook meant for students who live in both dorms and apartments that offers basic recipes and tips for beginning cooks.

Since breakfast is the most important meal of the day, I thought I would start off with a “Creamy, Gooey, Drippy Bagel” (34). All I needed was a bagel, cream cheese, cinnamon and honey, which were all easy enough to find at Publix.

Next came “Avocado Lettuce Wraps” (56). This is where I found myself wandering through the grocery store trying to track these ingredients down. Two avocados, two tomatoes, lime juice, salt and pepper, cilantro and one head of lettuce.

Finally came the main course, “Tropical Pineapple Chicken” (78). This required three chicken breasts, but I substituted for two. I kept looking for a package that only came with one chicken breast — you know, the kind meant for single people who are more often than not making dinner for one — but that package did not exist.

Reaching the checkout line, I cringed as I watched each item go through the scanner. An action card swipe at the dining hall hurts a lot less than a credit card swipe at the grocery store. My total came to $52.93, a swift blow from reality and the reason why I have a meal plan.

Since we are not allowed to have a toaster in our dorm room, I had to stick the bagel in the oven on a broiler pan so it could toast. Lacking a timer on our archaic oven, I had to keep checking it every few minutes to make sure it had not caught on fire. After I spread the cream cheese and sprinkled the cinnamon, the bagel didn’t look quite as dainty as the one pictured. Mine was scattered with clumps of cinnamon cemented in place by the honey.

For the lettuce wraps, what the cookbook failed to mention is that it is nearly impossible to get a leaf fully intact after you have peeled it off the lettuce head – my lettuce “wraps” looked more like lettuce tacos. While they did taste good, most of what I ate ended up in my lap due to my beginner lettuce-wrapping techniques.

When it came to the “Tropical Pineapple Chicken,” the recipe did not specify how long to cook the chicken. It might as well have said, “If it looks good, then I guess you can eat it.” After I cut through the middle and it appeared fine, I served it to my roommate. A few bites of rubbery chicken later, it was safe to say it was actually not cooked all the way through.

Although my roommate now believes that I tried to poison her and my bank account aches, the endeavor proved worthwhile as I discovered something I never knew before.

I should stick to microwave meals only.

Poor Hannah! I sent her a pdf.

Veggies for the College Cook: Spinach and Broccoli Soup

The biggest problem for the College Cook (or the recently graduated cook or even for me) is vegetables. They are more expensive than you might think. They are messy to prepare. Frugal Son figured that out after two days in his new apartment. He called, "What is the best way to deal with vegetables?"

I flipped through some of my many cookbooks and came upon a promising soup. It is in a cookbook by Andrew Schloss. I got mine from paperbackswap.com: do not spend $100 on this!

It is a interesting--albeit gimmicky--book. Schloss likes to take things--premade hummus, premade polenta, and the like and make other things out of them. I like metamorphic cooking myself, but I do not have his skill, training, or imagination.

Broccoli-Spinach-Potato Soup with Cheddar (his recipe)

Saute a cup onion and some garlic in some butter. Add 32 oz chicken broth, box frozen broccoli, box frozen spinach. Cook for a bit, puree, and stir in 3/4 cup instant mashed potatoes (!!!! genius!!!). Add some cheddar before serving.


Easily adaptable for the college cook!
Pantry ingredients from the cookbook:
frozen spinach, frozen onion, cheese

What I did: I threw some butter and about 1/2 cup frozen onion in the rice cooker. After a bit, I threw in a few cloves of garlic (I decided not to use broth). I then added two big handfuls each of frozen broccoli and spinach. Water to cover. Cook for a bit. Puree with stick blender.

Then I clicked to warm and stirred in about 1/2 cup of instant mashed potatoes (I only had a flavored kind--with bacon and other things, so I did not use the broth). Then I added cheese.

Notice how adding a few ingredients to the basic 20 we call for in the book really expands the options. In this case, you need to buy soe instant mashed potatoes, frozen broccoli, and garlic. All cheap and easy to store, even in limited space.


I will test this out on Miss Em later. I think it came out well.

What Else To Do With Couscous

OK. Let's say you bought the 10 pound bag of couscous from Amazon per my recommendation. Now what?

If you have my ebook, you know we recommend amassing a pantry of about 20 ingredients. These include:

canned tomatoes
canned beans (chickpeas, in this case)
frozen chopped onion
frozen chopped bell peppers

If you put all of the above into your rice cooker, you can make an almost authentic stew. Yes, it would be better to saute the onion (and you can try in the rice cooker), but honestly, the easy way is almost as good. I'd use a handful of the two frozen veggies. Remember to rinse and drain the chickpeas.

Cook on high for a bit and then turn to "warm."

If you want to jazz this up, you can add some baby carrots (no chopping required!), If you care or dare to chop, some sliced zucchini would be good. As always with the rice cooker, cook till done.

Oh yeah, add some raisins or dried apricots if you have them. A pinch of cinnamon and/or cumin too.

And, in the meantime, cook your couscous by putting some in a bowl and adding hot water to cover. When it's done, top with your stew.

Call your mom and tell her that--yes--you are eating well. Then tell her that she--or dad--can make this on the stove if they lack a rice cooker.

What You Can Cook from the Shopping List or Pantry: Permutations

As an experienced cook, I marvel at what you can make from a limited number of pantry ingredients. Inexperienced cooks (or people who hate cooking like my mother) tend to keep their cupboards bare and so have to shop afresh for every meal. This is time-consuming and expensive.

From the Publix sale list posted last time, you can see a plethora of possibilities. And permutations within the permutations.

Pasta with tomato sauce.
--Add cheese
--Add sausage

Rice with Eastsmart* veggies
--Add cheese
--Add sausage
--Add egg if you have one
--Add soy sauce instead of the cheese for some Asian flair

--Broth plus veggies
--Canned tomatoes
--Cheese
--Add rice
--Add pasta
--Sausage
--Soy sauce

*Those Eatsmart vegetables are great, especially when on sale for $1. We went to Publix in Alabama for research (not really; we went to visit Miss Em). The packages included: broccoli, broc and cauliflower, broc and cauliflower and carrots, Asian mix (my fave); broccoli slaw (runner up). If I were you, dear College Cooks and Fellow Travelers, I would buy as many as I could use up to the expiration date (or even a bit past).

Any other ideas?

College Cooking/ Frugal Cooking from Publix: THE SHOPPING LIST

OK, College Cooks (and even people like me with a kitchen): with the list from this week's sales at Publix, you can make easy, nutritious, and (yay!) even frugal meals. If you go to the Publix site and make your own list, you will even get info on which aisle your delicious goodies can be found in.

Note that--as a lazy and disorganized person--I do not use coupons. And--as a healthy cooking nerd type--I do not buy any of the heavily processed or convenience foods that are good deals for those who might want them.

And--as befits the College Cooking rubric--I am assuming you have only a rice cooker, a microwave, and a fridge. You will have to supplement with some cheap pantry staples like cooking oil, but you can make a lot with what's on the list below.

For HOW TO do these things in a rice cooker, see the little e-tome I put together with my son (above right to order ebook from us or Kindle-ready on Amazon). OR just google around and you can find how-tos hither and yon. Or email me and I will write out an instruction for you.

Certain ingredients may pique your interest: we use smoked sausage because it's precooked. I love the big bags of frozen ravioli. This is an excellent convenience product.

And finally, in certain states you have to BUY 2 to get the BOGO price. In others--like where my daughter lives--you need only buy one and will be charged half price.

Next post will enumerate various things you can eat and cook. Stay tuned.









Hunt’s 100% Natural Tomatoes BUY 1 GET 1 FREE thru 2/28/2012

Hunt’s 100% Natural Tomatoes BUY ONE GET ONE FREE thru 2/28/2012

Alma’s Macaroni Product Organic Pasta BUY ONE GET ONE FREE thru 2/28/2012

Ronzoni Pasta BUY 1 GET 1 FREE thru 2/28/2012

Progresso 100% Natural Broth BUY 1 GET 1 FREE thru 2/28/2012

DiGiorno Cheese BUY 1 GET 1 FREE thru 2/28/2012

Mona’s Pasta Café Five Cheese Ravioli BUY 1 GET 1 FREE thru 2/28/2012

Butterball Turkey Smoked Sausage 2 FOR $5.00 thru 2/28/2012

Eat Smart Vegetables $1.00 thru 2/28/2012
Florida Strawberries 3 FOR $5.00 thru 2/28/2012

Florida Tangerines or Juice Oranges 2 FOR $5.00 thru 2/28/2012

Fresh Express Salad Blends BUY 1 GET 1 FREE thru 2/28/2012

Amazon Subscribe and Save: A Good Deal

I've been noodling around Amazon for many years now, but never understood the "Subscribe and Save" option. Subscribe and Save gives you a 15% discount on selected items (food and other stuff) if you sign up for regular delivery.

It also gives you FREE SHIPPING. And I learned that you can cancel your order at any time, so you can take the discount and cancel. Many people do that. You can set your schedule at up to 6 months hence, so you have plenty of time to decide. (Note: I don't think intending to cancel is unethical. Amy D of The Tightwad Gazette said such offers catch many fish and you don't need to feel guilty if you are a smart fish.)

I finally figured this out when I got a crisis email from Miss Em who seriously underestimated the amount of oatmeal--actually oat groats--she would consume. Mom to the rescue!

Then she requested some fancy tea. We were happy to oblige.

We are happy to oblige because Miss Em is a busy, carless student, and has less time to take care of these things than we do. Plus, of course, if your mother is pathologically frugal, it is a good idea to let her do the shopping. And, as an added bonus, parents end up paying! What a great system.

If you want to see where Amy D. takes her stand on the ethics of canceling a subscription after getting a benefit, well, it's somewhere in here.

Food Bargains for the College Cook: No Driving!

Students get a free year of Amazon Prime. You all know that, right? That means you get FREE SHIPPING and don't need to meet the $25.00 minimum order (I HAVE TO).

Now Amazon is not just being NICE. Amazon wants you to buy textbooks. Textbooks are expensive. The free Prime must work, because both Frugal Son and Miss Em bought some textbooks through Amazon.

Now that you have your Prime, you can get whatever you want.

Like instant coffee.

This is an incredible deal if you like coffee with chicory. It expires in March, so you must use your judgment about dates and all.

Check out the dried fruit, peanut butter, and so on. The free shipping--which saves you both the time and money of getting to a store--may compensate for the somewhat higher prices.

Drugstores for Groceries? YES!

This comes under the category: I thought everyone knew this. However, since most of my peers don't know this, I can only assume most College Cooks are likewise unaware of the riches (or staples) lurking in the drugstore.

This may be news you can use. For many, grocery stores are at a distance from campus, a problem for the time-challenged College Cook. There seem to be drugstores on every corner. In my town of 8500, there are often two drugstores on every corner, as CVS and Walgreens are facing off.

Now you may suppose that drugstores only carry overpriced convenience foods or snack items. Not so, College Cooks. They carry more staples than you might think, AND (for after all, I am FRUGAL) they have good WEEKLY SALES.

Just for a glimpse at my Walgreens this week*:

tuna 69 cents
peanuts 1.99/lb
cereal (cheerios, fiber1) 2.50
Kraft mayo 2.99
butter 2.50/lb
bacon 2.50**
coffee of various kinds, instant and regular

Not to be mentioned in polite company, box mac and cheese (69 cents) and those bowl things that you can microwave (99 cents).

They always have pasta, milk, and eggs also, the latter two at decent prices.

Now, for the **:
* You may need a coupon. The coupons are in the ads at the front of the store. Ask a cashier for help if you can't handle this task.

** The ad says "ready-to-serve bacon." Could this be the pre-cooked slices? I've never used the product, but I would think this would be great for the College Cook. It does not require refrigeration, and can be sprinkled on some of your soups and pastas. Must check on this, faithful readers.

CVS and Rite-Aid have similar sales.

List of Useful Foods for the College Cook: No Refrigeration Needed

It's easy for me--with a big refrigerator--to shop my pantry. I hardly ever NEED to go to the store. I always have something that will make a good dinner. College Cooks may have problems. Some might have teeny refrigerators with freezer space that will hold only a single ice cube tray. Groceries are heavy and bulky, so there may be issues with storage space. Plus, some College Cooks don't have cars (mine doesn't). Groceries may be distant also, even if you're willing to walk.

I have fond memories of trudging through the snow in Bloomington Indiana, carrying a grocery sack. Really. Fond.

Ah, the halcyon days of grad school! College Cooks now have better options in many areas. Of course, job opportunities in the humanities are even worse than they were then. At least computers are available for papers! And the internet for research!

And aseptic packaging for the College Cook.

You can have a small part of your bookshelf for these great supplies: broth, tofu, pasta sauce, soymilk, milk. Photos from Amazon are for reference only! They are often--though not always--expensive. Still, if you are in dire straits, without transportation or time, Amazon will deliver to your door. This may compenste for the higher cost. Not too shabby a choice.



My view: My favorite of the above would be the TOFU. This would make that ubiquitous ramen (which I would guess has all the nutrition of a potato chip) into a fairly healthy repast. Add some spinach for your veggies!

College Cook: What's On Sale at Publix later this week

For you and your friends, dear Miss Em. Not for you the mac and cheese and other vile items. You've got your pantry and freezer filled with good things. And you can augment with the following:

canned tomatoes Hunts BOGO
Yoplait yogurt .50
5 lb bag grapefruit 2.50
fuji apples .99/lb

College Cooking and Economic Trends: Coffee

I will admit it: a main reason (if not THE main reason) for having Miss Em purchase a small meal plan is money. At around $8.00/meal, the dining hall is an expensive choice.

Of course, you're not saving money if you purchase prepared food in your grocery deli: that gourmet wrap may equal the cost of your dining hall lunch, without the variety.

Still, college students can't--and shouldn't--run all over town trying to get the best deals on food. Nevertheless, when you spot a deal, buy more than one.

The Wall Street Journal tells us that food prices are going up: coffee, in particular, is on the rise. It just so happens that Miss Em, who is fast becoming an addict, like her parents before her, inquired about coffee. It turns out that the wonderful instant coffee we learned about will not suffice.

No, she wants real coffee too. Well, my local grocery has coffee and chicory on sale this week for $1.99. I was planning to buy 20. Maybe I'll buy 50, and save some for Miss Em and her roommates.

I noticed that Amazon has Louisiana coffee at a very good price.

This is only a teeny bit more than a local sale price! I called Miss Em, but it turns out that no one in her suite has a P.O. box, so I can't have Amazon send it yet. I told her to get a box forthwith.

Warning: Louisiana coffee is very strong.

Any thoughts on stocking up?

Cookin' once, cookin' twice, cookin' chicken soup with rice

You may have noticed that Publix, my dear daughter's grocery of choice, had rotisserie chicken on sale. Even if rotisserie chicken is NOT on sale, just at regular price, it's a good deal for the College Cook. That's obvious to anyone, right?

The key to cooking ease for anyone, of the College cohort, or even of my middle-aged working person cohort, or even of MY mother's retired, hate to cook cohort, is to get more than one meal from your efforts.

So, cookin' once. Get that chicken. Eat some, accompanied by, well, anything. How about making some rice in your rice cooker? Put in 1 1/2 cups and 3 cups of water. You will have about 4 1/2 cups of rice. Eat a little with your chicken. Maybe have a salad or some other vegetable. Whatever. Save the remains of the chicken and the rice.

cookin' twice. Take a bit of chicken (leave some!) and a cup or two of cooked rice. You can use your rice cooker: mix some of the chicken and rice with some onion and whatever veggies you have. OR, you can mix all the aforementioned ingredients in a bowl, and heat in the microwave. If you top with soy sauce, you have Chinese food, sort of.

cookin' chicken soup with rice.Surely, this was inevitable. If you didn't read the Maurice Sendak book Chicken Soup with Rice, let me just say, it's never too late. This is the hardest part of your journey. But the previous days have been so easy. You must use the carcass for stock. You simply must. It will improve anything.

This is messy. Squoosh the carcass, including all scraps (maybe taking the nice meat off first), jam it into your rice cooker. Add water. Cook for an hour or so. Using a colander, drain the stock into another pot. You will have to wash the colander. Throw away the bones. It's better to discard OUT of your dorm room, because bones can get smelly.

The yucky part is done. Now you can make chicken soup, using some left-over rice, maybe your left-over veggies. I bet you have enough for 2 servings.

Lyrics to Maurice Sendak's Chicken Soup with Rice , with music by Carole King, here.

Any other chicken soup ideas? Don't you love Maurice Sendak?

Mommy, What's BOGO?: How to Save Money Stocking the College Kitchen

Even though superfrugal shopping is not the MAIN aim of this blog--why not save money when you can? The key to ease in meal preparation is to have what you need: with a can of tomatoes, an onion, pasta, cheese, a vegetable, you have dinner. Add eggs and you have a different dinner. Add tortillas and you have yet another dinner.

The key to saving money in your kitchen is to have what you need, acquired at good prices.

There are various ways to accomplish this end. The one that gets the most press is couponing. I don't do this myself (too messy) and I think for singles like college cooks, it would be a real time suck. Another way (my personal fave) is Big Lots. But for the college student, this isn't the best: not everything is well-priced and you can't count on finding what you need. The warehouse stores are, in theory, excellent, but, except for cheese, I haven't found the prices that great. Plus, they are often out of the way. Plus, items are sold in huge sizes that would prove wasteful for the single or college cook.

So, we are back to the local grocery. Obviously, shop sales. How do you shop at the local place and save money? If you need something, you need something. Still, you should SHOP THE ADS. Most stores have ads on-line, which is how I checked the Publix prices for my beloved daughter.

Publix seems enamored of the BOGO. "Mommy, what's a BOGO?" Glad you asked. It means BUY ONE GET ONE FREE. So, College Cooks, if you see that you can get canned tomatoes that way, and pasta, why not buy 2 of each? That way, when you need to restock, you'll already have what you need, thereby saving a trip.

With things like canned tomatoes and pasta, I'd probably buy 4 of each--or even 8.

Any other tips for saving money on food shopping?

Shopping for the College Cook: Publix edition

Well, Miss Em is ensconced in her suite. So, what happens when a pathologically frugal mother has a somewhat frugal daughter who is poised to start eating in her suite kitchen, sans stove?

Well, it is not worth said student's time to be PATHOLOGICALLY frugal, to seek out the absolutely BEST prices on food items. Still, besides home cooking, the best way to save money on food is to plan your eating AROUND the sales, and to buy an extra one or few of an item on sale.

The grocery store right off campus is PUBLIX. It is an easy and relaxing walk. What should Miss Em think about buying? Remember, these are not SUPER-LOW prices, but they are very good to pretty good. Note that the first list covers today and tomorrow. The second list covers the next ad, with the week starting Wednesday.

For 8/16-8/17

peaches 99/lb
red grapes 1.69/lb
publix salad 2/4
strawberries 2.50/lb
wesson oil 48 oz 2/4
ronzoni pasta bogo

For week beginning 8/18

Lots of good stuff! However, in the interest of healthy eating, I am not mentioning things like tuna helper and ice cream sandwiches and the like, even at good prices.

Fiber 1 cereal 4.29 bogo
barilla pasta bogo
hunts diced tomatoes 1.39 bogo
planters peanuts 12 oz can 2.71 bogo
nature's bread organic 3.49 bogo
starkist 4 pk albacore 5.99 bogo
peter pan peanut butter 2.09 bogo
dannon activa yogurt 3/6
publix cottage cheese 24 oz 2/4
eggland eggs 2/4
cracker barrel cheese 2/6*
very good xsharp cheddar
publix yogurt 20/8*
i.e. 40 cents each, math students
rotisserie chicken cold 4.99
medium shrimp 4.99*
only if peeled! too messy, otherwise
plums 99/lb
white grapes 1.69

Ingredients from UPS? A Good Idea?

I am a frugal, from scratch kind of cook, so it has been an education for me to think in terms of cooking for the college student. Obviously, a dorm- or apartment-dwelling student doesn't have the time, space, or incentive to cook the way I do.

So, frugality needs to be second to convenience. After all, if it's not convenient to cook something, you can always pop in a frozen dinner or go out for fast food. Not that good--or good for you, but easy and cheap.

I have been perusing Amazon's grocery offerings of late. I found a few things that would be worth buying. These all get free shipping if you spend over $25.00. Maybe it's worth it to have your ingredients delivered to your door.

Item 1 is polenta.

I make my own polenta, natch, for about 1/10 this price. But the price on Amazon for the pre-prepared is about the same as at my local grocery. You can slice polenta and use it as a base for various toppings. You can layer it with cheese and tomato sauce for a kind of lasagne. Only downside: you have to buy a dozen, so make sure you like polenta.

Item 2 is tofu.

This too is about the same price as in the stores in my area. I'm sure it's cheaper in an Asian grocery. You can stir this into soup. In fact, if you stir it into the ubiquitous ramen and throw in some frozen spinach, you've got a pretty healthy meal.

As a last example, my favorite tomato sauce.

I got a year's supply at my fave store Big Lots a while ago--for $1.00 a can. Still, this is great stuff on pasta, pizza dough, and so on. Unlike most canned stuff, it doesn't taste like metal.

Do you think it's worth it to pay more for food that is delivered?