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<p>This is ridiculous. I spent four years at MIT, three of them as a varsity athlete, and most semesters taking above the average credit load, all living in dorms without a meal plan. And all of them eating better food than I would have had I eaten in a dining hall. Your parents likely work full-time jobs, manage a household, raise children AND somehow manage to prepare your meals. Do you really think that a college student is so much busier?</p>
<p>Anyhow, I doubt it will be awkward to share a kitchen with just one other person. In my dorm, kitchens were shared with a bare minimum of 4 others, and I never really had a problem. Stoves almost always have four burners, and if necessary, it’s pretty easy to share oven space. We occasionally had to talk about the oven schedule in my kitchen, but it was never something that we needed to plan way in advance. You just walked into the kitchen, saw someone cooking something that would likely require the oven, and asked them about their plans. If they’re planning a quick broil, which is how I usually cook, you would probably use the oven after them, If they’ve got a longer bake, see if the temperatures you and your roommate need can be worked out.</p>
<p>Ideas for quick cheap meals</p>
<p>Breakfast - cereal’s obviously a go to, but I like something warm. I usually cook oatmeal in a double boiler. The process is calm and predictable enough that I actually take a shower and get dressed while it’s on the stove. Just set the stove to low-to-medium heat and it’ll be done in about a half-hour. I sprinkle it with a bit of turbinado sugar, a bit of nutmeg, allspice, and cinnamon, then add sunflower seeds and dried cranberries, or blueberries and chopped hazelnuts, or dried mixed fruit and walnuts. Really, have it however you want. If I have a ton of time in the morning, I will make an omelette. I broil up some veggies in the oven, then get my egg game on.</p>
<p>Lunch - usually you’ll be eating this out, so it’s good to have something to go. My go-to is a sandwich. I like herbed turkey & mozzarella, with a generous spread of mustard and as much arugula as I can fit. Bring an apple, maybe a yogurt or some almonds with you, and you’re good to go. If I want to mix it up, I bring an arugula or spinach salad in tupperware. I usually top my salads with roasted peppers and feta cheese, or with poached eggs and dried berries, or occasionally with suitable leftovers. Eg: if I made salmon a while back, I can turn the salmon into a oniony, red-peppery salmon salad. For a vegan option, I love a no-cook white and black bean salad over nutty farro, drizzled with a lemon vinaigrette and topped with a mountain of cilantro.</p>
<p>Dinner - this is actually the meal I’m the worst at making consistently. I often opt for bigger versions of the same salads I had as lunch. Sometimes I add in roasted chickpeas. I might have a warm sandwich of roasted tomatoes or peppers on Italian bread, spread with this really great raw pesto from Whole Foods. Pasta, in a quick home made sauce that I pull together with broiled tomatoes, garlic, and, from time to time, cream, is a go-to. Whitefish cooks up quickly, and is good with a citrus honey sauce. If I’m watching Game of Thrones, I really like to have fried tofu with Trader Joe’s frozen gyoza. If I have a heavy week, I might marinate and bake some skinless, boneless chicken thighs on Sunday. I then have them throughout the week with rice from my rice maker (a very quick fix) plus some quickly sauteed onions and spinach. Some occasional meals that I like to make include Indian lamb dishes (super time consuming, but I make enough to last a week), chicken pot pie, turkey shepherd’s pie, and gnocchi - either traditional or butternut squash. Butternut gnocchi in a goat cheese sage sauce is amazing, by the way! Another super easy long lasting go-to is any quiche. I like to make my own crusts, which takes a bit more time, but if you buy the frozen crust, you pretty much just throw meats, cheeses and veggies into the egg/milk mix and bake.</p>
<p>Dessert - I’m not huge on dessert, but an easy dish I tried out recently was a (vegan) coconut dulce de leche. You literally jut let coconut milk and sugar sit on the stove in a big sauce pan and four hours or so later you have noms. Top with warm pineapple and roasted coconut. Also, if you’re buying/making pie crusts anyway for quiches, try out a pie! Or a crumble, which is like pie but quicker.</p>
<p>Snacks - I avoid buying snacks so that I don’t end up eating them, but I keep popcorn kernels to pop on the stove. Usually in safflower oil. I also love dried seaweed.</p>
<p>I usually spend a little over $30 a week on groceries. You’ll spend more if you’re setting up a kitchen because spices are hella expensive. Not to mention tools. </p>
<p>I’m not going to say I didn’t eat out in college. I did, and I loved it. But, I was usually eating fairly healthy options, and even if I ate a ton of lunches out, my total food costs were still way lower than a meal plan would be. Just prioritize what you have out. When I realized what great coffee I could make in my kitchen, by using beans that were roasted the day before I bought them and grinding them only seconds before they went into my French press, I stopped spending lots of money on the bitterness they sell at Starbucks. My bag of beans may have cost $13 but it lasted me two weeks; I’d spend at least $60 buying those coffees out.</p>