Moving into a dorm room can be a drastic change for students. Responsibilities increase, time becomes precious and home-cooked meals turn into commons food and noodles.
But dorm room cooking doesn't have to be boring. Microwaves offer many cooking possibilities beyond the typical Easy Mac or Ramen noodle diet.
Here are some suggestions for easy yet delicious dorm room meals.
1. To add some protein and other much-need nutrients to an otherwise all-carb fest of Easy Mac, heat up a hotdog and cut up some fresh vegetables like tomatoes, onions and green peppers and add it to the mac and cheese.
2. Cook Ramen noodles as usual, but skip the packet of seasoning. Instead use some other sauce like tomato or Alfredo sauce for a quick Italian dinner.
3. Buy a bag of lettuce, any other vegetables and a can of tuna or chicken to make a healthy salad. One of my favorites is a bag of romaine lettuce, a can of chicken, granola, Craisins and raspberry vinaigrette dressing.
4. Buy some eggs and beat them with a fork in a bowl. Add some fresh vegetables and microwave it until the eggs are cooked. It makes an oddly shaped -- but delicious -- omelet.
5. Buy English muffins or bagels and pizza ingredients. Make little pizzas and microwave until hot.
6. For a snack, buy Velveeta and salsa and microwave it until hot. Just add the tortilla chips.
7. Buy any type of fruit or pretzels. Microwave chocolate bars until melted. Dip the fruit or pretzels into chocolate, then put them into the fridge until the chocolate hardens.
8. Buy graham crackers, chocolate and marshmallows to make s'mores in the microwave. Just be careful that the marshmallows don't explode.
9. Buy a 9x13-inch pan, graham crackers, 2 boxes of instant vanilla pudding, milk, a can of chocolate frosting and a 12-ounce tub of Cool Whip. Mix the vanilla pudding with 3 cups of milk. Stir in the Cool Whip until all the ingredients are blended. Line the bottom of the pan with a layer of graham crackers. Pour half the mixture over the graham crackers. Add another layer of graham crackers. Pour the remainder of the mixture on top. Add another layer of graham crackers. Remove the foil seal on the frosting, then microwave on high for one minute. Pour the frosting over the graham crackers. Refrigerate for four hours before serving.
10. This recipe from the Food Network is an energy booster. Buy honey, peanut butter, granola and milk. In a large bowl mix 2 tbsp. honey and 4 tbsp. of peanut butter. Using a spatula, stir in two cups of granola. Add enough milk to just moisten; you want it to stick together. Form into balls. Chill until ready to serve.
-- Compiled by Emma Straley
