At the beginning of sophomore year, I moved into an apartment, and therefore had to learn how to cook for myself! Since then, however, I have started to really enjoy cooking and have had a lot of fun. I find cooking very relaxing and enjoyable. It is also fun to cook food for other people and see if they like it or not.
My mom made home-cooked meals a big deal when I was growing up, and this definitely influenced me to want to cook my own home-cooked meals. However, it definitely did not start out so well. I have memories last year of spilling salsa all over the oven, almost causing a fire on my stove top, and cooking steak to a rubbery consistency, among many other unfortunate events. I guess things like this take practice. Even with these incidents, I decided to keep cooking, even with my crazy schedule.
When you do not have a cafeteria to eat at, finding time to cook can be stressful. It seems like I am always going to class, or to a band event, or to my research lab, or slaving away doing homework. However, in my sophomore year, I decided that eating well was going to be a priority, and I made time to cook dinner. I have to say though, even with cooking being enjoyable, it is definitely more stressful when all I can think about is how much homework I have to do. My favorite days to cook are Friday and Saturday, when I do not have homework due the next day :).
I figured that I would show you guys some of the meals that I have made. There is nothing better than working hard to make dinner and then having it taste delicious. I strongly suggest that when you start being responsible for your own meals, you try cooking too!
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- Chicken Parmesan with Penne
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- Chicken Tortilla Soup
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- Chicken Pesto Pizza
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- Cinnamon French Toast with Hash Browns
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- Salsa Chicken with Corn/Black Bean Medley
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- Chicken Stir Fry over Steamed Rice
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- Half-eaten New York Steak with Artichoke
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- Sautéed Lamb Shoulder Chop with Mashed Potatoes and spinach salad
