Column: Cheap College Eats

Recipes for college students on a budget

Hey readers! I am Rylee Burks and I will show you guys some affordable, fun recipes that can be made in the dorm. As college students we’re often busy and of course, broke. These will be things that can be made with less than five ingredients and in a rush! Follow these simple recipes and enjoy!

First up is a homemade cucumber and tomato salad. Back home this is a staple piece from barbecues, chinese restaurants, all the way to grandma’s kitchen table.

For this recipe you’ll need:

• A cucumber ($1)
• Either small cherry tomatoes or a large beefsteak tomato ($3)
• Olive oil ($7)
• Vinegar ($3)
• Seasonings of your choice (already had)

To create this recipe you should:

1. Find a clean surface or plate and cut up the cucumber. Follow by cutting the tomato up.
2. Place the cut pieces into a bowl and mix together.
3. Pour equal parts olive oil and vinegar into the bowl, adding more in small increments until you get the desired taste.
4. Lastly, add salt and pepper or other seasonings of your choice to taste.
5. Shake well.

This recipe costs $14 start up, and creates one bowl. However, there will be olive oil and vinegar left for future use. Therefore. if you buy more tomatoes and another cucumber, this meal will be $4.

Our next recipe is a classic favorite: chicken and waffles. While this one truly just requires heating it up in the microwave, I encourage you to think of more ways to mix it up. The waffles in this recipe can be exchanged for biscuits, tortillas, crescent rolls, etc.

Hint: if you switch with Hawaiian rolls, you can make them quite similar to a chicken mini from Chick-fil-a.

For this recipe you’ll need:

1. Frozen waffles (preferably plain) ($3 for a 10 count)
2. Precooked chicken (nuggets or strips are fine) ($6 for a bag of 40 nuggets)
3. Syrup ($4)

To prepare:

1. Follow the heating instructions on the chicken first, ensuring that you got precooked chicken that must just be heated in the microwave.
2. Secondly, follow the instructions on the waffles for heating. While these are heating, you can cut your chicken into more bite sized pieces if desired.
3. When the waffles are heated, I suggest putting them both back into the microwave and heating together for an additional 30 seconds to ensure they get heated and are both warm.
4. Lastly, drizzle the syrup and enjoy! 

This recipe costs $13 up front, but comes out to nearly 5 portions at $2.60

by Rylee Burks