College is an epic, fun and stressful time in all our lives. It’s important to eat good food because you need the energy to hustle. I know what you’re gonna say…food is expensive. And I agree, it is. But, I’m here to show you how to make most of your groceries for an entire week of home cooked food. The ingredients are simple and you can whip all of this up in minutes. You can eye ball the ingredients, that’s how I cooked it…go with how much you want and add stuff accordingly. Have fun with the recipes and make it your own. Don’t stress about accuracy.

1. Spinach Scrambled Egg and Avocado Toast

Sounds like a lot but is super easy and filling, I promise.

Ingredients:
• 1 ripe avocado
• 1 or 2 slices of bread
• An egg
• A handful of spinach
• Any seasoning – Cayenne pepper, salt, Italian seasoning (these are my fave)
• Cooking oil
• 1 Lime/lemon

Recipe:
1. Cut the avocado in half. Take out the seeds and use a spoon to scoop it out into a bowl.
2. Put a few slices of bread into a toaster. If you don’t have a toaster, add some butter to the bread. Heat a pan up and put the buttered bread on the pan and let it grill a bit. Flip the bread and it should be a golden colour and a little bit more firm. Boom. There’s your toast.
3. Add some lime juice, salt and pepper to your liking. Mix it up and put it to the side.
4. Heat up a pan with a little bit of cooking oil. Once the oil is hot, add the spinach to the pan (careful, the oil could splatter) and stir it around to let it shrivel up.
5. Crack an egg into the pan and mix it in with the spinach and stir. Add some cayenne pepper, Italian seasoning and salt to your liking and mix it around in the pan till the egg is cooked through.
6. Assemble – On the toast, put the avocado mash followed by the scrambled egg. Sprinkle some more salt if you’d like and there you go!

2. Pasta Bake

Whenever I needed a hearty dish and I needed to meal prep, this bake was a life saver.

Ingredients:
• Any pasta you like
• One tbsp. olive oil
• Salt to taste for boiling pasta
• Arrabiata sauce
• Grated cheddar
• Bread crumbs (optional)
• Rotisserie chicken

Method:
1. Boil pasta with a little salt and olive oil so it doesn’t stick to each other. Boil till al dente, so for 7-8 minutes.
2. Keep 3-4 tablespoons of the pasta water in a bowl and drain the rest of it.
3. Get a pyrex deep dish for the oven and put some olive oil in the dish. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
4. Empty the bottle of Arrabiata sauce into the pot and heat it up. Add the cooked pasta along with 2 tablespoons of the pasta water to add richness.
Add salt and pepper to your liking.
5. Stir till sauce completed mixed with the pasta.
6. Throw in cubes or shredded pieces of the chicken (you can buy roasted chicken from a supermarket) and mix together with pasta as well. (If you’re vegetarian or vegan, add some boiled veggies like broccoli, peas or carrots).
7. Now dump all of it into the deep dish, add a layer of cheddar cheeseand some bread crumbs on top.
8. Stick it in the over for 15 minutes or till cheese has melted and you’re done.
9. Cut it into slices and enjoy. You can stick it in the fridge and heat it in your microwave for the next two to three days.

3. Chickpea Wraps

I loved this wrap because it was my fastest meal to make.

Ingredients:
• Whole wheat tortillas
• Tinned chickpeas
• Cucumber and capsicum
• Hummus
• Barbecue sauce
• Seasoning: salt, pepper and paprika

Method:
1. Drain the water from the chickpeas and place into a pan. Heat it up and add paprika, salt, pepper, some lime juice and the barbecue sauce.
2. Stir it together until well combined and set aside.
3. Slice cucumber and capsicum into thin, vertical pieces and set aside
4. Warm up your tortilla wraps in the micro or on a pan
5. Spread hummus on it, add some of the chickpeas mix along with the cucumber slivers and roll it into a wrap.
6. Add a toothpick if you are carrying it to go do that it doesn’t fall apart in your lunch bag.
7. There you are. Quick, fast and really yummy.

4. Quick Stir Fry

I learnt this recipe from my mama and I’ve used it ever since.

Ingredients:
• Garlic
• Oil
• Any vegetables you want – broccoli, carrots, snow peas etc.
• Oyster sauce
• Soya Sauce
• Chili Basil Sauce
• Any protein like chicken or prawn etc.
• Spinach leaves (Optional)
• Noodles or rice
• Chicken or vegetable broth (You can also use the cubes by Maggi)
• Salt and Pepper for Seasoning

Method:
1. In your wok or pan, heat it to medium to high heat and let it get hot.
2. Start with putting some oil in the pan and then add some chopped garlic to the pan and let it sizzle. Move it around the pan and let it get aromatic. Don’t let it burn.
3. Put your vegetables in and stir fry them.
4. Put a little oyster sauce, soya sauce and for extra kick throw in chilli basil too according to your preference and stir fry it.
5. Move everything around the pan so it all evens out.
6. Put your protein in and stir fry it and toss it around the pan
7. This is the time to put spinach in if you like.
8. Wait 11-12 minutes and then add the cooked noodles or rice to the pan.
9. Add your stock cube now that is either chicken or vegetable.
10. Stir it around one last time, combine it together and add salt and pepper to your liking and you’re done!

5. Strawberry Infused Salad

Let’s get some greens in there too people!

The Salad Ingredients:
• Spinach leaves
• Lettuce leaves
• X6 diced strawberries
• Feta cheese – as much as you like
• Walnuts (Optional)

The Dressing Ingredients:
• 1 ½ tbsp Balsamic vinegar
• 3 tsp lemon juice
• Salt and Pepper to your liking
• 1 tsp honey
• 2 crushed strawberries – you can make it as chunky or smooth as you like
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Method:
1. Wash everything except the cheese and walnuts – they are to put on top.
2. Put in bowl
3. Mix dress and add to salad bowl
4. Voila! Enjoy!

These are super easy recipes and you can change things around however you like.

Here are a few more tips I learnt during college:

  • I recommend buying your groceries from local supermarkets for the week as their rates are lower.
  • Cook the night before your week begins and be sure to get raw veggies and fruits in too.
  • Use containers to divide the food up per meal or day.
  • Don’t beat yourself up if you order take out once in a while, its okay.