Back in the beginnings of this blog I used to do a weekly round-up of what I’d been eating. The idea of this bores me now, mainly as it would involve photographing every single meal (and admitting the size of the pie slice I ate last Saturday…). Instead I now post interesting meals on Instagram, aiming to use what I’m claiming as ‘my’ hashtag #whatastudenteats.
And of course, there will be an occasional round-up of food on here too, as I just like my food that much.
And I eat a lot of food.
What can I say, I’m greedy!
The last few months have seen my diet get a lot more varied. I’ve gotten more into salads (though now it’s getting colder my allegiance is switching back to soups!). I’ve played around with more Mexican flavours, enjoyed Asian dishes and finally started cooking proper roast dinners.
So, highlights in the past few months of meals?
Fajitas. These are one of mine and W’s favorite meals – quick, easy, and not actually too bad for you. Plus minimal washing up! I buy the jar of Schartz fajita seasoning and just shake that into the pan which works out cheaper than buying box-kits and sachets. Yum yum!
Scampi! A pub classic and a favorite of mine, I was sent some vouchers for
Whitby Seafoods Scampi*. Unfortunately I couldn’t try their spicy version (damn tomato powder!) but their classic was lovely. More expensive that I would usually buy, but far, far superior. To the point that I now can’t eat the cheapest scampi available. Served with oven chips and peas this is a super-fast dinner – it was perfect when I was working in Surrey and commuting back to London as I didn’t need to think about it.
Quesadillas. These resulted from our week of Mindful Eating, and we’ve made the recipe several times since. I’m planning on making a cheaper version too to blog about, as at the moment it’s slightly too pricey for me to make it a regular dinner…
Pitta Pizzas. A lover of pizza, I’m not great at portion control. Having to make my own pizza (with a sauce W doesn’t enjoy) often means I end up eating a whole pizza in one sitting. Making them out of pittas is perfect as it satisfies a craving, it’s cheap and I’m not overeating. Perfect – though not so good before a night out. That’s a case of big pizza only!
Pasta. Pasta is a staple for me, though I’m trying desperately to only eat it once a week – I don’t want to go back to this time last year when I
lived off Mac’n’Cheese! Carbonara is very much my go-to pasta meal (I made the most delicious one with sausage balls and mushrooms last week), however I was recently sent some goodies from Giovanni Rani to try. Their Chicken & Mozzarella Tortelloni* were rich and flavourful, taking only a few minutes to cook – though we did think the portion size was skimpy for two. I’m glad W had the foresight to grab some garlic bread or we would have been hungry that night! We served it with their Carbonara* sauce. At £2.50 this is something I would never buy, but it was quite tasty.
Bagels. Commercial bread doesn’t always sit well in my stomach, occasionally leaving me bloated and uncomfortable. I know I don’t have a gluten intolerance, but I know a lot of the preservatives in store-bought bread aren’t exactly great for you. I’ve always loved making my own but find slicing it annoying – rolls are my go-to bake. Or rather, they were. I’ve recently starting making my own bagels and find them great. They are somehow more filling that regular bread, more forgiving if you forget about the dough, and more resistant to being crushed by a tonne of maths notes in your bag. I’ll get my recipe up soon, promise! I normally enjoy my bagels with either ham or pastrami and plenty of mustard – but I also find them great stuffed with meat, cheese, mustard and a little mayo, then baked in foil until crisp and melty. So, so good!
Chicken Wings. These are a weakness of mine. I love ‘messy food’ – take me on a date and buy me a cheeseburger and I’m a happy girl. Ribs and wings are enough to make my heart sing, and as this student can’t afford pork ribs I have to settle for chicken wings when I fancy a naughty treat. At around £2 for a massive box from Sainsbury’s, they take about 40 minutes to cook and crisp after a day’s marinating. I was recently sent some Encona Peruvian Amarillo Chilli Sauce* and it made the perfect marinade – spicy, sweet and a little sticky. It also worked amazingly well stirred into mayo as a dip. And yes, I did have onion rings and sweet potato fries this night…I always eat it on the sofa in my PJs watching Disney films…
So yep, a lot of food, a lot of eating. Be sure to check out my instagram for more up-to-date foodie adventures, and of course a nosey into the rest of my life!
What have you eaten and loved lately? Any new food releases I should try?
