Manifesto

So I realize that I haven’t yet told you what this is all about, although you may have already guessed! And so, as a general election grips the nation, here's my own manifesto...

I am currently in the last term of my last year of my undergraduate degree at a college of the University of London. I lived in halls in my first year, but for the last two years of living in a real house (actually, I only live in a real house now, last year I lived in a split-level apartment for half the year and a tiny flat for the other half of the year), I have cooked from scratch every* single day. I have never, ever, ever met anyone who has any use for a “Student Cookbook” of any variety, or who lives off baked beans. I completely believe that there is no student out there who doesn’t want to be eating real food, cheaply, every day.

But how? So many people ask me how I manage to come up with great meals and can still afford to go clothes shopping and go out clubbing. Well, that’s what this is all about: I want to show you how to make the most of your ingredients; how to come up with loads of different meal ideas from just a small amount of shopping; and how cooking really tasty and healthy food can not only be easy to do, but also easy to fit into your day – I’m revising for my finals, writing my dissertation, and still cooking from scratch. A healthy body equals a healthy mind, right? So ditch the convenience food, takeaways and ready meals, and join me in my adventure finding Food for Finals.

Bank Holiday Baking

Well, here we are: May Day bank holiday weekend. Crikey. That means it's only one month until my finals. That's right, I said it - FINALS. So what did I do? I baked.

This is what I came home from the supermarket with on Saturday morning. BEAUTIFUL.

So, as you might have also notice, it rained all weekend. Non stop. So I was totally justified in my bake-a-thon, I'm sure! And I always bake on Sundays anyway so...!

I didn't actually make this one. This Beetroot and Seed Cake was made by one of my housemates, and I got the recipe from the lovely people at Leafi, who do the catering at my university but also have fantastic restaurants all over London. Check them out, seriously. (If you can get their Brazilian Carrot Cake it's my absolute favourite thing ever.)

I did, however, make these:

Oops.

That's A LOT of GIANT cookies. But boy are they good!

The recipe is from the ever-brilliant Joy the Baker, and I also made her S'more Brownies but for some reason didn't take a photo, and of course they're all gone now!!

So, that is what I did. Not revising, cooking. Lush.

Pastaaaaa

It's been a while. I've been writing my dissertation, having technology-related crises, and zero social life. To fit everything in, I've been making the ultimate student staple - pasta. But not just pasta with sauce-from-a-jar. Proper, interesting, healthy pasta. Here's a few:

Spaghetti with courgettes and prawns

1 serving spaghetti

1/2 pack king prawns

6 courgette ribbons

olive oil

1tbsp chopped parsley

juice of 1/2 lemon

salt and black pepper

Cook the pasta according to packet instructions.

Meanwhile, heat a little oil in a pan and fry the prawns with salt and pepper. 

When the pasta is cooked, add the lemon juice to the prawns and then the pasta, courgettes, and parsley. Use pasta tongs to distribute the ingredients evenly through the pasta and serve with salad.

Spaghetti with venison meatballs and garlic ciabatta

1 cup venison mince

1/2 tin of chopped tomatoes

fresh thyme

1 serving spaghetti

tomato puree

1 tsp sugar

salt and black pepper

olive oil

Season the mince and shape into balls. Heat a frying pan over a high heat and add a little oil. Fry the meatballs until brown on all sides (approx 3 mins).

Meanwhile, add the tomatoes, puree, sugar, thyme, and seasoning to a sauce pan and cook over a medium heat. When the meatballs are browned, add to the sauce to cook through.

Cook the spaghetti according to the packet instructions. Add the spaghetti to the sauce and serve. (Here I made double quantities of sauce so had to mix the pasta and sauce on my plate - it's much better to coat it in the pan though!)

For the garlic ciabatta:

1/2 ciabatta

1 tbsp softened salted butter

1 clove garlic

Oven at 190C. Make slices into the bread, but don't cut the whole way through. 

Crush or finely chop the garlic and add to the butter and mix well (I use a fork to mash them together). Carefully spread the butter between the slices of bread, trying not to tear it. Place on a baking sheet and bake until crisp and golden (approx 15 mins).

Angel hair pasta with feta, mint, and courgette (from Tessa Kiros)

1 portion angel hair/vermicelli

1/4 block of feta cheese, crumbled

6 courgette ribbons

1/2 tbsp mint leaves, chopped

juice of 1/2 lemon

1/2 clove garlic

olive oil

salt and black pepper

Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a frying pan and add the garlic. Cook for 1 minute before adding the courgette, mint, and lemon juice. Remove from the heat and add the pasta, cheese, and season. Use pasta tongs to mix together, and serve.