College Cooking: Feed Yourself and Your Friends [A Cookbook]

by Megan Carle, Jill Carle

You have a midterm tomorrow and a fierce growl in your stomach. Your roommate just nabbed your last cup o' ramen. Do (A) Ignore your stomach and brew another pot of coffee? (B) Break out the PB&J? (C) Order pizza—again? (D) Make a quick trip to the grocery store? The answer's D, and College Cooking is the only study guide you'll need.

Sisters Megan and Jill Carle know all about leaving a well-stocked kitchen to face an empty apartment fridge with little time to cook and very little money. They practically grew up in their parents' kitchen, but even that didn't prepare them for braving the supermarket aisles on their own. That's why they wrote COLLEGE COOKING—to share the tips and tricks they've learned while feeding themselves between late-night studying, papers, parties, and other distractions.

Starting with kitchen basics, Megan and Jill first cover ingredients, equipment, and other prereqs for cooking a decent meal. They then provide more than ninety simple yet tasteworthy recipes—hearty home-style dishes, study-break snacks, healthy salads, sweet treats, and more (along with low-cal and veggie options). You'll find easy and cheap-to-make dishes,

Tortilla Soup • Chili with Green Chile Cornbread • Chicken Salad Pita Sandwiches • Baked Penne Pasta with Italian Sausage • What's-in-the-Fridge Frittata • Peanut Butter Cup Bars • Brownie Bites

You'll also find recipes for feeding a household of roommates, maximizing leftovers, cooking for a dinner date, and hosting parties with minimal prep and cost. Just consider COLLEGE COOKING your crash course in kitchen survival—and required reading for off-campus living.


“College Cooking is a must-pack, along with the fry pan and the blender, for those going back to college or starting this year.”
—Arizona Republic

“The recipes are quick, easy, and simple.”
—Kansas City Star

“This is reasonable food reasonably fast. I was going too give the cookbook to someone in college, but no way. This is going straight into my collection.”
—Oakland Tribune

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction, Food

160 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2007

Reviews

[Mari McR · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book made me laugh because it claims to offer simple recipes with ordinary ingredients for college kids who can no longer tolerate cold pizza and ramen noodles. However, I believe it can be used for anyone who is short on time but want to prepare something tasty. I found many of the recipes quite creative using ingredients in different ways I have not yet attempted. Kudos to the young authors for turning teenagers, youths, and adults (with kitchen fears!) 'ON' to cooking!

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

Features fun & interesting recipes. Lots of tips on keeping cost & calories low.

[Lyne · Rating 5 out of 5]

College Cooking by Megan Carle is a very well-composed and written cook book. It includes many different food categories, each named by a word or two that allow the reader to find the recipes he/she is looking for more easily. The categories include Survival Cooking, Avoiding the freshmen fifteen, Cheap eats, Eat your greens, Just like mom makes, Food for the masses, Impressing your date, and finally, Satisfying your sweet tooth. Every category has a variety of different dishes, including appetites, main courses, and soups (except for the desert section). There are also a few fun sections whereby the writer writes recipes of dishes of many different cultures and time frames including: Toga Party, Cinco de mayo, Tapas party, Octoberfest, and '80s Party. By having the following recipes, this book makes it easy for you to have a great variety of options for party themes, get togethers, and even a cooking day for yourself. This book is also very helpful because it provide easy and simply yet delicious recipes with clear, step by step procedures.

I loved that this book has many bonuses that make it a better book than it already is. For example, the author gave tips for those who can not afford specific ingredients, by giving cheaper replacements. I also loved the fact that on the side, she added tips for vegetarians by replacing specific ingredients with vegetarian ones so that all recipes will be appealing to all readers. Additionally, the writer included photos of most of the recipes, which allowed the readers to choose what they thought seemed good rather than reading every single recipe and then deciding.

I would recommend this to both boys and girls. If you know how to on an oven, then you'll get through these recipes easily. Anyone can use this book, no matter what type of food they enjoy! Since college kids have very little equipment, cooking experience, and money, this book is perfect for them.

[Aly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an absolutely fantastic cookbook for college students or any young adult trying to cook on their own for the first time.

When I moved into my apartment and was finally responsible for cooking all of my own meals rather than walking across the quad to the dining hall every day, I was quickly overwhelmed. How can I make an easy meal to feed myself and my roommates that doesn't consist of us eating ramen noodles every night?? I immediately tried looking for recipes on Pinterest, but many of those meals were too expensive to make or required a lot of skill. In other words, for me, those recipes were out. I needed something quick, easy, and relatively cheap, but I had no idea where to start.

It was at that point that my grandmother sent me this book. What a lifesaver! College Cooking really understands the needs of the average college student and gears each chapter toward an audience of young adults trying to make it on their own with little kitchen knowledge and even less money to fund said kitchen. All of the recipes I have tried so far from this book have been delicious and my roommates have loved them! One of the best parts is that the authors have divided the book into common scenarios like "Impressing Your Date" and "Cinco de Mayo." Adorable, and perfect for my needs!

I love this cookbook, and I would recommend it as a gift to high school grads or anyone looking for a little kitchen inspiration in those first few years of adulthood.

[Rae · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know some of the viewers of blogs are about to start college or are in it. Let me tell you a story about me... it's quite sad. I was 22 and couldn't cook anything without some sort of help. My dorm mates were very helpful but couldn't always be there for me. Then I asked the dreaded question that they'll never let me live down: "How do I make Tuna?" Hm, I don't know Rayray. How about you put MAYO in it!? I was a lost cause. When one of my roommates decided to leave the dorm, she bought me this book. At first I was like "Thanks, dude. I get it." but she replied with, "This isn't a joke... you seriously need to learn how to cook. It's really sad to watch you make sandwiches with only turkey and mustard."

I read some of the recipes and they were really easy to make! They have everything you can think of with few ingredients. I've used the book numerous of times... even when I graduated. This book isn't just for college students, but it's good because you might be tight on money and need a meal that's not worth 20 dollars. I recommend this to anyone who loves cooking no matter if you're in or out of college. My favorite recipe is tomato-basil pasta and grilled cheese with fresh tomato soup.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked that a lot of these recipes were really simple. I wasn't so happy that most serve at least 4 people, and many don't reheat well (the author even points out the fact for some dishes). It's kind of annoying to know that I would be working with quarters of potatoes and the like to diminish the quantity for one or two people. Also there are a lot of mushroom recipes. I like mushrooms, but they seemed pretty essential in some of the recipes, not so great if you don't like them or are allergic.

There are a lot of good tips for saving money. The calories were listed in some recipes but not very many, so the entire section about being healthy seems suspicious. Why not list all of the nutritional information for the recipes? There was also this huge stress on vegetarianism, which was a little odd. I'm looking for cheap recipes to make on a budget, not random facts on why vegetarianism is awesome.

[Noor · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was definitely an interesting one to read, as it provided a variety of different recipes that could be cooked in college. It focused on the problems of eating in college, as it is expensive and unhealthy, so therefore gave alternatives to ensure one is able to purchase food that is not too expensive, and also does not contain to many calories. The book was split up into many different sections. Some of these sections were called: “Survival Cooking”, “Cheap Eats”, “Toga Party”, “Eat your Greens”, “Satisfying your Sweet Tooth,” etc. Since I have a sweet tooth my favorite recipes were found in the section of “Satisfying your Sweet Tooth,” with my favorite recipe being Lazy Pinwheel Cookies. The recipes are so simple, yet look so delicious that I want to buy this book to take with my when I actually go to college. I truly recommend this cookbook to any rising freshman in college, as it could solve the problems regarding with food and eating.

[Alexandra Consolver · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Carle sisters are definitely the lesser known of my favorites, but they definitely know what they are doing! These girls are in their twenties and write cookbooks about college and young adult life. You might think that that would cause their recipes to be so basic that they are boring... but in all actuality they are sharing their love of food with those who are learning to cook in new lifestyle situations. I would recommend all 3 of the pictured books to anyone, even a more advanced cook. They cover so many different types of food that you can always find something to spice up your weekly menu in one of their books! The two college books also have sections on budget meals, party menus and feeding crowds.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unusually well-written and -organized process writing here. Projects range from super simple first time away from home cooking (Chicken With Rice calls for onion soup mix and a can of cream of mushroom soup - truly just like mom used to make) to slightly ambitious (Glazed Pork Tenderloin). We tried the Salmon with Herbed Cheese and Broccoli and found it weirdly rich - spread salmon fillets with boursin and then bake them? Why? but it taught the kids a good technique, i.e. cooking fish in foil.

This one is aimed at older teens but it's fine for kids as young as 11 or 12. Clear color photos of food, no people.

[Columbus Academy US Librarians]

Ms. Brooks pick:

You have a midterm tomorrow and a fierce growl in your stomach. Your roommate just nabbed your last cup o' ramen. Do you: (A) Ignore your stomach and brew another pot of coffee? (B) Break out the PB&J? (C) Order pizza—again? (D) Make a quick trip to the grocery store? The answer's D, and College Cooking is the only study guide you'll need.

Click for more info:College Cooking: Feed Yourself and Your Friends

[Charity · Rating 5 out of 5]

I may make this the base of our family cookbook. It has a ton of recipes with ingredients that I already have at home. Yay! I definitely did not cook to the level they suggest when I was in college but I'm ready to try it now. I also enjoyed all the trivia and health tips sprinkled liberally throughout the book. Plus they have party suggestions with appetizers and possible themes/music which are fun.

One last thing, the photography is beautiful. Pictures of food are inspiring, no?

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

First time out on your own? Getting tired of fast food? You should check out Megan & Jill Carle's new book College Cooking. With thirteen chapters of simple recipes, you're sure to find something you'll like - especially with a whole chapter of recipes dedicated to those with only the most basic of cooking skills (or equipment).

[Joanna Price · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ages 18-23. A refreshing look at cooking in college. Readers who expect generic recipes will be pleasantly surprised by the variety of simple recipes available here. Recommended for public library young adult collections.

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this cookbook when I was in college, but it has continued to serve me long after, even into my married life! It is a great cookbook with a good set of basic recipes, a lot of which (like Red Beans and Rice and the Chimichangas) are in our weekly rotation.

[Cyd · Rating 3 out of 5]

A few points off for requiring a full kitchen with a lot of gear for many of these recipes. A lot of folks in college are not in apartments and I was hoping for something that would be more useful in a dorm

[Stefanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great collection of easy to make meals that even the worst cooks like me could make. I know I'll be using this well after college because the recipes in here are good for when you want to make something simple, well after you've graduated.

[Mark Sullivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple yet delicious recipes. Try the Thai Chicken!!!

[Allanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good collection of inexpensive, tasty, easy recipes. I NEED this book.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good, simple recipes!