Hello world!

There are two college audiences I am writing for: those with a meal plan who would like to supplement it by occasional forays into a communal floor- or hall-kitchen, and those without a meal plan–or who make use of a very limited one–who have more space and cooking supplies available, but find themselves short on cash, inspiration, or both.

I am somewhat in between these categories myself; until this semester I always had a meal plan for convenience, but would occasionally spend my pocket money on ingredients for a home-made dish: to satisfy a craving, celbrate an occasion, or just blow off some homew–I mean, steam. Blow off some steam.

After a summer of indecision, I decided to cancel the meal plan. I now cook all of my own food (gasp!) but do NOT enjoy the luxuries of an apartment or sorority house with a private kitchen. I think the big difference between those two categories is the availabilty of spices, herbs, and base ingredients like flour or olive oil. Supplies, too– when I only cooked occasionally, I didn’t keep my own spatula, cutting board, etc on hand. Now I have scrounged together a decent supply of cooking accoutremonts, but I will try my best to keep in mind that some of my readers don’t necessarily have the tools or specialized ingredients that I do.

About nutrition: I don’t consider myself a health nut, but I do try to make my meals balanced, colorful, and good-for-you in a general way without adhereing to a particular fad diet (low-carb, vegan, glycemic-something, etc). Many of my dishes turn out vegetarian or can be adapted to fit that lifestyle; while a happy carnivore myself, I have undergone long stretches of vegetarianism and usually give up meat for Lent–or when my grocery allowance runs low!