Quick, Cheap and Easy Recipes

I have titled this post 'student cooking' but in fact it is great for anyone who is short on time and/or money, and is fed up of ready meals and frozen food. I have been living in uni accommodation and therefore cooking for myself for just over a year now so I have come up with a few delicious meals that don't break the bank, and can be cooked in less than half an hour.

Pasta Bake:

You could add more vegetables or perhaps some bacon to mix this up, if you wanted to.

Ingredients:

• 2 chicken breasts.
• Tomato sauce (approximately half a jar, but add more if your mix isn't well coated).
• Cheddar cheese (to taste).
• 1 pepper.
• Pasta (to taste).

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
2. Boil the pasta, and fry the chicken.
3. Mix the chicken, the pepper and the tomato sauce into the pasta.
4. Pour the mixture into a dish, top with cheese and put in the oven for 20 minutes.
5. Enjoy!

Spag Bol:

Obviously you can add more ingredients to make this fancier, or use a pre bought sauce to make it even quicker, but this is super healthy and delicious too.

Ingredients:

• 250g mince meat.
• 1 tin of chopped tomatoes.
• 1tsp tomato puree.
• Onion.
• 200ml beef stock.
• Spaghetti.
• Seasoning (oregano is my favourite).
• Choice veg.

Method:

1. In a frying pan, brown the mince meat before adding the onions and browning them too.
2. Put all of the ingredients except the spaghetti and seasoning in to a large pot, and simmer over a low heat on the hob.
3. For best results, leave simmering for around 40 minutes until the mixture has thickened. However it can be eaten sooner if you're in a hurry.
4. Cook the spaghetti, season and enjoy!

Pesto and Mozzarella Toast:

The fancier alternative to a toastie.

Ingredients:

• Sourdough (or any other choice loaf).
• Mozzarella.
• 1tsp pesto.
• Optional other toppings (I like chicken breast and basil).

Method:

1. Slice the sourdough and toast one side under the grill.
2. Spread a thin layer of pesto on the untoasted side and place mozzarella on top.
3. Add any additional toppings.
4. Place under the grill again until ready to serve.
5. Sprinkle with basil.

Egg Fried Pasta:

This recipe is honestly the easiest ever, and it's pretty good for you. It also works well with rice or noodles.

Ingredients:

• Pasta.
• 1 or 2 eggs.
• Seasoning.

Method:

1. Cook the pasta, rice or noodles.
2. Pour a little light olive oil into a pan. Add the pasta and the eggs.
3. Stir until the eggs are cooked.
4. Season to taste.

Porridge:

I know this may sound like an obvious thing, but honestly it's so easy and so filling! Not to mention delicious.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of porridge oats.
• 1 cup of milk.
• Toppings.

Method:

• Put the milk and oats into a bowl and microwave for 4 minutes (this can be done on the hob but the microwave is quicker).
• Top as desired. My favourite is raspberries and golden syrup!

Salmon and Rice Salad:

You can make this really simple like I have, or add multiple vegetables for a larger, more complex dish.

Ingredients:

• 1 salmon fillet.
• Mange tout (to taste).
• Rice (1 portion).

Method:

1. Coat the salmon in a little melted butter or olive oil and cook for 15-20 mins at 180 degrees.
2. Cook the rice (I use boil in the bag but do what suits you best!).
3. Boil the mange tout for around 2 mins.
4. Stir together in a bowl!

Nachos:

I usually make these with chicken and vegetables, but chilli or salsa work well too.

Ingredients:

• Lightly salted tortilla chips.
• Half a red pepper.
• 2 chicken breasts.
• Grated cheddar cheese.
• Sweetcorn.
• Salsa.

Method:

1. Dice the chicken and then fry it so it is cooked through, but not yet brown on the outside.
2. In a pyrex dish (or other deep, oven safe tray) start to assemble the nachos. Create a layer of tortilla chips. Then add a layer of slices of pepper, chicken pieces and sweetcorn. Coat with a layer of grated cheese and salsa.
3. Repeat until the dish is full.
4. Pop into the oven at 180 for 20 minutes.

Prawn Curry:

This is a favourite of mine and my boyfriend's.

Ingredients:

• 200g prawns.
• 2 tbsp curry paste.
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes.
• 1 clove of garlic.
• Rice.
• Fresh coriander.

Method:

1. Fry the prawns in oil from the curry paste.
2. Add the curry paste, tomatoes and garlic.
3. Bring to boil and then simmer for around 5 minutes.
4. Cook the rice.
5. Add the coriander and serve.

My Top 10 Places in Bath

As I am a student at Bath Spa University, I have had the privilege of living in Bath for almost a year now, and it is a beautiful city. I have enjoyed many locations in the city, but these are some of my favourites.

• The Roman Baths. Of course. This is an obvious one, but they are just so beautiful. Also, as a Bath student I get free entry! The museum is really great and you get a free audioguide as well which as a history student I love. Definitely my favourite place in the city, especially in the sun.

• Mr B's Book Emporium. This independent bookshop is so so cute. They have many services to help you find new things to read, and there's a wide range of genres to look at too. Also, how cute is this display!?

• Southgate. Not only are there lots of great shops, but often there are gorgeous hanging displays, such as umbrellas, flowers or Christmas lights. This is the latest one!

• Pulteney Bridge. I'm told this was one of the locations where Les Mis was filmed, but regardless I think it's beautiful here. So peaceful and close to town too!

• The Christmas Market. I know this isn't technically a place in Bath, but it's definitely worth visiting. Such a range of stalls selling delicious food, handmade crafts and other beautiful items. Definitely a hit.

• The Fudge Kitchen. Delicious handmade fudge which you can sample for free, a display of the fudge making process and a loyalty card which earns you more free fudge! What's not to like?

• The Real Italian Pizza Co. An adorable secluded restaurant in central Bath, with amazing pizzas (handmade of course), a range of flavours and a hidden area of outdoor seating. My family's favourite. *Please note: This is not my image! All of the other photos on this post are though*.

• Guildhall Market. An adorable covered market with a mixture of different stalls, definitely worth visiting if you're ever in Bath!

• Green Park Station. Another covered market, with a mixture of permanent shops such as a cafe which does the best vegan hot chocolate ever, and a pizza bar which offers pizza and a pint for £10, and temporary market stalls on weekends. I don't have a photo of it, so here's another photo from Mr's B's (a collage wall of TinTin) instead.

• Newton St. Loe Farmshop and Café. Fresh produce from the attached farm, and huge hot chocolates and cakes that are to die for. All in a picturesque village just outside of Bath. Perfection.

Why I Didn't Go on a Gap Year

I often get asked if I took a year out before I started university, and when I say no I get a lot of questions about why not. It seems to be getting more and more common for people to leave school and take some time to work or travel before continuing on to higher education. I love to travel, and have plenty of savings so that was an attractive option, and extra cash is always an attractive option for a poor student but nonetheless I decided against it for several reasons.

I would love to travel, and I am still considering it as an option for after graduation. However, I am a fan of luxuries. By that I don't mean that I need a 5 star hotel or anything, but I want a room not shared with strangers and a working bathroom. This means that taking a few holidays (as I have done this year) suits me far better than doing all of my travelling in one go. I love cultural trips, my most recent ones being Venice, Berlin and Barcelona which is great for a gap year but I also love beach holidays. A few weeks tanning in Greece is lovely, but they won't tick the 'growing and experiencing' box that would be important to me on a gap year. These short trips allow me to do a mixture of both.

Another reason why I decided to go straight to uni was money. While my savings would have covered travel, I wanted to save them for emergencies. This was also why I didn't do a year of work first, as I could dip into that account if I needed to. Fortunately, I have had a generous donation from my grandparents, and I have managed to get a small part time job to alongside studying so I haven't needed to do that yet. If all goes well hopefully I'll be able to keep up these savings and eventually use this money to put down a deposit on a house. Either way I wanted to keep my money for a later date so a gap year wasn't the best way to do that.

One more reason why I didn't go on a gap year was my boyfriend. I love travelling with him and I didn't want to go without him. Being able to go on trips with him (and my friends) instead of going alone is the biggest reason why short holidays are more appealing than a year out to me. I also did not want to spend a year apart. Finally and most importantly, I was worried that if I took a year out from education that I'd never go back. I love history and studying it is great but I need the momentum to keep going.

I am in no way saying that my way is the right way. There are plenty of advantages to gap years, and if you want to take one I would encourage that 100%! But it's not for me and now you know why :)

10 Tips for Studying

Exam season for me is just beginning, but for many of you it is probably well underway. Either way, if you're anything like me you'll take any advice you can get on how to get all the information you need on board! Again, I have uploaded these to YouTube too and you can view that here.

1. Snacking. Snacks are important for motivation and keeping your energy up, but they can also aid your memory as your brain associates different tastes with certain memories. My friend Midge also asked me how to eat crisps quietly in the library, and my advice was to empty them into a tub first because the packet is very loud so if this is a question you'd ask too then there's your answer!
2. Different herbs can be helpful for revision, and if this is something that interests you it may be worth researching it to more depth. However, two that I'm aware of are rosemary and lavender. Ellie-Mae tells me that rosemary helps you turn short term memories into long term memories much quicker and lavender relaxes you and helps you sleep!
3. Set yourself realistic targets. There was an article in the news earlier this year that said A Level students should be doing 7 hours revision a day, but make sure you only do what you can manage. Take plenty of breaks as well. My tutor recently told me I should be doing two sessions of 20-50 minutes of revision a day. That is easy to do.
4. Don't force yourself into a revision task that doesn't work for you. Colourful notes, songs and answering questions worked for me but those things won't necessarily work for everyone! Find out what helps you and do it.
5. Make sure there's a separation between where you work and where you sleep. Do not revise in bed!! You will carry that stress with you and will struggle to get those zzzzzzs.
6. Make sure you are comfortable. If you are in pain, or have something poking you, or are too hot, or too cold, or it's too bright or too loud then you will never be able to focus fully on the task at hand.
7. DO. NOT. CRAM. You won't absorb the information at all effectively and it will just make you unnecessarily stressed. The night/morning before should be spent relaxing as much as you possibly can to get you in the right mind set.
8. Think about WHY what you're learning is important - don't try and memorise all of the facts in the text book, think about which ones will help you answer the questions you may be asked.
9. Teach others. By explaining it to someone else, you will begin to understand it better and also you'll find it easier to put into words when you get those dreaded 'explain your answer' questions. It also helps you with point number 8.
10. Stay Calm. This is easier said than done but it is THE most important thing to remember. Do anything you can, take deep breaths, smell lavender, listen to calming music, drink moulted milk, whatever works for you.

I hope some of these tips will be useful to you, and feel free to comment some of your own as I will take any advice I can get!