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The four requirements for revision snacks: quick, cheap, easy and nutritious - these ideas cover all four!
It's 3am, and you've been cramming chemistry since dinner-time. Your stomach is growling cantankerously, and if it wasn't for all the caffeine you have imbibed, you would have trouble keeping your nose more than two inches above your books. You need something to eat, but pasta would take too long to cook, and somebody has mysteriously done away with all of the biscuits. What do you do? The trick is to prepare ahead of time. Either learn to hide your biscuits under the floorboards, or try one of the snack ideas below. Quick, cheap, and ludicrously easy , these recipes are based around nature's "super foods", providing that extra boost to get you through your exams. Quinoa with Peanut ButterIngredients: half a cup of uncooked quinoa and a dollop of peanut butter This one sounds unusual, but it is unusually nutritious, very tasty, and a doddle to prepare. Quinoa is a South American grain, special for its protein content: it is the only grain that contains all the essential amino acids, and is therefore indispensable to vegetarians, and to impoverished students who find the butcher's counter too expensive. Quinoa can be found in most supermarkets and in any speciality or health food store. For one portion, bring about half a cup of quinoa to the boil in two cups of water. Leave it for ten minutes, or until the grains have burst, and then drain. Stir in a hefty dollop of peanut butter (crunchy is best, but smooth works too), and mix well. You can make up larger quantities and keep it for about three days in the fridge. Bean DipsIngredients: a can of beans in water and some olive oil Optional: soft cheese, tahini (sesame seed paste), garlic, any herbs or spices, carrot sticks The most basic version of this dish involves draining the beans and whizzing them up in a blender (or mashing them with a fork) with enough oil to make a rough paste. A tablespoon of soft cheese makes the dip creamier, and tahini (available from any health food store, and most supermarkets) adds a nutty flavour. If you like the taste of garlic, then crush a clove or two and blend them into the beans. Any herbs or spices that you've got knocking about in the back of the cupboard will also liven up the dip: cannellini beans go particularly well with rosemary and chick peas with paprika but experiment and see what flavours you come up with! Bean dips keep for a couple of days in the fridge, and can be eating with carrot sticks, bread sticks, inside baked potatoes, or simply on their own with a spoon. What to Do with Bananas ...Bananas are nature's gift to students. Cheap, energy efficient, and wrapped up in convenient skins, they should form the centrepiece of any exam term menu. They do taste good on their own, but if you feel the need for some variety, then try slicing them up and baking them for twenty minutes with a sprinkling of sugar, wrapped in a twist of foil. This needs to be eaten hot, preferably with some yogurt or ice cream (although it is wonderful without). If you don't fancy hot banana, then try mashed banana on toast (a combination of banana and honey, or banana and peanut butter also works), or, for a very special treat, chunks of banana dipped in melted chocolate and chilled in the fridge. Hint: Spreading mashed banana can be messy. Try laying sliced banana on your toast and mashing it down with the back of a fork.
The copyright of the article Cheap Student Meals in Recipes is owned by Jessica Wright. Permission to republish Cheap Student Meals in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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