Valory's Genius Food Hacks for the College Dining Hall

Hello, strangers! Valory here. As you may have noticed, I've been absent from the blog for a while now. Blame it on a little thing called COLLEGE. I’m halfway through my first college semester at Bard College in NY, and all I can say is that it's been a quite the life transition for me! Things are pretty intense here with my studies, but I couldn't pass up the chance to share how I've survived the dining hall experience here. Read on for my college dining hall hacks and put some "yum" factor back into your cafeteria eating excursions!

Breakfast:

• Blueberry cinnamon waffle- The waffle batter in dining halls usually taste like rubber. Thankfully, my dining hall is good about having fresh fruit in the yogurt section all the time and cinnamon shakers. I shake some cinnamon into a cup of waffle batter, stir in some blueberries, and put it in the waffle iron. This takes my breakfast to a whole new level!

Lunch: 

• Amped-Up Soup- My favorite thing to do for lunch is to get a mug of the pre-prepared soup, go to the salad bar and add my own veggies to it, then I sprinkle some pepper and pop it in the microwave. Add a piece of wheat bread toasted in the panini press and you’ve got the perfect lunch on a cold fall day!

Dinner: 

• Pizza Bagel- One of the few things I like about my college dining hall is that they have freshly made bagels from a local café in the area and they’re served all day long! When I’m in a hurry and need a quick dinner, I toast a wheat bagel with some olive oil, and then I top it with some cheese, spinach, and garlic powder and warm it in the microwave until the cheese is melted. This is a yummy dinner "to go" and it tastes WAY better than the soggy pizza they serve.

Dessert: 

• Almost-apple pie- This time of year, I am definitely missing my mom’s homemade fall treats. This hack doesn’t even compare to what she makes but it does satisfy my sweet tooth! First, I melt some butter in a coffee mug in the microwave. Next, I chop up about half of an apple, add some cinnamon, brown sugar, and granola, and warm in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time until the apples are nice and steamed. Last, I'll add some vanilla ice cream and have myself a nice fall treat!
• Grilled cookie ice cream sandwich- The cookies in the cafeteria looked sad and needed some love so I decided to warm two in the panini press, scoop some ice cream in between them, and BAM! I have made a delicious ice cream sandwich.

Condiments: 

• Fake Thai dipping sauce- I use this for basically everything I eat in the cafeteria. I just mix some peanut butter, a soy sauce packet, and a little bit of sriracha and I have the perfect sauce to add flavor to bland cafeteria food!

What do you think of these hacks? Can you think of any ways to make cafeteria food better? Trust me, I'd LOVE to know about them!