Two years ago, when my friends and I were just freshmen living in Christensen, we realized that Philbrook's weekend hours didn't correspond adequately to our nocturnal lifestyle.
From Thursday afternoon until Sunday's early hours, after spending copious amounts of time out exploring Durham's colorful nightlife, we were hungry. And as much as we loved to purchase D-Hop, Domino's and Kurt's Lunchbox, we had to face the facts: our money was running out fast.
So, in our infinite hunger-driven wisdom, we managed to create a few decent late-night meals using only a microwave and a mini-fridge. Unfortunately, I possessed neither of these essentials in my third floor dorm room.
Thankfully, my then-friend-future-roommate, Kelly Gorham, and others, generously rented me out space and usage of these appliances in exchange for tidbits of the pre-packed frozen food and cans of soda stored there.
Within just a few months of moving into the all-freshmen dorm, I had managed to stash food in various other rooms and refrigerators all over the building. In fact, some packages of Ramen Noodles may still be lounging on forgotten top shelves in 3C.
One rainy spring evening, Kelly and I combined our meager ingredients into one delicious dish. I doubt that the meal that evening was truly as gourmet as we believed it to be, but dripping with rainwater and sitting cross-legged on her rug, it was a hot meal that has remained an epic moment in our time at UNH.
It was simple enough to create at three o'clock in the morning, but the result would make for a relatively elegant dorm room meal at anytime. The best part? Most of the ingredients can typically be found in an average resident hall room and they're cheap.
We started with Easy Mac, holding the cheese, and cooked according to the instructions given and strained as plain pasta. Next, microwavable chicken tenders were heated and sliced into some form of a "strip" and set aside. Left over spaghetti sauce (warmed slightly) was then poured over the macaroni.
Our pseudo-noodle dish wasn't done yet. In another bowl we "nuked" some frozen spinach - mom would be so proud. The warm greens and chicken topped the pasta mixture before one last ingredient: shredded cheese. The last step was placing the container into the microwave one last time to melt the cheese.
We had developed our own dorm-style Spinach Chicken Parmesan. And it had only taken about 10 to 15 minutes.
It wasn't grandma's special homemade recipe, but it also wasn't Ramen Noodles. Ramen had lost its appeal soon after I discovered that eating two bowls in one sitting was not a good idea.
Kelly discovered the remainder of my stockpiled noodle supply under her pillow a few days later. She was not pleased.
The chicken parmesan was hot heaven in a plastic bowl, even though our Market Basket plastic forks were melting into withered shapes as we ate. I would suggest letting it cool slightly before consuming.
Not wanting to waste the leftover Easy Mac cheese packet, we saved it for later. Days afterward we would add it to popcorn in the hopes of creating our own Smart Food. Although not a healthy choice, it is worth trying and is definitely an acquired taste (hint: try adding some pepper, but forgo the salt).
Oh, there was dessert, too. It just so happened that this particular evening occurred not too long after Easter. I had managed to lop just the ears off 12 oz. solid chocolate bunny and gnawing into the rest was proving difficult.
Because four or five other floor-mates had then drifted back to Christensen, we decided to pool our individually removed piece of fruit from Philly earlier that week. Apples, oranges and bananas were peeled and sliced onto paper plates. All the while that earless bunny spun and melted in a ceramic dish within the confines of our microwave.
Someone gargled - through a mouthful of our homemade fruit and chocolate fondue - that it wasn't really that bad for us to eat. Although we were consuming our respective weight in chocolate, I had to agree. It was that day's serving of fruit.
Looking back, it's hard to imagine how we didn't blow ourselves up or blow the building's power (metal does not go in the microwave). There were some other successes (Ramen Noodles with a slice of American cheese for example) and there were some serious flops (microwave-style grilled cheese is a no-go). In the end we all grew up, moved into on-campus apartments and discovered the wonders of a conventional oven.
But we'll always have a soft spot for those microwave meal days in Christenson and the times that went along with them.
Recipe for Spinach Chicken Parmesan for one person:
Cooking tools:
Microwave safe bowl and plate, utensils and microwave.
Ingredients:
- One container of Easy Mac
- 1/3 cup of any tomato sauce (less than 1/3 cup if you're not a big sauce person; alfredo sauce can be substituted here too)
- 2 small (or 1 large) microwavable chicken tender (meatless chicken tenders can be used for a vegetarian option)
- 1/8 cup frozen spinach (any other frozen vegetable of choice can be used here)
- 3 (or so) tablespoons of shredded cheese (mozzarella or a cheddar mix work best)
Optional: salt, pepper, garlic powder and other assorted spices
Steps:
1) Cook Easy Mac as instructed on package, do not add cheese packet, instead drain water and add tomato sauce either heated (roughly a minute on high) or add cold/room temperature and microwave for about 50 seconds or until hot.
* It may help to transfer the pasta to a larger bowl before adding the additional ingredients.
2) Heat chicken tenders as instructed on package, let cool briefly, cut into slices or chunks and add to pasta mixture.
3) Place frozen spinach in a microwave safe bowl, cover and heat for two to three minutes or until hot.
Be the first to comment on this article!