I have always imagined, had I been to university, that I would have lived in some cosy bedsit, reading my Cranks' Recipe Book with a pan of lentil soup permanently bubbling away on the single stove and that I, due to lack of funds for nourishment, would be a petite size 8. Perhaps that's the way it used to be but how things have changed...
Residential "Halls" are pretty good and kitted out with oven, hob, kettle, microwave etc. There is still the choice of being catered for or not. A myriad of student cookbooks are available with and without vegetarian options. Although being vegetarian was cheaper than being a carnivore back in the day, nowadays there are cheap cuts of meat on offer and vegetarian food has become exciting and, a little more expensive. For example, halloumi cheese is as expensive as bacon. Also, buying and cooking for one is more expensive and the small branches of supermarket found in every student area tend to charge a premium as they have a captive audience; hardly fair for those on a tight budget!
My son spent his first year eating pot noodles, crisps and goodness knows what else; not to mention the lashings of liquid he consumed! Instead of shrinking in size he became larger and unhealthier. By his third year, armed with Jamie O's Ministry of Food book, he was sharing digs with four friends and had a cooking rota which was a great success. They even had a pre-Christmas Dinner with all the trimmings. When the proceedings got a little noisy the grumpy neighbours called the police who were amused to find the boys in their cracker hats and festive jumpers singing hearty renditions of Christmas songs!
Child number two is a good baker but has rarely cooked so, along with her essential cushions and fairy lights, I have armed her with a student cookbook and girly matchy-matchy utensils in the hope that she learns to enjoy cooking and remains a healthy size and weight!
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