Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE
recipes for success
Recipes for success
Think student food, and you probably think Pot Noodles for breakfast and beans eaten from the can. It needn’t be like this.
Spend a couple of hours in the kitchen with your child before they leave, and hopefully they’ll be able to go without the take-away menu for at least a week.
Knowing a few recipes to make in halls is also a simple, cost effective way to make new friends.
Veg Curry
No expensive spices needed – just a decent jar of curry sauce will do.
This recipe serves four, so save some into a Tupperware (or, ahem, empty take-away container) for later.
ingredients
- 450g jar of curry, any flavour
- Plenty of fresh veg like tomatoes, pepper, courgette, potato, spinach
- 1 onion
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 235g tin of pulses like chickpeas
- 50g rice per person
- 2 tbsp olive oil
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1
Heat the oil in a large pan. Chop the onion and garlic and add this to the hot oil. Fry for 2-3 mins then add the chopped veg.
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2
Fry for another 2-3 mins before adding the drained can of pulses and giving it all a good stir.
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3
Add the jar of curry sauce, give it another stir, and simmer for 15 mins.
In the meantime, prepare the rice. Keep stirring every so often to stop everything sticking to the side. Once the rice is done, rinse and serve with the curry
Meatballs and spaghetti
Use Quorn to make it veggie friendly, or buy frozen meat for extra value. Serves 2.
ingredients
- 6 cream crackers or 2 slices of stale bread
- 250g minced beef or Quorn
- 1 egg
- Salt and pepper
- 1 jar of Bolognese sauce
- 50g spaghetti per person
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
- Handful of cheese (optional)
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1
In a large bowl, break your crackers into fine pieces using the end of a rolling pin, or if you’re using bread, crumble it into breadcrumbs. Add the mince and egg, season with salt and pepper, and mix.
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2
Divide the mix into four large balls then divide each of these into two smaller meatballs. Roll them between your hands to get an even shape.
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3
Heat the oil in a frying pan then add the meatballs – keep turning them so they cook evenly throughout. At the same time, put the pasta on to cook – by the time the spaghetti is ready, the meatballs should be too.
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4
Add the jar of sauce to the meatballs, gently heating it through. When the spaghetti is ready, dish it out, add the meatballs and pour over any remaining sauce. Grate cheese on top if you’re feeling fancy
Rocky Road
Everyone loves a sweet treat, plus it’s a great way to make friends. This recipe is dead easy and you can throw in pretty much any sugary goods you have lying around. Serves 12 (ish).
ingredients
- 300g chocolate, the darker the better
- 200g rich tea or digestive biscuits
- 100g marshmallows
- 125g butter or cooking margarine
- 3tbsp golden syrup
- Splash of double cream (optional)
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1
Use the end of a rolling pin to break the biscuits into small pieces.
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2
Gently melt the chocolate, butter and golden syrup in a large pan. Add a splash of double cream to thicken it.
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3
Once melted, pour 100ml of this into a cup or jug to use later. Add the biscuit pieces and marshmallows to the remaining mixture and stir well.
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4
Pour/scoop the mixture into a shallow baking dish, or disposable foil tray. Pour over the remaining melted chocolate mix and smooth over.
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5
Leave to set in the fridge for a couple of hours before cutting into bite-size pieces and diving in.
