And oh, what a culinary adventure it turned out to be.
Up until that point, most of my meals came from a box, a can, or the freezer. My family rarely went out to restaurants, so my idea of “dining out” was pretty limited. College opened up a whole new world of food—cafeterias with salad bars, stir-fry stations, and more hot meal options than I had ever seen in my high school lunch line.
At first, I gravitated toward the salad bar, thinking I was making healthier choices. But let’s be honest—my “salad” often looked more like a mayo-heavy tuna tower sprinkled with croutons and drowned in ranch. Unsurprisingly, I gained the classic freshman fifteen.
I also discovered the joy of coffee. One cup quickly became one at every meal… until my hands started shaking 24/7 and I found myself at the student health clinic by second semester. That’s when I really started paying attention to the effects food had on my body—for better or worse.
As I progressed through college and eventually moved off-campus, I started cooking more and relying less on dining halls. I can’t say I made anything spectacular, but I do remember feeling proud. I was trying to act like a grown-up. I was learning—one slightly burnt meal at a time.
After college, the training wheels came off—no more dining halls, no takeout budget, and three roommates hungry for something more than boxed mac and cheese. With a little creativity (and a big assist from a professional cook named Miguel), we turned our tiny apartment kitchen into a gourmet playground. This chapter of my cooking journey was all about experimentation, collaboration, and the thrill of discovering that healthy, budget-friendly meals could actually taste fancy.
Read more about this in my next blog post: COOL GIRLS COOKING: HOW POST-COLLEGE COOKING TOOK OFF.
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