College Cooking with Celia

Lunch Box

In elementary and middle school I was a sandwich queen when it came to lunch. When I got to high school, I was a bit bored of sandwiches so I turned to leftovers. And while I’m still a fan of “meal prepping” by making way too much for dinner and bringing the leftovers for lunch, this summer I’ve become a big fan of making these “lunch boxes” for work.

They kind of remind me a bit of the snack or lunch packs you can buy from places like Starbucks? But this is way cheaper, plus cuts out extra waste. And you can fill them with pretty much anything! I’m a big fan of protein packed lunches because they keep me full all day and prevent any “hanger” (hunger + anger, not pretty). So I almost always bring a hard-boiled egg along with a few slices of cheddar or jack cheese. Then I like to add some veggies: sliced bell pepper, cucumber slices, baby carrots, cherry tomatoes. Then for a little crunch you can add nuts (like cashews or almonds). Or add half a peanut butter sandwich, or a piece of fruit. No matter what I bring, I’ll pack it all in a tupperware and I’m ready to go! Quick and easy lunches that are perfect for meal prep! Toss in a few extra snacks for a long day of class and band (like granola bars or some salami) and you’re good to go:)

This post isn’t really a recipe, so here’s a list of some go to options for the perfect lunch box:

Hard-boiled egg (boil for 7 minutes for the perfect egg!)
Sliced cheese
Salami or pepperoni
Half a peanut butter sandwich
Nuts (like cashew, almonds, peanuts, mixed nuts)
Sliced bell peppers
Cucumber slices
Baby carrots
Cherry tomatoes
Apple slices
A kiwi
A peach

Weekly Gratitude #31 (+ life update)

Welp long time no see! I took about a 2 month break from the blog this summer because I was feeling a bit overwhelmed and stressed out over a bunch of life things. But now that I’m gearing up for the start of the school year and figuring out a schedule for my life I’m feeling better about coming back to the blog.

The irony of the fact that I can better balance the blog during the school year when life is busy than during the summer when I have less going on is not lost on me 🙂 I just do well with planning and balancing lots of different things!

So what have I been up to since I last posted? In the two months that I’ve been gone I’ve:

Finished my physics 1 class and got an A!
Read a bunch of books (shoutout to public libraries)
Eaten so much ice cream
Worked a bunch and become bffs with my coworkers
Learned more about molecular biology
Took a wilderness first aid class!
Had some visitors (shoutout to Jared and Anna and Jackson)
Seen some great movies (Booksmart and Toy Story 4)
Volunteered a bunch at the women’s hospital
Went hiking with my best friend Angela
Spent lots of time in Carnegie Library
Moved my roommate out 😦
Visited home
Went to Italy with my mom!!!
Celebrated my 20th birthday
Watched many a thunderstorm
Went to my first Pirate’s game in 7 years
Biked a lot
Taken a bunch of sousaphone lessons for marching band this year

It was definitely a needed break, but I’m excited to be back posting recipes for all my college friends. Because cooking can be easy and fun, you don’t just need to eat pb&j and ramen every day! (Although there is much to be said for a good pb&j…)

With that though, let me know what you want to see on the blog– easy breakfast ideas? 15 minute dinners? Go-to lunches and snacks? Italian? Asian? Mexican? And let me know if there’s anything not food related you’d like to see… book reviews? Travel diary from Italy? How I organize my school life? I really want to share things that you find helpful 🙂

And now for the very last bit of this rather long post… the return of the Weekly Gratitude 🙂

This week I’m grateful for:

The prettiest flowers next to my reading spot

The “budding yeast” shaped cake I made for work, complete with bud scar!

Grilled corn and chicken enchiladas, so yummy

Dave and Andy’s ice cream
Sitting in the park to read
Sunsets
Finishing books
Folding laundry
Bon Appetit test kitchen videos
Making a “budding yeast” cake for my work presentation (our lab studies yeast!)
A slow week at work that’s conducive to adventures and life chats
Discovering Mama Doctor Jones on YouTube
Ice cream and popcorn and funny YouTube videos with Deena
DIYing and Mexican food with Rachel and Derek
Super productive adult days (cleaning, groceries, oil change)
Meal prepping (pulled pork!)
Getting back to the gym
A visit from Jared and Anna
Raging thunderstorms
Finally learning songs on sousaphone! (which we call a bass at Pitt… still unclear as to why)

Let me know what you all are thankful for this week! And please share any requests you have for posts. Have the best week!

Weekly Gratitude #22

This week has been a pretty good one, especially because I drove home on Thursday night for my brother Jack’s high school graduation! Which meant lots of family time and yummy food and grad parties (which are honestly my favorite). Plus some awesome summer storms in Pittsburgh and warm weather in Maryland? Life is pretty good (despite the amount of Physics homework I have to do before my test on Thursday).

What are you all thankful for this week? Lemme know below, along with anything in particular you want to see on the blog this summer! More time to cook means more time to be creative and try out some fun things, so lemme know if you have ideas 😉

This week I’m thankful for:

The long weekend
FaceTimes with Shelby
A really nice Memorial Day Service (that I played saxophone at)
Homemade pizza
Banana bread
Lots of time to read books
Thunderstorms
Crazy lightning
Busy days at work that make time go quickly
Picking out outfits with my roommate
Banana bread with peanut butter
A safe drive from Pittsburgh to MD (and late at night too)
Jamming out as loud as I want in the car by myself
My bomb road trip playlist
A lovely graduation ceremony
Good weather for aforementioned graduation
A nice family lunch out
A super lovely grad party for my brother
Catching up with friends and family that I haven’t seen in awhile
My dad constantly messing with me
Breakfast date with my bff Faith
Grad party hopping with my mama
Watermelon
Cake for breakfast
BBQ
Driving the backroads
Being outside

Spicy Steak and Charred Pineapple Chutney Crostini

Recipe from Christin of @christincreativeco on Insta

A couple weeks ago I shared the menu that my dad and I made for my mom for Mother’s Day, and this was the recipe I made for our family lunch before I headed back to Pittsburgh. I was scrolling through Instagram a few days before Mother’s Day, and stumbled across a pic on Christin’s profile of these steak and pineapple crostini. I showed the pic to my mom and she practically started salivating (I mean who doesn’t love grilled pineapple??), so I knew I had to make it.

I was a little worried because I’ve never actually made steak before? But it was a success! I was planning on grilling everything outside, but it was absolutely pouring, so I utilized our broiler and everything turned out delicious.

This dish is surprisingly super easy and would make a perfect Sunday brunch, date night, or summer BBQ dish. So definitely try it out and give Christin a follow!

Spicy Steak and Charred Pineapple Chutney Crostini

Ingredients

1 French or Italian style Baguette
1 1/2 pound flank steak
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 tablespoon salt (or to taste)
1/4 teaspoon cumin
2 tablespoons olive oil
One pineapple
Handful of fresh cilantro
1/4 of a medium sized red onion
2 cloves fresh garlic
1/2 fresh lime
1/2 fresh habanero (no seeds)

Instructions

Steak:

Combine spice mix in a bowl
Drizzle olive oil on flank steak, rub in spice mix, and let marinate at least 30 minutes.
Grill steak or broil on high about 5 minutes per side for medium rare.

Pineapple

Cut the top and base off of the pineapple. Run knife down the sides to peel off the skin, then slice pineapple into rings.
Grill pineapple or broil on high 1-2 minutes per side or until char marks appear. Cut into small chunks and add to a bowl.
Chop the red onion, garlic, and cilantro and add to pineapple.
Cut the habanero and remove the seeds, chop into small pieces, and add to pineapple mixture.
Squeeze half a lime and mix together.

Assembly:

Slice the baguette at an angle, about 1/2 inch thick, and toast.
After resting 5-10 minutes, slice flank steak against the grain, about 1/4 inch thick.
Top each piece of toast with a slice of flank steak and some pineaple chutney, and serve!

Weekly Gratitude #21

Happy Memorial Day Weekend! I hope you’re spending the long weekend relaxing, eating yummy food, and remembering all those who sacrificed their lives for us.

This week was not the best for me. I got super sick last Sunday night (congestion, headache, my sinuses hurt, I couldn’t stop sneezing) and despite all the DayQuil and water it just got worse and worse until Friday night. Although big shoutout to Panera’s creamy chicken and rice soup and to my roommate for buying me Tylenol Sinus and putting up with my complaining.

Along with being so so sick and exhausted, I had my first physics test this week as well. And let me tell you, studying while that sick is very difficult. But we made it through! And there were still good parts to this week, so we’ve got things to be thankful for.

What are you all thankful for this week? Lemme know below and have a great long weekend!

This week I’m thank for:

Shoutout to Gilmore Girls and Panera soup for keeping me alive this week

More sitting outside enjoying the summer air

Silly pictures in the park with my ladies

Reading outside
The nicest conversation with an older woman on the bus
Mac and cheese and Queer Eye with Angela
Walking outside in the nice weather
An awesome orientation at the hospital I’ll be volunteering at
My friend Brandon bringing me his brown bananas so I could make banana bread
Life chats with Rachel and Deena
Panera’s creamy chicken and rice soup
DayQuil
A successful safety inspection at work
Studying physics with Rachel
All the undergrads at work teaming up to finish all the lab aide tasks so I had time to study physics before my test (best coworkers ever)
Kicking physics test butt
Long phone calls with Mama
The big stack of noir murder mysteries from my dad (and time to actually read them)
Super spicy fried rice (the only thing I could taste this whole week)
Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies
A whole day spent catching up on sleep
Listening to lots of The Head and the Heart
Dinner and ice cream with Deena, Rachel, Derek, and Josh
Life chats and frisbee in the park
Silly photo shoots
Scattergories
Movie date and shopping with Deena (GO SEE ALADDIN IT WAS SO GOOD)
Finishing my book
Thunderstorms
Sunsets
Sleeping in
Breakfast date with Rachel and Deena
Outfits you feel confident in

Easy Pesto Pasta

I had every intention of getting a couple posts up this week, and I even had them all written! All I had to do was click publish. But then I got incredibly sick on Sunday night… and it lasted until this morning. AND I had a physics exam on Thursday. So obviously no posts made it up. But I still really wanted to share this easy pasta recipe, so here it is 🙂

Now that it’s warming up, I am SO excited to eat pesto all the time. I love pesto. And while it’s super easy to make, I am incredibly bad at keeping fresh herbs alive. Maybe this will be the summer I finally try to do it? But for now we’re sticking to the jarred stuff.

Thankfully, ALDI has really delicious jarred pesto, so I picked some up on my most recent grocery run. And I think last week I made pesto pasta 3 times. Excessive? Perhaps, but it’s delicious and it couldn’t be easier. I did a couple different variations throughout the week, but today I’m sharing the simplest version. Feel free to doctor it up as you see fit! Add whatever vegetables you have on hand (give em a quick sauté first, I love bell peppers, mushrooms, or zucchini), meat like chicken or sausage, or as much parmesan or mozzarella cheese as you see fit.

Also, I’m gonna be quite honest with you, I made this dish in the microwave because I had gotten home from night class and really didn’t feel like cooking. So absolutely no shame if you do the same 🙂

Easy Pesto Pasta

Serves: 1

Cook time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

3/4 cup of pasta, cooked (I had leftover from earlier in the week)
1/2-3/4 cup grape tomatoes, quartered
1-2 tablespoons pesto
Salt
Pepper

Instructions

In a pan over medium low heat, toss the pasta and pesto and heat until warmed through.
Alternatively: in a microwave safe bowl, add the pasta and the pesto and microwave until hot, about 1 minute.
Add the quartered tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and enjoy!

Weekly Gratitude #20

Another week, another Weekly Gratitude post. This week has been quite lovely: enjoying some warmer weather in Pittsburgh, starting work and summer classes, and getting to see some of my fave people without the stress of a full semester work load.

Plus, this past Friday was prom at my old high school so getting to see my brother and my best friend all dressed up was so fun (but also sad because they’re growing up 😦 )

What are you all thankful for this week? Lemme know below, I’d love to chat!

Super easy, super yummy pasta for dinner

Giant, gooey oatmeal chocolate chip cookie

This week I’m thankful for:

Three solid gym days
Biking to work and class
Busy days at work training the sweet new lab aide
Getting a volunteer position at the women’s hospital!!!
Warm weather (even though I’m a fall/winter gal, the sunshine feels good)
Pesto pasta (super easy recipe coming this week!)
How green all the trees and grass are
Studying at the public library
Stuffed peppers
How nice my physics instructor is
Making dinner with my bff Angela
The new The Head and the Heart album!! So freakin good
Fridays off from work and class
Sitting outside under a tree reading
How nice everyone gets when the weather warms up
Finishing Little Fires Everywhere in 6 hours (5/5 stars from me)
Seeing my brother and my best friend all dressed up for prom
Queer Eye
Warm oatmeal chocolate chip cookies (from the dough in the freezer)
Habitat for Humanity work days
Movie nights with Deena and Will and Josh

Stuffed Peppers

Until yesterday, I had never made stuffed peppers. But I love bell peppers, and so when I went grocery shopping with Rachel on Sunday and she bought all the materials for stuffed peppers, I figured I might as well too.

Oh man was that a good decision. I’d sen a couple recipes for stuffed peppers around, but I ended up kind of making this recipe up and using the techniques I’d seen online. And it was super easy! I baked the peppers while I made rice as well as a ground beef and bean mixture, mixed everything together, filled the peppers, topped them with cheese, and baked them again just to get everything all melty.

The peppers end up being sweet and soft but still with a little bite to them, the rice and meat mixture is salty and hearty, and melted cheese just makes everything better. I made 4 stuffed pepper halves and ended up eating just one of the bigger halves topped with guac for dinner. The number of servings you get depends on how hungry you are/how big your peppers are, but I’ll be getting quite a few meals out of this 🙂

A side note: this is super easy to adjust to your tastes and make vegetarian or even vegan, or just using whatever meat or vegetables you have. Also feel free to season with taco mix! That would be super easy and super delicious. But regardless, just cook everything up and stick it in your peppers and you’re golden!

Ground Beef and Black Bean Stuffed Peppers

Cook time: 30 minutes

Serves: 3-4

Ingredients

2 bell peppers, any color
Olive oil
1/2 pound ground beef
1 16 ounce can black beans, drained
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Salt
Black pepper
3/4 cup rice, cooked
Shredded cheddar cheese
Guacamole (optional, for serving)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Cut the bell peppers in half and remove the seeds. Drizzle with olive oil and bake on a sheet pan for 20 minutes, flipping them over halfway through.
In a medium pan over medium heat, cook the ground beef until brown, seasoning with paprika, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Add the black beans to the ground beef, season with salt and pepper, and cook until warmed through and thick. Mix in the rice and taste for seasonings.
Once the peppers are out of the oven, fill them with the meat mixture (you may have leftover depending on the size of your peppers). Top with cheese and bake for 5 more minutes until cheese is melted.
Serve with guacamole (or salsa or sour cream!)

Weekly Gratitude #19

Well, I’m officially back in Pittsburgh! I had the best, most relaxing 2 weeks at home eating my parents wonderful cooking 🙂 But I’m excited to get back into the swing of work, classes, and all the life things. But also doing fun things in the city because it’s summer. Like baseball games and concerts and museums!

Also, a big happy Mother’s Day to all the Mama’s out there, especially mine ❤ We had the best morning/afternoon with lots of yummy food and relaxing. Plus I made steak for the first time!

What are you all thankful for this week? Lemme know below, I’d love to chat!

This week I’m thankful for:

Not getting chosen for a trial at jury duty
Lots of reading time (I read 3 books in 8 days!)
Ben and Jerry’s
Sleep
Silly tv shows with Mama
Tuna melts
My mama’s cooking
A day full of yard work and watching the sun set
Mug cakes
Lush green grass
Rain storms
Driving the back roads
Family dinners
Mountains
Parties full of middle aged moms
Blazers
Tea
Mexican food
Cooking with my dad for Mother’s Day
Coffee cake with an inch of streusel
Safe drive back to Pittsburgh (and that my bike rack stayed on!)
Leftover Mexican food

Weekly Gratitude #18

Welp long time no chat. I’ve been home from school this week which means no cooking for me– just my mom’s wonderful cooking 🙂 I’m gonna try and get a few posts up this week but no promises since I’ve been called in for jury duty. But I’m telling myself it’s all okay because this is just a little vacation 🙂

Anyway, lots to be thankful for this week, especially with being home and getting to see all my people. Let me know below what you’re thankful for this week!