For a lot of college students, moving into an apartment is the first time one is forced to face the harsh reality that one cannot survive successfully on Ramen alone. Though take-out can solve this issue, it's expensive, but what's the alternative when the thought of turning on the stove is terrifying?

This, my friends, is your official cooking refuge. Below are a list of easy recipes, as well as a simple list of what should be in your fridge and pantry at all times. It is my hope to help you overcome that fear of the oven and make a dish that you're proud to say you made yourself.

Before we get started, here's a few ground rules to keep in mind:

1. Presentation isn't everything when you're cooking for yourself.

If you're not sure your meat is cooked through, cut into the thickest part. So what if there's now a huge cut in your meat, you're eating it in five minutes anyways!

2. NEVER FORGET TO SEASON YOUR MEAT.

Believe me, unseasoned meat is the most unsatisfying meal to eat, ever. Just toss some salt and pepper on there and you're grand.

3. Call your mom for help.

(Or dad or whoever is the good cook of yourfamily) if you're ever not sure of what you're doing. They know a thing or two that can save you from burning down your kitchen.

Godspeed, and happy cooking!

Your Grocery List:

Fridge Items (bought weekly):

A bag of lettuce or spinach

Two types of veggies

Two types of fruit

A pack of chicken breasts (2 pack if you live alone, 4+ pack if you share with roommates)

Some other kind of meat (switch it up from week to week)

Can be bought more rarely:

Eggs (6 pack if you live alone, 12 pack if you share with roommates)

Butter

Pesto

A loaf of bread (refrigerate to make it last, but keep bag closed to keep fresh)

Pantry Items (bought more rarely):

Salt and pepper

Pasta

Oats/Oatmeal

Flour

Bread crumbs

Olive Oil

Rice

Aluminum Foil

Good (and healthy) snack foods:

Craisins

Granola

Laughing Cow Light Cheese Triangles and crackers

Banana + Nutella (or Peanut Butter)

SmartPop Popcorn seasoned with fresh parmesan

Celery + Peanut Butter

Recipes:

Note: Not every recipe has ingredients included on this Grocery List (because y'all would think I'm crazy for asking you to buy sesame seeds straight off the bat)

Starting with the most basic thing you can cook:

Fried Eggs on Toast

Instead of directions, I'm attaching this video that explains how to cook the most perfect sunny-side up egg. If you don't like runny yolks, you heathen, flip when the entirety of the eggs whites are solid and let the yolk cook through. Another option is covering the pan with a lid till the yolk is cooked through. The keys to a great fried egg are keeping the eggs condensed (as in not letting the whites venture too far from the yolk), not letting the pan get too hot and using butter/olive oil to keep the eggs from sticking.

Then just add to a piece of toasted bread!

Pro Tip: Adding avocado to the toast before adding the egg is really delicious.

Pesto Chicken Bagel Sandwich

This is super easy to make and will probably taste better than anything Urth Caffé can deliver to your apartment, just saying.

Pro Tip: Make lots of pesto cream cheese and use it whenever possible, it's delish.

Ingredients:

A bagel (the type of bagel is your choice, I prefer sesame for the record)
1oz of cream cheese
Pesto
1 Chicken Breast
2-3 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
Salt and pepper
Shredded lettuce

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat the chicken breast with salt and pepper to taste and add to the pan. Flip the chicken once, and add pesto to the partially cooked side. Flip again, and add pesto to the other side. Cook until chicken is white all the way through, and try not to let the pesto burn.

Mix pesto into the 1oz of cream cheese. The final product should be mint green in color. Toast the bagel to liking (or don't toast at all, your call). Add cream cheese to the bottom slice. Slice the chicken and add to the sandwich. Add lettuce and pesto to the top slice, and enjoy!

Cranberry Spinach Salad

This recipe is one I admittedly got from my mom, who got it from her best friend, who got it from her friend, and so on. It's so good that the email with the recipe has been forwarded more times than I can count. Anyways, it's easy, it makes great leftovers, and it makes you look super fancy.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon butter
3/4 cup almonds, blanched and slivered
1 pound spinach, rinsed and torn into bite-size pieces
1 cup dried cranberries
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons minced onion
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Equipment:

Medium Skillet
Medium Mixing Bowl

Directions

In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Cook and stir almonds in butter until lightly toasted. Remove from heat, and let cool.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sugar, onion, paprika, white wine vinegar, cider vinegar, and vegetable oil. In a large bowl, put in the spinach, pour on the dressing and top with the toasted almonds and cranberries.

Fancy Frozen French Fries

Now everyone in the world knows that frozen french fries just don't taste the same in the oven than they do straight from McDonalds, but there is a way to step up your home french fry game without using a pot of boiling oil.

Pro Tip: Most college apartments have crap ovens that cook unevenly. Keep an eye on which sections of the pan cook quicker and move the less-cooked fries to that section when flipping the fries.

Ingredients:

A bag of frozen french fries
Olive Oil
Seasoning Options:

Salt and pepper
1/8 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1/8 teaspoon of onion powder, 1 tablespoon of dried parsley flakes, salt, pepper
Truffle oil and fresh parmesan (added after)

Equipment:

Medium Mixing Bowl
Cookie Sheet

Directions:

Preheat the oven to the temperature listed on the frozen fries. Throw the fries into a medium mixing bowl and toss with olive oil. Add spices one at a time and mix generously. (Except the truffle oil and parmesan, these will be added after the fries are cooked.)

Spread the fries evenly on the cookie sheet and cook for 20-25 minutes or until brown. Flip once or twice during cooking period.

Nachos

Nachos are God's great gift to your taste buds, and let me tell you, they're really easy to make (guac included!). Here's the low-down on your favorite Tex-Mex dish.

Pro-Tip: Dicing veggies not really your thing? Many grocery stores sell fresh, already diced tomatoes, green onions, pico de gallo etc. in their produce section.

Ingredients:

Meat of choice (minced beef is easiest but chicken, turkey, and steak also work)
Taco seasoning
Tortilla Chips
Shredded Cheese of choice (cheddar is the best)
Pico de Gallo (ready-made or recipe here)
Shredded lettuce
Salsa
For the Guacamole:

Two avocados
A bunch of fresh cilantro
1-2 Ripe tomatoes, diced
Two stalks of green onion
1-2 limes
Jalapenos (if you want more heat)
Salt to taste

Equipment:

Large mixing bowl
Large sauce pan (with lid)
Cutting board
Whisk (or fork or food processor can work)
Microwave (oven can also work)

Directions:

For the meat: Cook meat as directed on packaging until fully cooked. Add taco seasoning and a cup of water, add lid to pan, and let simmer. Take off heat when the water has completely evaporated.

For the guacamole: Dice tomato, green onion, jalapeno, and cilantro and place in a large mixing bowl (for chunky guac) or food processor (for more pureed guac). Add two avocados, and mash using a whisk or mix using the pulse setting on the food processor. Add lime juice and salt to taste and mix well.

For the nachos: Place tortilla chips in one even layer on a large plate. Add a thorough layer of cheese evenly over the chips. Repeat layering process for 1-3 more layers. Put nachos in the microwave and cook at 70% heat for 1-1.5 minutes. Keep an eye on the cheese, making sure it doesn't bubble up and burn. Don't worry if all the cheese is not perfectly melted. When cheese is sufficiently melted, top with meat, lettuce, pico de gallo, more cheese, guacamole, and salsa and serve.

Salmon

Salmon is a great fish to cook because it's fancy but doesn't require a complicated recipe to get right. This recipe from TheKitchn.com has no fluff in the cooking process, only olive oil, salt and pepper.

Pro Tip: The foil is necessary on the baking sheet, unless you want your whole apartment smelling like salmon for the next week.

Ingredients:

1 to 3 pounds skin-on salmon fillets (8 ounces per person)
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Lemon wedges, to serve

Equipment:

Baking sheet
Aluminum Foil

Directions:

Heat the oven to 425°F with a rack placed in the middle. Line a roasting pan or baking sheet with foil. Pat the salmon dry with a paper towel. Drizzle some oil over the top of each salmon — just enough to coat the salmon — and rub it over the salmon with your fingers or a pastry brush. Sprinkle the salmon generously with salt and pepper.

Place the salmon in the roasting pan, skin-side down. Transfer to the oven. Roasting time depends on the thickness of your salmon, as determined by the thickest part of the salmon fillet. For every half-inch of salmon, roast 4 to 6 minutes — 4 minutes will give you salmon that is still a touch rare, 6 minutes will thoroughly cook it.

Salmon is done when easily flaked: You can also check the doneness of your salmon with a fork. When the salmon flakes easily with a fork, it's ready. If you like, you can use an instant read thermometer to check the fish for doneness. The USDA recommends a minimum internal temperature of 145°F, which should be measured at the thickest part of the fillet.

Serve immediately, squeezing lemon over the fillets if wanted. Leftovers will keep refrigerated for about 5 days, and can be gently reheated in the microwave or used cold.

Chicken Parmesan:

Now this might sound a little ambitious, but the long ingredients list makes it seem a lot harder than it actually is to make. I've streamlined this recipe from FoodNetwork.com by substituting a homemade sauce (which is a tough thing to make) with a storebought jar of sauce (sorry Food Network gods). Just make sure you don't burn the breading in the frying pan and it's a piece of cake.

Pro Tip: Make enough for leftovers so that you can have a delicious chicken parm sandwich for lunch later in the week.

Ingredients:

Butter
2 thin chicken cutlets
Salt to taste
2 large egg whites
3 tablespoons dry Italian bread crumbs
1 1/2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 to 5 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup part-skim shredded mozzarella cheese
1 Jar of Tomato and Basil Sauce

Equipment:

Large skillet
Baking dish
Aluminum Foil

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Coat an appropriately sized baking dish in butter. Sprinkle the cutlets with the salt. Lightly beat the egg whites in a medium bowl. Combine the bread crumbs and Parmesan on a sheet of waxed paper (or a plate). Spread the flour on another sheet of waxed paper (or another plate). Working with 1 piece of chicken at a time, dip both sides into the flour, shaking off excess. Dip each piece into the egg whites, shaking off excess, and then press both sides into the breading to coat.

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken (in batches, if necessary) and cook until browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the chicken, in 1 layer, to the baking dish. Spoon the sauce over the chicken then sprinkle with the cheese. Bake, covered loosely with a tent of foil (not 100% necessary if you don't have it), until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbly, about 12 to 15 minutes (check on it at 10 minutes).