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put Down The Ramen And Pick Up The Romaine

The summer intern's guide to whippin' up food on your stove top.

Tori Schwieger

Jun 11, 2018

Purdue University

Wokandapix

Eating "healthy" is not easy, especially when you're interning away from home for the summer and have to fend for yourself. Just the thought of cooking substantial, edible meals can be daunting, let alone cooking a balanced meal that hits all the right nutritional groups.

Well friends, do not get caught up in all the details and start doubting your abilities to provide a healthy balanced meal for yourself this summer. If you want to do it, let me be the first to tell you that you can make that happen. Just follow these "5 M's" to help you prove to your mom that you can cook nutritional meals instead of popping a frozen pizza in the oven for the fourth day in a row or picking up Chic-fil-a on your way back from work.

Make a list.

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Figure out what dishes you want to eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks for the whole week. Once you have these listed out, write down your grocery list so you can make sure you buy the right ingredients and the correct quantity.

Monitor the contents.

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Not all food that's healthy has to taste gross to you. Find meals and snacks that you already enjoy eating but check the nutrition label on the healthier options to see where you can cut down on those fake sugar, fats, and sodium. Remember--the simpler the ingredients list the better!

Meal prep.

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Now that you just adulted and brought all your groceries home, it's time to prep your meals for the week. I would not recommend meal prepping like the lady above, but instead portion out fruits you'll need for your smoothies, the veggies you'll need for your dinner tomorrow, and maybe even pre-make that chicken and avocado snack wrap the night before. Easy access means you have a higher chance of actually cooking and eating the ingredients you bought instead of pulling into your favorite drive through on your way home from work.

Make your meals.

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Don't be afraid of failure. Unless you are a prodigy chef who could whip up a three course meal since the age of five, cooking well comes from experience. Experience will most likely include road blocks and failures, so you just need to learn what works and what doesn't.

Munch until your stomach, not your heart or your mind, is content.

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EAAAAAAAT UP! This is my favorite "M" by far. Enjoy the healthy, clean food you're putting in your body, but know when your stomach is satisfied. Side effects may include a boost in energy, a delighted digestive system, and the urge to whip up a smoothie instead of a sundae.

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.

Lifestyle

Cool Off with These 8 Beers!

North Carolina State University

930

Summer is hot and humid, and it's almost like summer was made specifically to drink the refreshing, cold, crisp wonderful, delicious, nutritious nectar of the gods. Which is none other than beer; wonderful cold beer. With summer playing peek-a-boo around the corner while we finish up this semester, it's time to discuss the only important part of summer. And if you haven't already guessed, it's beer. There are few things I take more seriously than my beer, in order are: sports... and beer. Here are my favorite summer brews:

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Lifestyle

New England Summers Are The BEST Summers

Why you should spend your next summer in New England.

Saint Joseph's University

5658

www.flickr.com

Three years ago, I chose to attend college in Philadelphia, approximately 360 miles away from my small town in New Hampshire. I have learned many valuable lessons away from home, and have thoroughly enjoyed my time spent in Pennsylvania. One thing that my experience has taught me, however, is that it is absolutely impossible to beat a New England summer.

You cannot beat the beach. Believe it or not (which many people may not), New England has a long and beautiful coastline. Most of my high school summers were spent sitting on the Wall at Hampton Beach, getting sunburnt and eating Acai bowls from The Secret Spot. The Wall was the place to be both during the day and at night. We begin our days there with a KB's bagel and coffee, and end them with pizza and ice cream. It’s not a New England summer without that 4 p.m. text from someone, “Who wants to meet at the Wall tonight?” Nighttime is for Tripoli’s Pizza, the sound of waves, and wishes on shooting stars. Wednesday nights are especially important, as those are the nights that Hampton Beach sets off the weekly firework display.

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Recommended for you

put Down The Ramen And Pick Up The Romaine

The summer intern's guide to whippin' up food on your stove top.

Make a list.

Monitor the contents.

Meal prep.

Make your meals.

Munch until your stomach, not your heart or your mind, is content.

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Cool Off with These 8 Beers!

Coors Light Summer Brew:

Leinenkugel Summer Shandy

Leinenkugel Sunset Wheat

Sam Adams Summer Ale

Hell or High Watermelon

Blue Moon Summer Honey

LandShark Lager

Corona

75 degrees and sunny, plus, no humidity. I mean do I really need to say more?

Perfect Weather

You'll get an effortless tan

You can exercise with a view

You don't have to worry about bug bites

In n Out all day, every day

We have outdoor concerts

We live where people vacation

Because let's be honest, we all use lyrics.

1. “Don’t get too close, it’s dark inside. It's where my demons hide.”

2. “Tonight, we are young.”

3. “Cuz I may be bad, but I’m perfectly good at it.”

4. “Tell me how they got that pretty little face on that pretty little frame.”

5. “I can’t wait to fall in love with you, you can’t wait to fall in love with me.”

6. “Sweatpants, hair tied, chillin with no makeup on.”

7. “Why you so obsessed with me?”

8. “We ain’t ever getting older.”

9. “I didn’t know that I was starving until I tasted you.”

10. “Didn’t they tell you I’m a savage?"

11. “I’m gonna make you miss me.”

12. "Cheers to the freakin weekend.”

13. “Love’s a game. Wanna play?”

14. “You don’t know about me, but I bet you want to.”

15. “Let’s set each other’s lonely nights, Be each other’s paradise.”

16. “Trippin’ on skies, sippin’ waterfalls."

17. “Wish we could turn back time, to the good old days.”

18. “But you will remember me for centuries.”

19. “Something about you makes me feel like a dangerous woman."

20. “Don’t act like it’s a bad thing to fall in love with me.”

21. “Darling, I’m a nightmare dressed like a daydream.”

22. “Find me where the wild things are.”

23. “I’m high on lovin’ you.”

24. “If you’re gonna be somebody’s heartbreak, somebody’s mistake, if you’re gonna be somebody’s first time, somebody’s last time, be mine.”

25. “Don’t be afraid to take the road less traveled on.”

Everything Bruce says in his classic rock songs.

1. "Talk about a dream Try to make it real You wake up in the night With a fear so real Spend your life waiting For a moment that just don't come Well don't waste your time waiting." (Badlands)

2. "It's a town full of losers/ I'm pulling out of here to win" (Thunder Road)

3. "You've got to learn to live with what you can't rise above" (Tunnel of Love)

4. "I got something in my heart/ I been waitin' to give/ I got a life I wanna start/ One I been waitin' to live" (Leah)

5. “God have mercy on the man/ Who doubts what he’s sure of” (Brilliant Disguise)

7. “Is a dream a lie when it don’t come true, or is it something worse?” (The River)

Why you should spend your next summer in New England.

Want to know more about summer destinations?

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1. "Talk about a dream
Try to make it real
You wake up in the night
With a fear so real
Spend your life waiting
For a moment that just don't come
Well don't waste your time waiting." (Badlands)