Summer is great. We're all home from school, appreciating the sun, at least when we're not working. Some college students may go through withdrawal from the lack of having ready-made food all the time. I mean, sure, a lot of college's dining halls don't have the greatest selections sometimes, but who can deny how much they love having everything cooked for them and not even having to worry about the dishes to clean up? That's why I've compiled a short list of fantastic recipes that I've tried so far this summer that make cooking your own meals worth it. Enjoy!

1. Mac & Cheese

Honestly, you can never go wrong in any way with a mac and cheese recipe. This one in particular was quite creamy and my proudest accomplishment in cooking so far this summer. Please do not hesitate to add tons of bacon, because bacon is another thing you can never ever go wrong with.

http://www.justataste.com/easy-stovetop-macaroni-a...

2. Cake Batter Blondies

Yes, you read that correctly, and yes they do taste as mouthwatering and magical as they sound and look. Just ask my entire extended family, who I made these for at our beach vacation. I think I ate about five of them myself. Plus anything with sprinkles is automatically yummy just because they look so pretty.

http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2012/04/06/take-2...

3. Bacon & Halloumi Hot Dog Skewers

OK, so I haven't actually made this one yet, but it's so perfect for a summer cookout that I couldn't resist adding it to the list. I do plan on making it before summer is over though, because it looks absolutely beautiful.

4. THE Breakfast Sandwich

I'm not going to lie, this sandwich is probably my new favorite breakfast food of all time. It's just such a perfect combination of meat, egg, and cheese. And it's way better than McDonald's breakfast sandwiches by a long shot. Plus, you can replace the ham with bacon or a sausage patty. It's such a simple breakfast, yet so filling (I may be a little obsessed, but at least I'm not hungry).

5. Nacho Crusted Crescent Dogs

OK, so these are a little ghetto, but they're also super tasty and a great summer snack. Plus, all you really need is four ingredients! Simplicity at its finest. Not to make it sound like I'm obsessed with bacon or anything (who are we kidding, bacon is life), but I'm sure you could find some way to incorporate it into this recipe as well.

Well, that concludes my list of recipes to cook this summer, but I hope it inspired you to get to the grocery store and make some of these instead of just ordering Chinese again. Comment below on some of your favorite summer recipes if you would like!