Cook away the Bon blues with these recipes

By Charlotte Wallace

It is not easy to eat a healthy meal in the Bon. An optimal meal, in a nutritional sense, consists of a quarter protein, a quarter whole grain carbs and a half vegetables. It is very rare for the Bon to have a decent option in all three categories. In fact, it is impossible to put a watery — yet still greasy — curry from 7:50 on a Sunday night into any nutritional category. A Bon escape is an important part of every Lewis & Clark student’s life, but eating out can get expensive and cooking can be a challenge for students with little experience living in the dorms. Luckily for you, I have some easy, affordable and healthy recipes suitable for beginning cooks and students who live on campus.

Sweet Potato Bowls

Sweet potato bowls are an easy yet flavorful and nutritionally optimal go-to recipe of mine. Most of the steps involve putting ingredients in a pot or the oven and leaving them for an hour or so while you relax or do homework as they cook. Because many students do not have measuring cups, I will give approximations. The recipe serves two to three people, so share with your friends or enjoy leftovers for lunch and prolong your Bon hiatus.

Ingredients (1 Serving):

One large sweet potato

Olive oil

Salt & pepper

One bundle Italian kale

Brown rice or red quinoa

Juice of half a lemon

Tahini

Maple syrup

One egg

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cube the potato and place the cubes in a baking tray with a liberal amount of olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Put the tray in the oven and roast the potato until the outside of the potato cubes appear slightly wrinkled, usually around 20 minutes. While the potatoes are in the oven, start cooking the rice or quinoa. When you take the potatoes out of the oven, set them aside and wrap them in a dish towel and place them in a bowl to keep them warm. Chop the kale into two inch sections cutting from each side of the central rib. Add the chopped kale to the same pan used for the potatoes and add a pinch of salt and pepper and squeeze half a lemon on top. Cook at 325 degrees for about 10 minutes or until the kale becomes crispy. Fry an egg with salt and pepper while the kale cooks. In a bowl, place a scoop of the cooked rice or quinoa, then add the vegetables and top with the fried egg. For the sauce, mix maple syrup, tahini and a touch of water or olive oil to thin the mixture and drizzle it over the top of the bowl. Enjoy.

A Spicier Version of the Sweet Potato Bowl

Maple-tahini sauce with sweet potatoes is a bit of a sweeter dish, so I also have a version that is more savory and spicey. I like to alternate between the sweet and the savory version of the sweet potato bowl. This version is slightly more difficult but the flavorful  green sauce makes it worth the extra work. Follow the recipe and you will fine.

Ingredients (1 serving):

One large sweet potato

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Cumin

One bundle of Italian kale

Half an avocado

One handful of cilantro

One handful of parsley

A few pieces of pickled jalapeños

Juice of half a lime

Two cloves of garlic

Preparation:

Follow the same preparation steps as the previous recipe but when cooking the potatoes, add cumin with the salt and pepper. Instead of making the tahini sauce, blend the new ingredients, except for the cumin, in a food processor or blender with olive oil and one clove of the garlic to create a deliciously tangy green sauce to top the bowl with. Sauté the kale with a clove of garlic, minced and olive oil instead of using the baking pan. Enjoy, round two.

Spinach Goat Cheese Toast

If you are in a rush, try making spinach goat cheese toast: another healthy, easy and tasty option. Apart from the amazing flavor created by the combination of spinach and goat cheese, the best part about this dish is it takes less than fifteen minutes and requires zero cooking experience. Skip the Bon and have this for brunch.

Ingredients (1 serving):

Olive oil

One clove of garlic

Handful of spinach

Salt & pepper

Tablespoon of soft goat cheese (chevre)

One piece of your favorite, savory bread

One egg

Preparation:

Sautée the spinach in olive oil, salt, and pepper with the clove of minced garlic. While the spinach cooks, toast the piece of bread and spread goat cheese on top. Fry the egg with salt and pepper. Place the spinach on the goat cheese and the egg on top. Final step: Enjoy.