Lately this quarter when I frequent the dining hall, I’ve noticed something different — and it isn’t new dishes. It’s my bored, jaded palate as I scoop yet another spoonful of mashed potatoes onto my plate. Sure the nutrition-conscious perfectionist can load her tray with all the colors of the salad bar spectrum, and the beefy frat-boy can satiate his appetite with as many burgers as he wishes, but are they really doing so happily?

Northwestern University’s nuCuisine prides itself on its quality and innovation and features seasoned chefs who are responsive to — or are at least tolerant of — student comments no matter how asinine (such as my friend’s suggestion that more penguin be served, or the request that kindly told Allison head chef Chuck to “join the good food revolution”).

But despite its decency and best intentions, the dining halls inevitably cannot continue to please everyone year-round, and aspirations for a fit and well-fed student body often fall short; not everything in the dining halls is health conscious, and the term “freshman fifteen” isn’t just a myth.

“At first I thought, ‘oh this isn’t so bad, I can have chicken patties every day’ and now I’m realizing I can’t do that,” says a disillusioned dining hall regular, Weinberg freshman Katrina Keverian. “Only the fried stuff is good and that’s obviously not good for you.”

But for a college student who’s barely capable of devoting enough time to anything other than binge drinking and the O.C., figuring out nutrition isn’t exactly high on one’s list of priorities. The New Years’ resolution to lose weight, work out more or just “eat healthier” is as hackneyed and Americana as cafeteria mystery meat and is more difficult to accomplish in a collegiate environment when late night Papa John’s deliveries become a highly-anticipated study break and fourth meal. So where exactly does one begin?

A friend of mine suggested cutting out snacking during the day and stick to a solid three meals. A good idea except, there’s still that dining hall issue — and avoiding cafeteria food brings up the student’s ever-pressing unwillingness to spend money. And while Evanston may be the dining capital of Chicagoland’s north shore, I personally can only exhaust my regular picks at Chipotle, Panera Bread and Chili’s so many times.

I began thinking that perhaps if we, NU students, put our brainpower toward what we eat, our dissatisfaction with our diets would cease. I don’t mean thinking about nutrition per se — most of us learned our nutritional ABCs from junior high health class and tested this knowledge in nightly Burger King runs. But if we applied some of the ingenuity and creativity that got us to NU toward what we eat, wouldn’t all our palates be just a little bit more satisfied? I decided to look to the experts to confirm my theory and get some tips to point me to simple, cheaper, healthier and fresher ways to eat.

But according to Bruce Sherman, a chef partner at North Pond restaurant in Lincoln Park, I was wrong — innovation isn’t the answer to the student’s quandary of quality eating, he says.

“The key to eating better is paying more attention to what you eat, cook or buy,” Sherman says.

Cook? Buy? These are verbs that aren’t normally a part of my vocabulary while at college. Yes we have a Whole Foods store just minutes away, but I had always written it off as too pricey. Completely uninitiated, I appealed to Chef Marshall Shafkowitz of Chicago’s Culinary and Hospitality Institute (CHIC) who was full of ideas for worthwhile items to purchase that took into consideration budget, diet and convenience.

Shafkowitz at first seemed an unlikely choice to lead me into culinary enlightenment because of the disparity between our passions for the preparation of food; his penchant for the culinary arts began at the age of eight, and even after 25 years in the business, he still shares in Confucius’ mantra — that he has never worked a day. Having attended a culinary school rather than a traditional college himself, I had to explain that, much to his surprise, students living in NU’s dorms are not provided with refrigerators and are technically forbidden from keeping microwaves in their rooms. Being a teacher of food preparation, though, he gave me great tips on wholesome snacks to stock up on and put me up to the challenge of purchasing items to make great meals on a tight budget.

Shafkowitz on Snacking: He hit home with his criticism of typical college snack-foods, as I had consumed Ramen noodles the evening before I spoke with him.

“Ramen noodles are loaded with chemicals like MSG, which causes migraines,” Shafkowitz said. “And if you look at the ingredients of Easy Mac you’ll never actually find cheese.”

Since I suffer from migraines, I asked Shafkowitz for some alternative suggestions and how I can avoid MSG in future purchases. I learned that “flavor-enhancers” are a euphemism for MSG and that couscous products are a healthy, microwavable alternative to the likes of Kraft Easy Mac and Maruchan Ramen Noodles.

In practice: I found Fantastic brand organic couscous for $1.99 at Whole Foods. Since I remembered couscous as being rather bland whenever my mother made it at home, I opted for the roasted garlic and red pepper flavor which came at no additional cost to the plain couscous (it also came in flavors like parmesan and whole wheat). The couscous is not the most delicious carbohydrate to meet my taste buds; it certainly isn’t bad for a pasta-type dish that boasts fewer carbohydrates than most. The main disadvantage was that it required olive oil or margarine — neither of which I have readily available in my room. I ended up stealing 2 Tbsp of butter from the dining hall — something I’m sure Chuck frowns upon. But I was able to boil the water and stir the mix in my hot pot in no more time than my Ramen noodles from the previous night.

On fruits and veggies: “Oranges are a great thing in the middle of the night if you’re cramming for an exam. They’re a great pick-me-up — decent sugar content as well as just the flavor of the orange will pick you up,” says Shafkowitz, a self-proclaimed nutritionist who is “big on the fruits, as long as you don’t overdo them.” He also recommended carrot sticks for both snacking and as an addition to meals, as well as onion shallots because of their convenient size and ability to add flavor to microwavable soups and easy-to-make stews.

In practice: A fan of citrus, I wanted to go wild on Whole Foods oranges, but my desire to fit my spree into a $20 budget prevented me from going on a spree. I reasoned that several small, organic tangerines would satisfy munchies on more occasions than one or two oranges. I purchased five of these tangerines for $1.56 (the unit price was $1.49 per pound). They are just as good, if not better, than the tangerines my mother sent me in her Valentine’s Day care package. I also purchased a bag of pre-cut organic baby carrots for $2.29. While one of my more expensive purchases, the bag doesn’t take up much space in my regulation-size refrigerator and will last me into the end of the quarter.

On meals: Before asking for Shafkowitz’ advice on simple, cost-effective and healthy meals, I asked him if beyond boredom, he felt there was really anything wrong with our dining hall food. His common sense answer: lack of freshness.

“(What I’m recommending) is going to be better than what you’re getting in your dining hall. You’re getting a more controlled quality because you know it wasn’t made two hours before dinner starts,” Shafkowitz said.

Cheese tortillas with deli meat for added protein, gnocchi pasta and stew made from pre-cubed meat, chicken stock and vegetables (like the aforementioned baby carrots and onion shallot) were Shafkowitz’ meal suggestions, which increased when I told him that many students own hot pots.

In practice: To save money I opted for Shafkowitz’ simpler suggestions, purchasing pre-made, frozen gnocchi by Luigi for $2.99. Whole Foods also
carried stuffed Gnocchis at a slightly higher price. And since eating pasta, especially a frozen pasta, plain would be a betrayal of my Italian heritage, I bought a 16 oz jar of organic pasta sauce from Whole Foods’ Whole Kids line for $1.99. Shafkowitz was also big on the idea of keeping deli meats in the room for quick meals — something he purchased frequently while in culinary school that I’ve not seen in any NU student’s fridge. To cut on costs, and he emphasized nutrition when turning deli meat into a sandwich, I purchased his suggested flour tortillas for $0.99 and Horizon shredded mozzarella cheese for $3.99. Feeling squeamish about uncooked meat, and again, conscious of my budget and time I decided to save the ingredients needed to make quick stew in a hot pot for another Whole Foods trip.

“People are so used to doing something at home because they have a whole kitchen,” Shafkowitz says. “You just forget about the simple things you would make for yourself and, in a lot of cases, it’s coming out of your pocket now.”

Shafkowitz was right — I did frequently make myself cheese tortillas in the microwave and munch on carrot sticks at home — I just don’t think of it living on my own where time and money are everything. But I do feel enlightened after my better eating experimentation. My bill from Whole Foods came to $16.12, below my anticipated $20.00. The best part is, with the purchases I’ve made I know I won’t be eating Ramen noodles for at least a month.

Medill freshman Amanda Palleschi is a PLAY writer. She can be reached at [email protected].