Baking means different things to many different people. From improving mental health to making a tasty treat to share with friends, making food is a great way for us to connect with ourselves as well as other people!
I know personally, baking gives me a clarity of mind when I need a break from the stress of assignment deadline and being drowned in coursework. I also know that university accommodation kitchens can be less that satisfactory in terms of working appliances.
So, here is a list of things that you can bake in your uni kitchen to lift your spirits! Even if your oven seal is broken or your microwave takes 300 years to make your microwaved dinner.
Mug-Cake
If you love cake but live on a budget, a mug-cake can be a perfect solution and a very tasty pick me up in the week!
There are hundreds of mug-cake recipes on the internet, however I’ve never been one to follow instructions very well so I tend to use them as more of a guide (this has surprisingly worked more times than it hasn’t).
With some self-raising flour, an egg, some sugar, butter (or margarine), cocoa powder and a pinch of salt – you can have a perfect pocket-sized cake to eat while you study! Just pop your ingredients into a microwave-safe mug and put it in the microwave.
If you want to get fancy and have some icing sugar lying around, you can make icing to top it off!
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Who doesn’t love chocolate chip cookies? I know I do. With just a few ingredients and about 15-20 years in the oven (depending on the quality of oven) you can have a perfect batch of cookies to share with friends! Or lets be honest, just enjoy yourself!
Something I never set out to buy is brown sugar, so with some angels on the internet there are plenty of recipes for some perfect cookies with no brown sugar,
Simply mix some butter, sugar an egg, some golden syrup, a bit of salt, some self-raising flour, and some chocolate chips and pop it in the oven for around 20 minutes. Enjoy!
Sultana or Chocolate Scones
Scones are a delicacy in many people’s lives. No matter how you say it – they still taste just as good. So here’s how to make them at uni!
Simply mix together self-raising flour, sugar, butter/margarine, an egg and some milk. Personally I find it quite fun to do this with my hands, but do whatever works for you!
You can also add vanilla extract (I prefer to use golden syrup myself) to give it an extra nice sweet taste! Then add your sultanas, chocolate or even just leave them plain.
Roll the mixture into balls and pop them in the oven for about 15 minutes and you’ll have some tasty scones to again share with your friends or just to eat yourself!
Featured image credit: Pexels
