Hot People Cook for Themselves
Strike Magazine does not encourage skipping your morning classes on Thursday. Even if it is your only day off of work to finally just have a day to sleep in, relax, write, and read—but I did it anyway. Around mid-morning, I decided to slump out of bed and get into the kitchen. After a bit of cleaning, I got to work. The first and most important step: put on some music. This morning it was French jazz. I threw on some water to boil for coffee and laid a cutting board on the counter, my workstation for the morning. I sliced a roll of ciabatta in half, lightly buttered it, added thinly sliced salami on one side, and threw it in the toaster oven. Once golden brown, I took it out and drizzled some olive oil onto the side without salami, and generously slathered my whipped cream cheese on top. My water was boiling, so I added three spoonfuls of my New England roast coffee into my French press. Then, I poured an inch of water on top and let it sit for about a minute to let the grounds start to bloom.
It was starting to rain. I love when it rains. I poured the rest of the water in and let the coffee steep for about 4-5 minutes before filtering. All the aromas started to mingle in the air. The coffee, toasted salami, and cream cheese. On top of my cream cheese, I sprinkled some everything bagel seasoning and a considerable amount of smoked paprika. I placed this half on top of the half with the salami and took the first bite. The crunch of a perfectly toasted ciabatta is nearly unbeatable. The coffee had steeped, and I got to pour myself a cup. The flavors married in my mouth. It’s a religious feeling. If only I could skip class every day.
You see how carried away I get? Anyways, here is why everyone should give cooking for themselves a go. The simplest benefit of cooking for yourself, especially for us college students, is that it’s cheaper and healthier. Finding food that is not only cheap but also healthy for you is next to impossible if you’re not cooking on your own. The ingredients I used for the breakfast described above cost approximately 20-25 dollars and gave me at least 4-5 meals. That includes spices, olive oil, and coffee, which all last much longer than 4-5 meals. Without those, it’s about 12 dollars, meaning each sandwich I make using those ingredients costs me around 3 dollars. The only place I know where you can get a three-dollar sandwich is McDonald’s, which is significantly more unhealthy than what we can make on our own. The benefit of buying your own fresh ingredients is knowing exactly what you’re eating. There is no worrying about how processed your fast food is or how many preservatives it contains.
Not only is it cheaper and healthier—it’s genuinely fun. Unlike ordering from a menu at a restaurant or some fast-food joint, cooking for yourself is completely customizable. I’ve never seen a salami and cream cheese sandwich on ciabatta with olive oil, smoked paprika, and everything bagel seasoning in any restaurant or store I’ve been to. Yet, I get to make it on my own. Going along with this, cooking for yourself allows you to get creative. Once you get a taste for certain things and get comfortable in the kitchen, you can use different ingredients and pair different things together. It’s one big, extremely enjoyable trial and error that leads to you finding out what kind of flavors and combinations you enjoy the most.
Cooking for yourself can also be relaxing and positively impact your mental state in many different ways. As I mentioned earlier, throwing on some of your favorite music and cooking yourself a great-tasting meal is very relaxing. It’s like therapy for me. It gives me time to be alone with my thoughts, all while enjoying great music, and at the end of all that, I get to sit down and enjoy a great meal. It’s unlike any other feeling. Knowing that you just put in the work to make yourself a tasty, healthy meal makes the entire process very gratifying and the food even more delicious.
Strike Out,
Ryan Manney
Boca Raton
Ryan Manney is a Content Writer for Strike Magazine Boca. His hobbies amount to surfing, skating, writing, reading, and everything music. When he isn’t surfing, Ryan loves watching and/or playing live music. He also likes to wear cool clothes. You can reach him on instagram @ryanmanney or email r.manney3@gmail.com
