stuck in a food rut

omid990

so i live in a dorm so i can't cook for myself so i'm stuck with college food. our school offers a pretty decent variety... that is for those that aren't watching what they're eating. There's lots of pasta, pizza, sandwiches, fries, chinese wok, mexican, etc. unfortunately, for those like myself who are trying to eat cleaner , i'm pretty much limited to wraps, grilled chicken, and salad. Now i feel like i'm stuck in a food rut. Tonight for dinner, there were a few things i were considering. would any of these things be a good option?
1) wheat veggie calzone
calories: 531
fat: 14 grams
protein: 23 grams
carbs: 83 carbs
sodium: 1,155 mg
i know its not the best thing to eat but i do have the calories and its loaded with veggies
2) Boca burger with wheat bun, ketchup and mustard
3) stir fry with lots of veggies, no meat, stir fry sauce, and brown rice.

thoughts and opinions are appreciated.

omid990

so i live in a dorm so i can't cook for myself so i'm stuck with college food. our school offers a pretty decent variety... that is for those that aren't watching what they're eating. There's lots of pasta, pizza, sandwiches, fries, chinese wok, mexican, etc. unfortunately, for those like myself who are trying to eat cleaner , i'm pretty much limited to wraps, grilled chicken, and salad. Now i feel like i'm stuck in a food rut. Tonight for dinner, there were a few things i were considering. would any of these things be a good option?
1) wheat veggie calzone
calories: 531
fat: 14 grams
protein: 23 grams
carbs: 83 carbs
sodium: 1,155 mg
i know its not the best thing to eat but i do have the calories and its loaded with veggies
2) Boca burger with wheat bun, ketchup and mustard
3) stir fry with lots of veggies, no meat, stir fry sauce, and brown rice.

thoughts and opinions are appreciated.

Poison5119

I would aim for #2 and #3, but that's just me. They sound like they're full of sodium.

As an alternative, is there any way you can create meals in your dorm room? I'm not suggesting breaking the rules (assuming you're not allowed to have small appliances), but if I were bored with the selections, I'd grab a hard boiled egg or two from the salad bar and a packet of fat-free mayo, buy a loaf of hefty wheat bread (Aunt Millies is awesome), and make my own egg salad sandwich. Or peanut butter and marshmallow fluff.

You could also buy low-cal, low sodium soups that have those pop-off tops (no can-opener required), and nuke a bowl in the cafeteria (assuming they have one for student use - they do where I work!).

And if you CAN have small appliances in your dorm rooms, just say the word, and we'll barrage you with ideas!

zoey1912

I agree #2 and #3 seem like the best choices. #1 doesn't seem too bad either, depending on how many calories you can eat per day. I don't live in a dorm but tend to eat about the same thing everyday anyway. I guess for me, I just make sure I have enough fruits and vegis each day. There isn't too much variety in my diet anyway since I'm a vegetarian. Every once in a while maybe you can have a smaller portion size of the other "not so good" selections to change things up a bit.

omid990

if only we were allowed to have appliances. that would make things so much more interesting. all i have is a microwave and plastic silverware. I do have cambell's soup but i know that high in sodium. I also have the stuff for pb&j. sunchips are a staple too. i have ramen and easy mac but that's pretty much for emergencies (like midterms :grumble: )

thank you guys for your help!!!

rjjarvis

Hey, if you have a microwave, you're all set. Who needs real appliances?

There are lots of frozen dinners that you can buy cheaply that are pretty good -- like anything from Amy's Kitchen. And there are always sales on frozen stuff. Walmart and Target and Costco have big varieties of frozen dinners and vegetables that are very inexpensive.

Some of this stuff is organic, vegetarian, gluten-free, etc. You do have to watch for the sodium, but you are probably being drowned in it at the school cafeteria anyway.

mwatanabe

Our college was the same way... except we were a small campus. My mom bought me a rice cooker for school and it worked wonderful to make things you couldn't even imagine. We used to cook spaghetti in it.. but there's a bunch of recipes on the web for other things.