Student food doesn't always have to be disgusting amalgamations of things mixed and mashed together to create strange new flavours. In texts such as Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisited, although they may be extravagantly rich, Charles Ryder and his university friends overindulge on delicious food. Charles describes the food that they eat, he says "of melon and prosciutto on the balcony in the cool of the morning; of hot cheese sandwiches and champagne at Harry's bar." (91) This overindulgent relationship they have with food is seen in many other texts that show students of all ages eating plentifully and extravagantly. When looking at Harry Potter and the great hall we are shown students with delicious food. 

However what we realise from the images of these students eating is that they did not make their own food. Cooking your own meals as a student is a pivotal part of your independence. From having food cooked at home to having to shop, prepare and cook your own food is a large step. After reviewing a number of student cookbooks for The Independent newspaper, chef Ainsley Harriet said 'Think about your first kiss - if you did it and it was bloody awful, you might not do it again, It's the same with cooking - you start off gradually, you get your confidence, and you build on that. Don't be too adventurous to start with - learn how to cook one dish well.' students must become confident before they begin cooking, gaining their independence. The mass overload of student cook books in the past years is testament to the fact that students need guidance when first beginning to cook. Titles such as Hard up and hungry: Hassle Free Recipes for Students, by Betsy Bell and Cheap as chips, better than toast: Easy recipes for students by Miranda Shearer, highlight the wish to introduce students to food through easy recipes so as not to intimidate first time cooks. Student food is changing with so many student cook books however is it working? and do these recipes really help students 'get into' food?

When it comes to current student food the first images that pop into my head are of mouldy layers of out-of-date bread, pasted together with thick lashings of any spreadable substance. Bowls of forgotten food, left in a stale corner, growing their own lifeforms. chips on cereal with vinegar and ham, 2 week old pizza crust dipped in musty flan. I've been asked the question on countless occasions by family and friends 'do students actually eat like this?'; the answer I usually give is "well, I try not too". For students, food has become something that is fast, easy and devoid of much care for taste or presentation. As a flat rep. living in on-campus accommodation, the various concoctions and mixtures of food I come in contact with on a daily basis from my 25 first year flat mates is astonishing. The heavy smells of over-cooked fish and fried bread colliding in a claustrophobic storm of pungent stench hangs dully in the air throughout my residence. University student's food has become a hot-bed for experimental tasting as each person attempts to mix the cheapest and fastest foods together in order to find that "perfect"combination. The countless numbers of student food websites, cookbooks and local university newspaper articles that are all dedicated to helping the hapless first years in their first food experience away from the comfort of their parent's well prepared meals, are testaments to the difficulty that students have with food. Through the release of so much material we must realise that there is a surge of interest in the health of students and a concern about what we actually eat. In this blog I'll be looking at the resources aimed at university students and will try to cook some of their suggestions. But I'm not convinced that any of it will beat a well made portion of beans on toast!