At some point in every Jumbo’s life, students are faced with an all too familiar dilemma: life without a meal plan. Without the convenience of salad bars, healthy options, and a myriad of protein choices, what’s a Jumbo to do!? In an effort to deal with this mid-college crisis, Lydia Jessup, A13, and Alex Testa, E13, started Feastie Girls, a community driven food blog for college students focusing on cooking healthy, quick, inexpensive, and fun dishes. Jessup sums up their mission stating, “We wanted to create a place where college students could share ideas and get inspired in the kitchen.”

From recipes that would only be acceptable in college (Frat bread, anyone?) to the more sophisticated Zesty Cucumber Gazpacho, The Feastie Girls cover it all! Keeping with their community-driven focus, the girls allow for anyone currently in college (and those who remember recipes from their college years) with a love of healthy, delicious food to contribute. One of their contributors is Jeff Marvel, A13, who gives us a taste of his personal experiences as a newbie in the kitchen along with a recipe for his easy Chicken, Broccoli, and Pasta:

If you’re like me, then growing up was defined by delicious home cooked meals by mom. Coming into college, I knew how to to scramble an egg and toast a bagel. That’s an exaggeration, but not by much. The inevitable threat of cooking was delayed for a few years by this beautiful thing called the unlimited meal plan. But now it’s summer, I’m on my own and faced with the daunting task of creating reasonably nutritious meals at minimal cost.

Faced with this challenge, I settled on a childhood favorite: broccoli. This superfood is one of the more nutrient dense vegetables on the planet, according to CNN, and has proven cancer prevention abilities. It’s cheap, yummy, healthy and easy to cook. Sounds about right.

I decided to make chicken and pasta because, well, I’m not really sure. They just seemed like reasonable things to cook. But together, chicken, broccoli, and pasta create a cheap, nutritious dish that’s easy to make for someone just starting out. Hope you enjoy!

If the Feastie Girls have whet your appetite, feel free to email them and contribute to their project: Lydia.Jessup@tufts.edu and Alexandra.Testa@tufts.edu.  Bon appetite!