ON A HURRY AND HUNGRY? #CollegeMenu

You don't always have the time to cook or prepare something when you're running late to class or heading to work. You have no other option than to stop at a fast food chain. Although it is really temping to pick your all-time favorite, you can take a look at these healthier options when you're in a hurry.

• McDonald's Premium Grilled Chicken Classic Sandwich. If you skip the mayo, you can get as low as 300 calories.

• Subway's 6-inch Turkey Breast on Wheat Bread. Starting at 280 calories! Subway is one of my favorite places. You get to a lot of veggies and it's inexpensive.

• Chipotle's Vegetarian salad with black beans, fajita vegetables, and vinaigrette with 420 calories. If you're not feeling a salad, try at least a bowl. A tortilla by itself has over 300 calories!

• Starbucks Roasted Tomato & Mozzarella Panini with 390 Calories. It's a quick and inexpensive sandwich that will fill you up. And while you're there, grab yourself a hot or iced black coffee as a healthy option.

• Dunkin Donuts Egg White Veggie Wake-Up Wrap plus hash brown is 350 calories. If you're running late in the morning, you might want to try this one.

BASIC SMOOTHIE RECIPE

It's almost the end of September and the weather is still nice outside, so why not enjoy a refreshing, healthy smoothie?

INGREDIENTS
1 cup milk or juice
1 cup ice cubes
1 cup fruit of your choice

PREPARATION
Choose between milk or juice, add the proper amount of ice and pick your favorite fruit. You could even combine two or more kinds or use some veggies (avocado, cucumber, ..) and spices (cinnamon, giger, ...). Stick them all in a blender and the smoothie will be ready in just a few minutes.

A few tips: 

- Each fruit has its own amount of liquid so you may need to adjust the proportions. Add a little bit of ice or fruit if it's too liquid, add some juice or milk if it's too thick.
- You can also use frozen fruit. In this case, don't add the ice cubes.
- Use fruit of the season for an even better taste!

It's fast, it's tasty...and it's healthy!

Almond Butter Banana Sandwiches #CollegeMenu

Almond Butter Banana Sand-which, this is a healthy and delicious breakfast and snack to make!  All you need is grain bread (toasted if desire), almond butter with sea salt, 2 teaspoons of honey, 1 banana sliced up.

Easy to make :-) Will leave you wanting more!

All you need to do is spread 2 slices of bread with almond butter and drizzle with honey.
Then add the sliced up banana over the bread and your all done!  No microwave needed and its quick and easy!  Most importantly "almond butter banana sand-which is healthy!

~ College Menu

SHOP HEALTHY, EAT HEALTHY, SAVE MONEY! #TraderJoes

In order to start eating healthy and saving money as college student, one must find a grocery store that sells healthy groceries at an affordable price. A great grocery store to start shopping at is Trader Joe's! Trader Joe's is a top chain grocer that is all around the world. At Trader Joe's you will not find bad-for-you main stream brands. Trader Joe's has impressive and delicious store-brand foods contain no artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives, and no MSG, trans fats or genetically modified ingredients. Trader Joe's is notoriously private about its suppliers. They keep their prices low because all their products are coming from private suppliers. The company also cuts out the middleman and buys a lot of its food directly from the suppliers, which translates to lower expenses and more savings for customers. Trader Joe's also keep their products at a low price because they obtain products from all over the world. In particular, they get their products from poor countries where prices are cheaper. 

ENHANCING AWARENESS ABOUT FOOD

Your body is a master piece of this nature. It relates well to whatever is natural such as food in the way nature produces it. It is the best chemical factory that exists. Trillions of cells at your disposal always working to keep your organism in balance. 

If you eat an orange or a banana, the cells of your body know exactly what to do with it. They are naturally related. It digests it and assimilate it with ease. If you eat junk food your body knows what to do with it as well, but it works way much harder and spends way much more energy to extract from it what can be used, if anything. Right there you just caused your cells to be out of balance. The wasted energy could be used for something else.

In the whole process, the cells create ways to adjust to the new chemical components that you just introduced to it - The holy junk food! After all they have to work to keep your organism in balance. By doing that, it develops cravings and addictions that now you have the tendency to support. Now it becomes harder and it costs more money.

But guess what? That is exactly what the company that sold that junk wanted in the first place. Most of them have spent millions of dollars on researches to find out how our body works in such situations and how to make their “food” so tasty that you would forget about your body and you shovel that junk in. I do it too, sometimes! They even convince us through the labels on their packaging. It is like, we surrender. It has to be good, we think! 

You give away your own power of decision and now you do what they want you to do, and yet, you pay them to deteriorate your body slowly. Even so, the less cautious say “who cares?”…and that’s where the problem lies. You giving up on yourself!

As you can conclude your body does not do so well when you eat what has been modified. It was not created to work that way. You may not realize it now but in the long run you will pay the price. It is not hard to see. Just look around or listen to some stories of those that you know that struggle with health issues because they submitted themselves to cravings and addictions. They made poor choices. 

You don’t have follow that path. You are a college student. Someone who uses critical thinking to distinguish right from wrong. You know how human body works and you also know the profitable business behind modified food to taste better and to stay longer on shelves to sell more. 

You don’t have to change it all at once, but start by reducing the number of times that you eat it in a week. Your obligation is only to yourself, but by starting to change the habit to a healthy one, your mind will start operating towards that goal and it will help you become aware of ways to get there. You will live a healthier life and you will be an example to others.

…and so it goes!

I hope this helps.

TIPS FOR GROCERY SHOPPING ON A BUDGET

Are you a student with a limited budget? Do you have a hard time whenever you go grocery shopping? Are you one of those people who enter a grocery store just to buy a few things, but end up buying twice as much? We know how hard it can be, so here are a few tips to help you out.

1. MAKE A LIST

It is important that you plan ahead of time what you are going to buy. It may sound obvious, but people often don't do it. It doesn't only mean to write down what you have run out of, but also to plan what you want to eat throughout the whole week. If you do it, not only will you go straight to the products, but also you won't wander around and eventually buy more than you had planned.

2. LOOK FOR COUPONS, DISCOUNTS and BIG PACKAGES

Check your mail for coupons and store them for the next time you go grocery shopping. Once at the grocery store, pay attention to their special offers. Watch out though, because discounted products aren't always the cheapest ones. What can also interest you is family-size packages, which are usually a great deal and you can always store the extras in the freezer. Coupons, discounts and big packages will help you save money. 

3. STICK TO THE LIST

Just like mentioned above, you definitely don't want to buy more than what you really need. Grocery stores have developed many tricks, starting from where the products are placed, the slow music, the suggested product pairings. Our suggestion is to commit to your list, pick the smallest shopping cart, go grocery shopping when you're not feeling hungry. Don't let other factors influence you.

4. CHECK YOUR CART TWICE

When you are ready to check out, take a look at your cart to be sure you got everything you needed and nothing more. If you did get something that wasn't on your list, ask yourself "Do I really need it?" and "Is it healthy?" Also, keep yourself away of those last minute impulse buys at the cashier. They are definitely not good for you.

5. KEEP YOUR RECEIPTS

After grocery shopping, keep your receipts and review them, so you can see how much you spent, notice your habits and possibly change some. Storing your receipts will also help you keep track of all your expenses and manage your budget.

#CollegeMenu

"Not What You Can Do For College Menu, But It Is What College Menu Can Do For You"

Purpose - Save Money and Eat Healthy

Are you a college student who is broke and hungry?  If you are, we know how you feel and like all college students we are living on a budget.  We as students are still always looking to spend less money, but still have a nice tasty and nutritious meal.

I know what your about to say and that it is impossible to eat healthy and still maintaining your budget.  But I am here to tell you that it is not impossible and with the right tips and a little planning you can enjoy a affordable and healthy meal.

Not only will you feel healthy and better about your body, you will also feel better knowing that you save money!  College Menu is here for you! Eat healthy and save money!

~ College Menu