Have you ever just stood in front of your empty fridge, with a rumbling stomach and a whole lot of studying to do? Well, I definitely have. Being a student often means countless consecutive junk food meals, not much sleep, and a whole lot of stress.
I was never one to believe in cookbooks and their intended purpose of teaching readers how to cook, but I must say that when I came across Lauren Lucien’s Student Brain Food-Eat Well, Study Better, my opinion completely changed.
Great recipes
Not only is Lucien a Kingston Uni graduate but she started writing this collection of recipes while she was still a student, making this book truly student-friendly…for all of you who are ‘timid’ in the kitchen.
So, where do you even start? Lauren Lucien has pretty much thought of everything from the “fridge must-haves” to a handy list of “dos and don’ts” and steps to heating, chilling and defrosting all types of foods. Any question you have about cooking in general, chances are you will easily find the answer in this book.
The recipes in this book are separated by the kind of meal you want to prepare, and every section has its own distinctive colour and many, many pictures. There is a breakfast section, a smoothie section, an ‘easy eats’ section, and even a ‘sharer’ section for when you want to show off your cooking skills to your mates.
Delicious food
Along with simple instructions and ingredient lists, every recipe tells you how many people it feeds, and how expensive it is to make. Dr Elizabeth Opara, a Principal Lecturer in nutrition at Kingston Uni also shares her opinions and comments about every recipe, a feature that makes this cookbook different (and better) from the rest.
Student Brain Food-Eat Well, Study Better would be a perfect addition to any kitchen. As we all know, being a student does come with its economic restrictions. What Lauren Lucien does best in this book is she gives tips on how to save money by making the right decisions when going food shopping and making tasty food with the ingredients you already possess. What is great about this book is that it doesn’t just stop at teaching students how to cook, but it gives tips and first-hand knowledge on food and how it can affect your energy and concentration levels during those long hours spent studying in the library.