College cafeterias have come a long way since I was in school 30 years ago. But they still can be lacking, especially for a freshman living away from home for the first time.
No matter how good the food is, it tends to lack that homey touch or the favorite meals cooked the way Mom (or Dad) cooked them.
Even such food services as Aramark recognize that. The company's staff at UNC School of the Arts has been doing something about it the last two years with a program called Taste from Home.
In the fall, Aramark invites students to submit their favorite recipes from home. The food-service staff chooses a few and puts them on the menu for everyone to enjoy.
Heather Pinks, Aramark's food-service director at UNCSA, said that Aramark has done the same thing in several other schools.
Last year, only 12 entries came in. That went up to 30 this year. "Last year, we did a mailing. But this year we put it online. I think that made a difference," Pinks said.
Of those entries, Pinks, chef Dana Patterson and other members of the food-service staff chose balsamic chicken, noodle casserole and rhubarb cake.
They looked for recipes that not only would taste good, but also ones that would represent good alternatives to what Aramark already serves. "We go for things that students will like and that aren't already on the menu," Pinks said. "We got a lot of variations of macaroni and cheese, but macaroni and cheese is already on the menu.
"But we do tons of pasta. And so when we saw a casserole with noodles, sour cream and Frosted Flakes, we thought that would be different."
The chosen recipes also needed to be doable in large quantities because about 600 students are on the meal plan at UNCSA.
The balsamic chicken was an easy choice. It's healthy, and chicken breasts are popular with the students. It came from Kelly Mackie, 16, a high-school junior from Clarkston, Mich.
Mackie said that this is a variation on a South Beach Diet recipe made by her mother, Shelley Zurek.
"It's a tasty, low-carb, low-calorie dish that I thought would be easy for the cafeteria to re-create for the students," Mackie said.
The noodle casserole, what Jewish cooks call a kugel, came from Leighton Schlanger, 18, a drama student from Katy, Texas. He said that his mother has been making it for years.
"It is the perfect mixture of every type of flavor from sweet to salty, and it's still not considered a dessert," he said.
The rhubarb cake caught the eye of the staff because it's so unusual.
"We never serve rhubarb, ever," Pinks said. "We thought it'd be good for some of the kids to learn about."
Sara Keller, 20, a junior studying contemporary dance, said that rhubarb is popular in her hometown of Eagle River, Alaska.
"Rhubarb is one of the few things that can grow up there because it's so cold. Almost everybody eats it," Keller said.
The cake is her grandmother's recipe and something that Keller has been eating most of her life. Her family also uses rhubarb in jams, jellies and pies.
"I submitted it because it's different and unique to where I live," she said. "And I only get to go home once during the year, at Christmas."
Aramark served all three dishes for lunch Saturday during Fall Family Weekend, and Pinks said they may be added to the regular menu rotation.
"The students eat here every day," Pinks said, "so the idea is to give them a little something from home."
Noodle Casserole
Recipe submitted by Terry Schlanger of Katy, Texas, for son Leighton Schlanger.
1 16-ounce package extra broad noodles
1 16-ounce container sour cream
2 sticks butter, melted
1½ cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
5 beaten eggs
1½ to 2 cups Frosted Flakes
Cinnamon to taste
1. Boil and drain noodles according to package directions. Set aside.
2. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix sour cream, butter, sugar, vanilla and egg in a large bowl. Pour cooked noodles in bowl with batter and mix by hand to coat noodles.
3. Pour noodle mixture in large (10-by-13-inch) Purex or glass pan and spread evenly.
4. Put 1½ to 2 cups of frosted flakes in a Ziploc sandwich bag and seal. Crush flakes, then add some cinnamon to taste. Sprinkle cereal mixture evenly over noodle mixture.
5. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes until bubbly all over. If Frosted Flakes begin get too brown, cover pan loosely with foil.
Balsamic Chicken
Submitted Shelley Zurek of Clarkston, Mich., for Kelly Mackie.
6 boneless chicken breast halves (or any chicken tenders)
1½ teaspoons rosemary
2 cloves garlic
½ teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 to 6 tablespoons apple juice
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
1. Rinse chicken thoroughly and pat dry. Combine spices in small bowl and mix. Put chicken in large bowl, baste with oil and rub with spice mixture. Let stand.
2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spray large roasting pan with cooking spray.
3. Place chicken in pan in a single layer and bake 10 minutes. Turn chicken over and add 4 tablespoons apple juice, or just enough to slightly moisten the chicken.
4. Bake 10 to 20 minutes more or until chicken is done.
5. Drizzle vinegar over chicken.
Rhubarb Cake
Submitted by Ruth Keller of Eagle River, Alaska, for Sara Keller.
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup sour cream
1½ cups flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2½ cups cut rhubarb
¾ cup light brown sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
Whipped cream
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. In large bowl, mix sugar, egg and sour cream. In separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Mix flour mixture into egg mixture. Stir in rhubarb.
2. Spread in 9-by-13-inch pan. Mix brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl, then sprinkle over top of batter.
3. Bake about 32 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Serve with whipped cream.
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