Junior dietetics major Katie Olson teaches “Cheap, Fast, and Healthy” cooking classes at the Wellness Center Tuesday evening. Photo by Chester Beltowski.

Sick of eating dining hall food, fast food or quick microwave dinners? The Wellness Center has a cure for that: cooking classes on Tuesday nights.

Every Tuesday night in the Culinary Corner of the Wellness Center, an employee teaches a class called “Cheap, Fast, and Healthy.” With only a half hour time slot, the classes aim to teach preparation of meals that are quick to make.

This past Tuesday, chef Katie Olson, a junior dietetics major, taught a class of seven students how to make hummus and pita chips. The cost of all the ingredients for the snack totalled under $7 and made enough for eight
students to have a decent sized snack.

“I love teaching college students about healthy eating habits,” Olson said. “It is important for college students to learn to make healthy, quick snacks as opposed to junk food, and that is why I enjoy teaching this class.”

Throughout the class, students observed Olson making the hummus and were given a quick lesson on the dietary benefits of all the ingredients that went into making the dish. Many ingredients were high in protein and low in sodium to guarantee that the best health options were utilized in the meal.

“I came to the class to learn more about easy ways to make healthy food,” said Lindsey Miller, a sophomore nutrition major.

She was not disappointed even though this was the first time that Olson had made the recipe.

In less than 15 minutes, students learned to make hummus out of four ingredients and a blender. The healthy pita chips were made using a tortilla shells.

“I hope to take home the idea of using foods to make healthy substitutions for other items, like we did with the tortilla shells,” senior Emily Sather said after taking the class.

Variety

Every week, a new dish is discussed, allowing many different tastes to be met during the year. Dishes in the past haveranged from breakfast tacos to BBQ chicken grilled cheese sandwiches.

Students unanimously decided the best part of Tuesday’s class was eating hummus.

They also agreed the class would be more beneficial if they could help prepare the food instead of only watching the chef cook. However, while watching Olson make the hummus, students were able to ask questions and learn
about substitutions for the ingredients that were added and how personal taste influences any dish.

“My advice is just for college students to try something new when it comes to food,” Olson said.

Tuesdays at the Culinary Corner are made for just that — trying new, cheap, fast and healthy foods.

The Wellness Center also offers a healthy desserts on Mondays.

Erin Cheever is a staff writer for The Dakota Student. She can be reached at [email protected]