#meal hack

I like snacking. I like eating regularly. I crave variety. My partner and I rarely have spoons to make dinner, despite having a meal kit service.

So this week, on the suggestion of a therapist (and with the dim memory of seeing a tiktok of an ADHDer doing something similar), I've been having.. snack meals?

We went to the grocery store together with the express purpose of buying mix-and match snacks. We got cottage cheese, chives, a couple types of cheese besides cottage, peanuts, 6-layer bean dip, wheat thins, tortilla chips, a few kinds of fruit, a few kinds of yogurt, fully-cooked sausages of various varieties, etc.

I'll mix and match, with minimal prep (cutting up the chives if needed, slicing cheese as needed, etc.), and put things in the numerous silicone cupcake liners I own, all piled on a plate.

Tonight's dinner is as follows: -Cottage cheese with chives -Peanut butter and a banana -Wheat thins, smoked gouda, and honey dijon mustard -Mixed fruit -Peanuts -Bean dip and tortilla chips -Blueberry yogurt

Mind, I only have small portions of each, but together it more than fills my plate and I can snack my way into a dinner while I play WoW. Picture under the cut.

Probably the biggest and most important dining hack EVER on campus is The Store. What is The Store, you ask? It’s GW’s very own student-run food pantry. Yep, that’s right. Free. Food. Period. 

But where is this haven of goodness and sustenance you may ask? It’s right downstairs on the B1 level of District. Just hop on down the stairs past Peet’s with your reusable grocery bag and loop around BEHIND the stairs. That mysterious door beyond the couches and tables is the entrance to Bed Bath and Beyond. jk. While you won’t find the remote from Click to fast forward through exams, you WILL find a plethora of non-perishables like soup, pasta, mac and cheese, cereal, granola bars, and more. Plus, The Store gets almost daily deliveries from Panera, Target, and local grocery stores. Prime example: I got a dozen Panera bagels, eggs, bacon, cereal, milk, and fresh fruit FOR FREE. 

Another super easy (though slightly more expensive) microwave dinner made slightly fancier.

- TJ's orange chicken

- Frozen sesame noodles (Walmart)

- Frozen stir-fry veggies and cream cheese wontons (Aldi)

- Green onions and bean sprouts

I had been accumulating these things over a few weeks, which I mention because normally I would never shop at the amount of stores I had to go to for these items in one week. It would be very inefficient.

It was, however, very satisfying to put together as I realized how well everything I had on hand would pair together.

I would definitely make this again.