Getting food in college can sometimes feel so monotonous. I mean, does it really have to be the same soup and sandwich everyday? Of course not. Believe it or not, there are ways to make your boring meals a little more interesting. With these college food hacks, you'll be able to shake up your food routine in no time. 

DIY Root Beer Floats

ice, beer, coffee, cream, tea, ice cream
Margaret Huang
Make your own root beer float by taking a glass, filling the bottom half with vanilla ice cream from the machine, and filling the rest up with root beer.

Personalized Breakfast Sandwich

cheese, bacon, sandwich, egg, cheddar, bun
Margaret Huang
Premade breakfast sandwiches aren’t always fresh and hot-off-the-press. Make your own unique breakfast sandwich using a bagel or your choice of bread with the hot breakfast foods offered in the dining hall. Add scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes, and cheese, and place it into the panini press to grill. You’re left with a hot and fresh sandwich made to your liking.

Customizable Waffles

waffle, butter, bacon, syrup
Margaret Huang

You don’t have to settle for just a plain waffle and syrup. Make your waffle more interesting by adding a different array of toppings into the batter. Make it savory by adding bacon and cheese into the batter, or satisfy your sweet tooth by adding chocolate and cinnamon.

DIY Milkshakes

cream, milk, chocolate, yogurt, sweet, milkshake, ice, mousse
Margaret Huang

Create a milkshake by filling half of a glass with ice cream and filling the rest with milk. Top it off with whatever is at the dessert table (cookies, brownies, etc.) or bring your own selection of ingredients from the convenience store (Oreos, chocolate, etc.).

DIY Infused Water

candy
Margaret Huang

Make your own infused water with the fresh fruits and vegetables at the salad bar. Bring an empty water bottle and fill it up with strawberries, pineapple, and cucumbers (my favorites) and then fill the rest with water. Take it to go and you’ll have a small remedy to avoid the freshmen plague.

Quick-Fix Cereal

milk, sweet
Margaret Huang

If you’re running late for class in the morning and don’t have time to go to the dining hall for breakfast, take a bag of cereal and roll down the plastic. Pour some milk into the bag and take the breakfast to go, if necessary.

Customized Popsicle Molds

ice, sweet, cream, strawberry, milk, yogurt, juice, smoothie
Margaret Huang

For a refreshing treat, make your own popsicles with a popsicle mold. Pour your choice of drink (my favorites include Gatorade and Fuze) into the mold and freeze. There’s also the option of making it a little more interesting by freezing wine on a Friday night. 

S'mores in a Jar

sweet, chocolate, nut, almond
Margaret Huang

Entertain your dorm buds with a S’mores mix on movie night. All you need is a mason jar, graham cracker cereal, chocolate chips, and mini marshmallows, all of which you can get from the dining hall or convenience store. Add the ingredients into the mason jar and shake until mixed.

Dryer Sheet Fan

tea, coffee
Margaret Huang

My dorm room reeked of soy sauce after a couple girls in my hall and I dined on Chinese takeout one night. To dilute the smell, I simply taped a dryer sheet over the fan in our room and turned it on. The next morning you wouldn’t have even known that we cruised through several tubs of fried rice.

Whether you're in a hurry or are trying to find new ways to spice up the food options you have as a college student, these college food hacks will have you enjoying your meal choices just a little more.