Recipes for Winter break

By Kshef Kamran, December 22 2023—

Winter break is right around the corner and what better way to destress after final exams than picking up a new hobby like cooking or baking. These recipes are easy and do not require any specific techniques to make and I guarantee that you have most of the ingredients in your fridge or pantry right now. 

Sweet

Mini chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese frosting

Either make your favourite chocolate cupcake recipe or simply use a pre-mixed box version.

Instructions for cream cheese frosting:

• Add one cup of cream cheese to a bowl or stand mixer and mix until smooth

• Add 1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar to the cream cheese 

• For vanilla frosting, add 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract

• For chocolate frosting, add two tbsp of cocoa powder 

Pipe the frosting either with a piping bag or scoop your frosting with a spoon.

These cupcakes are versatile; you can add any toppings to them such as crushed Oreos, cookies, fresh fruit, or a light dusting of powdered sugar. 

Gluten, dairy and processed-sugar-free peach cobbler 

Instructions for wet ingredients:

• Two to three tablespoons of oil in the pan 

• One and a half cups of almond flour 

• Two teaspoons of baking powder 

• One teaspoon cinnamon 

• Mix the dry ingredients 

To the dry ingredients add:

• One cup of mashed pitted dates 

• One tbsp apple cider vinegar

• Half a cup of honey

• Mix well 

• Then to the greased baking pan add three to four sliced peaches (add one tbsp of honey to sour peaches)

• Cover with the cobbler mixture 

• Bake at 350 degrees Celsius until golden brown on top 

This dessert is for anyone who has any sort of dietary restriction; it is dairy, gluten, and processed sugar-free. It is very much on par in terms of taste and texture to its counterpart so, no one is missing out. It is also a healthier dessert to crave and make for your friends and family which is an added bonus. 

Savoury

Spice up your ramen 

Instructions for Buldak Spicy Samyeong: 

• Boil the water 

• Add the noodles 

• Once the noodles are done strain the noodles but leave about a quarter cup of water behind 

• Add the sauce packet

• Add one to two chopped green onion 

• Add one to two minced garlic cloves

• Sprinkle shredded mozzarella cheese 

This is your college favourite recipe spiced up. Taking about 15-20 minutes maximum to prepare this dish is addicting and tasty. The cheese added to the noodles is a great complement to the spicy noodles. The addition of the onion and garlic provides a nice flavour profile in addition to the spicy sauce.

Chicken Alfredo

Instructions: 

• Two six-ounce chicken breasts pounded evenly but not too thin

• One tablespoon of garlic and herb seasoning

• Sprinkle of paprika

• Salt and pepper to taste

• Two tablespoons of butter

• One tablespoon of olive oil

• Three cloves of garlic, minced

• One and one-fourth cups of heavy cream

• Four ounces of cream cheese softened at room temperature 

• Half a cup of grated Parmesan

• Eight ounces of fettuccine

This recipe is very easy to make for a large number of people and double or triple the recipe for more people. This savoury pasta dish is creamy and rich and will definitely make for a great addition to your weekly dinner rotation. One of the best things about this recipe is that it’s a one-pot dish so you don’t have to worry about dirtying multiple pans. 

Overall, these are some wonderful dishes to make and enjoy when you have time over winter break. No fancy gadgets and skills are required, only some good quality ingredients and a little bit of time. The next time you have a little bit of time try these recipes out and impress a crowd of friends and family.