Cooking Hacks: At-Home Recipe Reviews

Image Courtesy of Study Breaks Magazine

By Isa Pardino

Cooking for yourself can be stressful and difficult. It can seem like an obstacle that is insurmountable. Luckily, we have Tiktok to provide us with different food-hacks, tips, and tricks so that everyone can be the new “Gordon Ramsay.” 

The first recipe you should try when you are craving Italian is TikTok Pasta. It is made with just a few simple ingredients: a block of feta cheese, three cups of cherry tomatoes, three cloves of garlic, and your choice of pasta. First, boil the pasta and put the feta, tomatoes, and garlic in the oven in oven-safe glassware, and bake for 30-40 minutes. When that’s ready, all you have to do is mix the cooked pasta into the cheesy, tomatoey sauce and enjoy!

Another TikTok favorite is the quesadillas hack. According to the Food Network, here is the perfect way to accomplish this simple and delicious recipe:

1. Start with a flour tortilla and any taco or quesadilla ingredients of your choosing
2. Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut the tortilla halfway through on one side
3. Add your fillings to each quadrant of the circle
4. Starting from one of your cut corners, fold each corner in so each filling has its own little pocket
5. Press it in a panini pan or cook it on a heated skillet on both sides
6. Cut it in half
7. Enjoy a warm, melty quesadilla with all the ingredients in every bite.

Next, we have the infamous Gigi Hadid Pasta. This is a spicy penne vodka recipe that includes chili flakes. All you need is yellow onions, garlic, tomato sauce, heavy cream, vodka (if over 21), and chili flakes. Bring water to a boil, then add your penne pasta (let it boil for around 7 minutes). Dice half of a yellow onion and crush two cloves of garlic (separate two from the bulb, then use the flat part of a knife to flatten it, then peel off the skin). In a skillet, sautée the onion until it is fragrant, then add the garlic and the tomato sauce. Let this cook for a few minutes. Then, pour the heavy cream, and vodka over the garlic, tomato sauce, and onions. On medium heat, bring this to a simmer (stirring occasionally) for about ten minutes. After, add your pasta to the skillet, stir, add your chili flakes on top and serve!

For another recipe, we have Lizzo’s “nature’s cereal.” All you need is some fruit of your choice (preferably berries and pomegranate seeds), ice, and coconut water. Put your fruit and ice into a cereal bowl, then pour coconut water over the top. Grab a spoon and enjoy just like you would with any cereal. Finally, the famous mini pancake cereal. First, you make pancake mix and put it in a squeeze jar. Then, you put little dots(about a quarter in size) of your mixture on your pan and cook until golden brown, then flip the pancake to the other side and do the same. Finally, take all your mini pancakes and put them in a bowl and pour cereal over top of them, and enjoy!

All of these recipes are super simple and only take a few key ingredients that most people already have in their pantries. You can look up any of the recipes shared here by going on TikTok and looking up the names stated above. Enjoy and Bon Appetit!