After the jitters of welcome week wear off, most students notice that running to the dining hall every time they’re hungry isn’t exactly realistic, and realize they need some easy snacks for college or university.
Luckily, there are so many creative ways to make tasty and cheap snacks with the limited kitchen equipment you have. Everything from mug cakes to good-enough mac and cheese is possible with a microwave. And there are plenty of other sweet and savory treats that don’t require any cooking at all.
Related: College Kitchen Essentials for Cooking and Meal Prep
Keep these 30 quick and easy snacks for college in mind the next time your stomach starts to growl. There are a few ingredients you’ll need to stock up on in advance to be able to make these dorm snacks whenever you want—like fresh fruits and veggies, canned chickpeas, snack pack tuna, and Greek yogurt. But many others can be whipped up with whatever your parents sent in their last care package! Remember to always keep an eye out for free food around campus, and grab extras from the dining hall when you can!
Sweet treats – easy snacks for college
- Mug cakes and muffins
- Nutella and strawberry sandwich: This one tastes great grilled or un-grilled. No stove or panini press? Toast the bread before putting everything together for a similar effect!
- Trail mix: You can buy this premade of course, but it’s also a great idea to buy each separate ingredient in bulk and mix everything together so that you have plenty to share with roommates.
- Nutribullet smoothies: Making smoothies requires having a blender, but not all blenders take up a bunch of space. Nutribullets, for example, are low-cost and ideal for small spaces.
- Chocolate-covered espresso beans: This is another college snack you can buy pre-made or easily make yourself. Melt chocolate in a bowl in the microwave, toss in the beans, spread it out on a plate so they don’t all clump together, and transfer to the fridge until they’re cool enough to enjoy.
- Frozen fruit and yogurt bark
- Frozen grapes
- Apples and caramel sauce
- Fresh fruit and chocolate fondue: This is another idea that you can use the microwave chocolate melting trick to achieve.
Related: Meal Prep Sandwiches and Wraps
Protein-packed snacks
- Crackers, cheese, and pepperoni: This grown-up Lunchable is the perfect dorm room snack.
- Pita bread and hummus: Pro tip: Buy plain hummus and season it with your favorite spices to give it a little something special.
- Cottage cheese and Fritos ( or any chip you love)
- Energy balls You can keep these really basic or add in your favorite sweets!
- Avocado on rice cakes/ bread with everything seasoning: These are great with or without the seasoning. But it’s always nice to have another reason to swing by Trader Joe’s.
- Deli meat roll-ups with cream cheese
- Apples and peanut butter
- Lettuce wraps with pre-cooked, shredded rotisserie chicken: Costco’s rotisserie chickens are every college student’s dream come true—they’re already cooked and ready to go. Shred some off with a fork and wrap it up in a piece of lettuce or tortilla for a quick snack.
Related: No-Cook Meals: Three Vegan Recipes You Can Make Without A Kitchen
Salty snacks for college
- Veggies and ranch dip
- Celery and peanut butter
- Olives and mozzarella balls: Those packs of tiny mozzarella balls are perfect for dorm life. Skewer them on a toothpick with olives or tomatoes and basil for a fancy-ish experience.
- Chips with salsa and guac (Pro tip: if you don’t want to make full-on guacamole, you can simply combine avocado and salsa! The individual guacamole packs from Wholly are also great.)
- Popcorn with parmesan cheese: Microwave popcorn is infinitely better with a dash of parmesan cheese. Vegan? Sprinkle on nutritional yeast for a similar effect.
- Baby carrots and pesto: Store-bought pesto is the easiest option for this quick snack, but you can also use a Nutribullet to whip up your own if you’re up to it.
- Avocado Toast
Mini Meals
- Greek yogurt, sliced fruit, honey, and granola
- Easy mac with a snack pack of tuna: Microwavable mac and cheese is great on its own but even better with a bit of tuna.
- Microwave quesadilla
- Instant oatmeal with fruit and nuts: No fresh fruit on hand? Freeze-dried fruit works great in recipes like this because the hot water brings it back to its original glory.
- Cup of noodles with egg and frozen veggies: While you can totally add fresh veggies to this, using frozen veggies eliminates the need for any chopping or washing. Plus, less cleanup!
- Instant grits with cheddar and bacon bits: No need to grill your own bacon for this. Pre-cooked, shelf-stable bacon bits are easy to find at most supermarkets.
- Chickpea salad wrap: Prep a bunch of this easy, no-cook chickpea salad to eat it in all sorts of different applications throughout the week. Try it in a sandwich, lettuce wrap, or even as a dip with chips.
Here are our top product recommendations that will make putting these snacks together a breeze!
- Multi-purpose electric kettle
- Microwave cover
- Microwave noodle bowl
- Mug for mug cakes
- Leak-proof food containers
- Stainless steel bento box
- Classic lunch box
I hope this list of easy snacks for college gave you ideas of what you can eat when you can’t make it to the dining hall! Make sure to check out our other posts below for more great resources!
- College Meal Prep Tips Every Student Needs To Know
- College Kitchen Essentials For Basic Cooking and Meal Prep
- 10 Best Lunch Boxes for Food on the Go
- Intro to Intuitive Eating
- No-Cook Meals: Three Vegan Recipes You Can Make Without A Kitchen
- 25 Easy Teacher Lunch Ideas To Meal Prep
- Meal Prep On A Budget: Spend $25 On Food This Week
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