If your schedule and poor planning are anything like mine, you’ve been holed up in your room or the library for the past three weeks. But finally, essays are in, exams are over, and the next deadline is at least three weeks away, which is cause for celebration! And why not celebrate as a group? With the spate of rain and snow that has hit Edinburgh, it certainly calls for an inside dinner party with friends. So, settle down, grab a notepad and pen, and begin planning a cost effective way to celebrate the end of mid-terms!
One of the latest food trends to sweep TikTok are themed charcuterie board nights, allowing a cheap alternative to the otherwise expensive practice. Why not go for a chocolate theme, or ‘cozzie livs’ (where all the products are Lidl own-brand and the cumulative price comes to around £8)? Charcuterie boards are a perfect way to try a selection of different foods whilst splitting the cost, as well as being easy to cater for the vegetarians and vegans among us. Pair with a glass of wine to add an element of sophistication (I recommend any of the Tano 5 options in Aldi) that can easily make you forget about the dreary weather and upcoming deadlines.
More recently, my housemates’ have taken it upon themselves to invent a ‘Food Club’. Every other night, one person takes their turn cooking a meal for our group, creating an atmosphere that feels eerily similar to a family dinner.
Not only have I been exposed to a variety of new cuisines (like home-made bao buns!), I’m also learning more about housemates, like who leaves the kitchen the messiest and who to go to if I want a recipe for shakshuka. By cooking for each other, the stress of figuring out what to eat each evening is removed, and when everyone contributes to the washing up and cooking the usually boring tasks associated with meal prep are boring no more.
Learning who can (and who can’t) cook is another way to bond with housemates; add a Spotify playlist and your evening of chatting and eating is complete! Pizza has to be one of my favourite foods; make it home-made, add a Netflix movie, and you have the perfect night in for celebrating the end of mid-terms. Home-made pizza dough is surprisingly easy to make and can be completed in under 20 minutes. Mix together some flour, water, yeast, and salt, and you’re sorted! By making homemade pizza with your friends, it is as much a bonding activity as it is a time for eating, and the surplus of toppings ensures a fun evening of judging one another’s food combos (I stand by pineapple on pizza).
If you’re looking for a slightly sweeter alternative, try pancakes! There’s something heart-warming about failing to flip pancakes in a frying pan and the look of horror on my friend’s face as I add orange juice as a topping (don’t knock it ‘til you try it).
Sometimes, dinner with friends is less about the food and more about the company. I’ve spent plenty of nights splitting a five-person Winter crumble two-ways or dividing up a packet of squashies and sharing a Monster can at one in the morning, only to have some of the best nights of my Uni experience. Though my parents don’t understand the ‘fun’ element, watching Netflix’s Next in Fashion and pretending to be the next Anna Wintour, or losing to my friends in a game of cards, are shaping up to be some of my favourite evenings. As long as the company is good and the atmosphere is warm, there is no better way to celebrate the end of mid-terms.
Credited image ‘Dinner Party’ via Tom Manning