Julia Edholm ’15 and Julia Pearson ’15
Contributing Writers

Everyone knows that Amherst College has beautiful first-year dorms. Campus tour guides walk prospective students through the entrance of Charles Pratt because they are well aware that the hardwood floors and wood trim will make a striking impression on young high school students. Equipped with hotel-like amenities and daily cleaning services, there is just one thing missing … an actual kitchen.

Although we didn’t mind at first, about halfway through fall semester, we began to realize that we just couldn’t survive without cooking and baking. Creating delicious, exciting food is one of our passions, and we couldn’t let the lack of a kitchen get in our way. So, we began to experiment with the limited equipment in our dorm rooms: electric kettles and mini-fridges.

We found a way to use the steam generated from an electric kettle as a source of heat for a double boiler. This “double-boiler method” became the backbone for many dessert recipes like lemon curd and chocolate truffles. As our skills progressed and our ideas became more inventive, we began to use our kettle as a steamer for frozen veggies, quesadillas and even pot stickers. You can find instructions on how to make your own double boiler on our blog.

Now our blog includes many recipes featuring ingredients that we ‘foraged’ from Val, some simple recipes that only require hot water (like ramen with peanut sauce) and more involved recipes (like chocolate mousse cake). There are even a few that don’t need the kettle, like refrigerator cookies. All in all, there are posts that will interest any student at any college.

For this article, we decided to share the first recipe we ever posted. This one came out during the holiday season in mid-December. Enjoy!

Homemade Peppermint Bark Recipe

Ingredients:
3 mini candy canes (crushed)
1 bar each of your favorite milk, dark and white chocolate
Aluminum foil (for shaping the bark)

Directions:
1.) Fold a sheet of aluminum foil into an open rectangular box (the base should be as long
as the original chocolate bars and just a bit wider).

2.) Break up the milk chocolate and place it in your double boiler.

3.) Stir the chocolate as it melts, keeping it over the kettle until there are no more chunks.

4.) Pour the chocolate onto the aluminum foil and spread evenly over base.

5.) Put in mini-fridge (freezer recommended) for five minutes while you melt next layer of
chocolate.

6.) Add layer of white and return it to the fridge.

7.) Layer on the melted dark chocolate and then sprinkle the crushed peppermint over.

8.) Let bark cool for 10 minutes in the fridge before eating.

9.) Cut into chunks and share with your friends!

For more recipes by Edholm and Pearson, check out their blog, aptly titled “Dorm Room Delights,” at www.dormroomdelights.weebly.com.