Every week, Miami Student staffers find joy in home-cooked food
Sausage gravy is one of those dishes that can initially be a tough sell. To the untrained eye, its off-white base and brown sausage lumps can seem unappetizing. Those untraveled diners who have never ventured below Ohio's southern border often have an especially strong aversion to the traditionally Dixie breakfast dish.
By no means am I an expert on cooking. I need printed recipes for anything more complicated than an omelet, I couldn't tell you the difference between a rib eye and a red eye and I consider any week in which I have ramen for dinner less than three times a success.
Ratatouille -- just the French name may sound intimidating to novice cooks, but, though it's difficult to spell, this Provencal peasant dish is surprisingly easy to make. The name comes from the term "touiller" which means to toss food and, as many people know, it became more widely known in the United States after the success of a Pixar movie of the same name about a cartoon rat with culinary aspirations.
On Thanksgiving, whiskey sours are just as important as the turkey. Without it, we simply would not be paying tribute to our Irish ancestors. That last bit, I admit, may not be true. My grandmother was raised to believe she was 100 percent Irish - the results from ancestry.com will come in by the end of the month, so we will all be holding our breath until then.
Few issues earn as much ire on Miami's campus as the meal plan. The hours for dining halls are bizarre and unwieldy. Buffet swipes disappear after each semester. The Diplomat Discount, giving 33 percent off every declining balance purchase, is gone.
The Hueston Woods State Nature Preserve comprises 200 acres of beech and maple trees that have never been cut down. Since Matthew Hueston bought the land in 1797 and fell in love with the area and with the production of maple syrup, it has been preserved and protected, and it now represents the largest mature beech maple forest in Ohio.
When senior Natalie Wink talks about beer, a smile stretches across her face. Her eyes light up and there's an excited cadence in her voice as she speaks about porters and IPA's, about different flavor notes and her favorite breweries. She talks not of pitchers and shots, but of community, of the excitement and relaxation associated with "grabbing a beer" as opposed to chugging one.
Stacks of the white paper to-go bags, all branded with the Starbucks logo and soon to be filled with food, sit next to the cashier. Beside the espresso machine, empty cups wait to be filled with warm, frothy coffee or refreshing iced tea.
Tucked away off the Left Field Tavern alleyway lies a cozy establishment with low lights, comfy couches and the best (and only) Middle Eastern food you'll find in Oxford.
By Jake Gold, Senior Staff Writer
By Emma Kinghorn, Staff Writer
By Bonnie Meibers, Senior Staff Writer
By Tess Sohngen, Over-the-Rhine Correspondent
RHA survey shows 91.4 percent of students upset with Miami dining
By Kelly Burns, Staff Writer
By Kerry McFaden, The Miami Student