Post-Dorm Room Cooking

Nella Pasta at Crop Circle Kitchen ©Boston Globe

Some recipes that college students may initially be making in their dorm rooms are now becoming their careers. It's pretty exciting, actually. Recent grads are turning their culinary passions - like hand made pasta, gourmet croutons, family-recipe pickles, as well as catering businesses and more - and making them profitable entities with the help of a central kitchen in Boston, called Crop Circle Kitchen. What is Crop Circle Kitchen? It's "Boston's only shared use kitchen and culinary business incubator" according to their website. 


And I think it's a fabulous idea. One of the main obstacles new foodies wishing to make their great ideas a reality face is coming up with a kitchen that meets their needs and the requirements of the health department (we sure could have used something like this when we catered in high school). Crop Circle Kitchen helps them with both, and also provides other resources to make sure these small businesses succeed. As a recent Boston Globe article explains, it's been a very attractive option for recent college graduates. It gives them the tools they need to start and sustain their own business in a field they love. And if you ask me, I'd sure rather be making fresh pasta all day and running my own business than sitting in front of a computer in a big office. 


I just bought some of Grillo's Pickles the other day at Whole Foods, not knowing they are a product of Crop Circle Kitchens. They're absolutely addictive. Let's hope this trend continues to grow, in Boston and beyond. That way, young food start ups can continue to thrive, and we can continue to benefit from their tasty endeavors. 


See also: From Edible Boston Magazine, a related article.