As a college student, Eric Hites learned just how far he could stretch a dollar by combining a package of ramen noodles with some odd ingredients out of his nearly bare kitchen cupboards and a little imagination. Living on a tight budget, Hites and his friends spent many nights of fun, laughter, and experimentation figuring out how they could concoct original, cheap yet tasty meals from the only food they could truly afford: ramen noodles.It later occurred to Hites that he should collect and compile the recipes he and his friends had had so much fun inventing. Everybody Loves Ramen is filled with 50 innovative recipes-from Stroganoff Ramen Style to Easy Cheezy Ramen to Elvis's Fav' Gravy Ramen-as well as "ramen factoids," funny stories, games, and puzzles all related to our favorite low-cost snack food.Everybody Loves Ramen will make the perfect gift for a high school graduate, college student, single friend living on a tight budget, or anyone who, like Hites, remembers the days when a package of ramen was haute cuisine. Told in a humorous style, Everybody Loves Ramen will be both a cookbook and a book of fun.
I have always been involved in a variety of creative activities. As a child I started a number of small businesses to have fun and earn money. I sold drinks on the street corner of our small town with my best friend Darby. I used my artistic talents to create stick art to sell to my classmates. As a high school student I traded and sold comic books and baseball cards for extra money. I was the editor of my high school newspaper and in that position I produced a superhero comic featuring a caricature of my journalism teacher. All copies sold very quickly. Many of my caricatures of teacher were featured in my senior yearbook.
Since graduation from high school I have been working toward my degree in graphic design. I have also worked as a temporary layout design artist and an ad specialist for a local weekly newspaper. This was one of my most rewarding experiences. Then I worked for a printing company, where I learned how books were manufactured. For 6 years I was a manager and or cook at various pizza shops including "Papa John's Pizza." In recent years I have owned and operated a bar in Terre Haute Indiana called "Club 300" (where by the way I met my lovely wife) and after that I owned and operated my own pizza shop named "Hungry Hootie's" and in these experiences I learned the importance or organization, preparation, and clear management instructions to keep my stores running smoothly. I also expanded my culinary knowledge and created my own dishes and variations of dishes for my bar and restaurant. Alas, the bar and pizza shop are no more due to the current economic crisis, but the skills I learned and my experiences have given me much insight on what people like to eat and how to do it quickly, cheaply and still taste great.
As a counselor and a cooking instructor at "Ryves Hall Youth Center" in Terre Haute Indiana, I had the opportunity to work with children of all ages, something I enjoy very much. In this position I needed to work creatively to transform the donations of food from the local food bank into dinner each day for 50+ kids and adults. This was challenging because I had to use whatever food was provided that day in the local food bank to prepare these meals. Most of the time, I had to create my own recipes, just to have an interesting and appetizing meal to serve. Part of my job was to teach the kids to prepare and serve meals. In this way I was able to help prepare them to feed themselves as well as equip them for a future job in food service.
I first started cooking a lot for myself as a college student. I was on a very tight budget and I had to keep my expenses down. I never had the equipment I needed to prepare some of my dishes so I improvised a lot. From this experience I gained the knowledge to write my first book, "Everybody Loves Ramen." It has also helped me prepare for this current project, "Dorm Room Dining" I have talked to a lot of students and young people to find out what they like to eat and what they would like to try to prepare in their dorm room.
Now, I am a married man. I have a wonderful wife, Angie; and she is the light of my life. We have been married for a year and I hope many more to come. We live in the town of Rockville, Indiana, where we get to experience many unique and tasty foods at the "Covered Bridge Festival." She encourages me to try new things, and supports me in my Full time profession as a Disc Jockey. We take turns in the kitchen as she is a wonderful cook. I only dream to make fried chicken as good as hers. As I have aged, so have my skills as a chef, and a teacher.
