Well --I made a yummy pot of curry lentil soup last week-- froze half and ate a bowl for dinner every night (hubby was out of town, so this was easy). Fills you up and you get your protein and carbs. Soups with beans/lentils are good for you and last for a while too and can be frozen. I am not a vegitarian, but its cheaper than meat.

I'm in the same situation you are. I'm a student working in a summer student position. A few months ago I was going all out on eating as healthy and "properly" as I could. But what ended up slimming down was my bank account.

I've found that eating healthy and keeping a budget isn't really that hard. Granted, I have cut back on fresh vegatables and meat. The only fresh veggies I get regularily now is romaine lettuce or spinach, and tomatoes. The rest of my vegetables are canned. Beans (as in, green and yellow), corn, peas, zuccini. These are all really cheap, one can is usually about 2 or 3 servings, and they're super easy to cook. As for meat, I buy what's on sale, and esspecially if it's a good sale, I stock up. I recently got 12 pieces of decent steak for $11 (Canadian). When I got home I wrapped them all individually and froze them. Mostly I stick to chicken and cheap fish though. Canned beans and cans of chilli are also great, inexpensive sources of protien. And they're delicious with shredded cheese on top. Oats are also a life saver. Buy the big bag of plain rolled oats, I think it costs less than a box of cereal, and it will last you 10 times as long. Put 1/3 cup of oats and 2/3 cup of water in a bowl, and microwave for 2 mins. Add brown sugar or fruits for more flavour. Awesome breakfast.
A key thing to remember is, if you are going to cook something, cook a lot of it and you can eat the leftovers for the next few days. It's also incredibly uplifting to come home and realize that supper is already waiting for you in the fridge.

Oh and, when I feel like a treat.... oven pizzas, like the Delissio ones. At their most expensive they're about $8 (again, Canadian) and they're about as big as a medium, which some places I'ver ordered from charge about $20.

Sorry for the long answer, but like I said, I'm in the same situation, so hopefully this is helpful to you. Good luck with 'tri-ing' to eat right...

i have really found making a casserole - then cutting it up and freezing it in serving sizes.... pull one out and make a salad....trying to do tht once a week to mix in with your other meals really helps nutrition wise and it helps money wise too.

i know you were looking for things other than pasta.. but i love this receipe - its super easy and quick and freezes really well -
one box regular uncooked pasta
one jar tomato/spagetti sauce approx 28 oz
2 cups shreaded cheese mozzarella...

dump pasta in 9x13 casserole dish
dump in sauce
fill up sauce jar with water
dump that in...
mix it all up
cover with foil and heat for 30 min at 375
uncover and cover with cheese and bake for 10 more min.
you can add - anything you want... spinach, browned ground beef, turkey, etc......

Tough Call. I've seen from other posts that you are in the south of France, so that means I'm not familiar with local options. So I'll give you the best simple ideas I can.

1. Get rid of your microwave. As a college student you have more time available than you realize. Take the time to learn to cook and enjoy the process. By doing this you will naturally eat better and healthier. This will be hard, but will pay more dividends than you can imagine.
2. Diversify your palette. Meaning, be willing to try lots of different stuff. I would guess there are local options for many veggies, fruits, etc. Often the local stuff can be found cheaper if you get it direct( go to the farm, or farmer's market and haggle). This means though that it has to be in season locally and therefore you have to eat whatever is in season. Hence, expand the palette.
3. Garbage in, Garbage out. Healthy and expensive are not directly correlated. It will take lss food to fill up and give you the nutrients you nedd if is good quality food.

Good Luck, and I fully understand if these don't work out. They're tough but worth it.

Clearly you have not been to France :) If I lived there, no way would I be making my own bread. There it is cheap, wonderful, fresh and readily avail. Years ago it was government subsidized because they felt everyone should have bread (at the least) to eat. Normally yes you are correct making it would be the best option.

Please share how you make a fig newton.

+1 TryScott. I buy the small red potatoes but any potato is quick and easy in the microwave. I use old bay seasoning on potatoes and chicken. I have a receipe to make taco mix. I make it because I eat a diet without a lot of processed foods and I am sure the taco mix bought in the store is cheaper than making it. I put it on black beans in a tortillia with cheese. The beans provide protien while the wrap provides the carbs. You can buy chicken in a can like you can buy tuna. I would image you could mix the chicken with the taco mix also and throw that in a soft shell with some cheese. Eggs - pretty inexpensive and of course the whites are excellent for protien. Don't eat to many yolks though. You can make eggs in the microwave also.